The annual Carey Game, in which father coaches against son, ended in the usual manner, but featured two different stories as next Sunday’s Class 5A seeding meeting approaches.
East, coached by Rudy Carey, handled Montbello, headed by son David Carey, 75-65 on Saturday afternoon at the Thunderdome as the Angels neared another Denver Prep League championship.
Having won more than a dozen city titles since Rudy Carey came over from Manual in the early 1990s, the Angels, No. 4 in The Denver Post/9News Class 5A poll, lead George Washington by a game with two to play.
But the two-time defending state champions still haven’t played with consistency and haven’t been sure which team will show up — the group that has shown flashes of improvement and presents a solid argument about a three-peat or the one that plays sloppily and has trouble shaking an opponent.
“We still need to work on a lot of things to think about a championship,” East senior forward Troy Wiese said. “We’re happy with the win, but not how we played.”
Said Rudy Carey: “It’s always weird coaching against David . . . but we’re still not playing well and it’s the same thing: We can beat anybody, anybody can beat us.”
East is bidding for one of the top four seeds. It has history and probably 5A’s most difficult schedule on its side.
The sharp play that has evaded East much of the season appeared sporadically Saturday, when Wiese, who got going from the perimeter, and DaVaughn Thornton carried the load.
While East led for much of the game, it never really shook younger Montbello (12-9, 3-3). David Carey’s team was overmatched but game, and can sense a reasonable chance to make the 48-team bracket.
“I think we’re getting closer to becoming a solid team at the perfect time of the season,” he said.
Wiese (21 points) led four Angels in double figures. Sean Edwards paced the Warriors with 20.
Montbello 17 10 22 16 — 65
East 14 20 20 21 — 75
Montbello — Wilson 1 0-2 2, Harrison 4 0-0 10, Taylor 6 1-2 13, Cooper 4 3-6 12, Elwood 0 0-0 0, Edwards 8 4-8 20, Cherry 2 2-3 6, Coles 1 0-0 2. Totals 26 10-21 65.
East — Hildreth 1 3-7 5, Thornton 5 4-6 14, Wiese 8 2-2 21, Hampton 0 0-0 0, Moore 1 0-0 2, Merriex 5 5-6 17, Hilaire 6 1-4 13, Davis 0 3-4 3, Watts 0 0-0 0. Totals 26 18-29 75.
3-pt. goals — Harrison 2, Cooper; Wiese 3, Merriex 2. Total fouls — Montbello 24, East 19. Fouled out — Wilson, Watts, Thornton. Technicals — Davis.
