FORT COLLINS — Aspen didn’t play its best game Thursday against Manitou Springs at Moby Arena, but the Skiers know it’s going to take a near-flawless game from the opposition to lose.
Case in point: Aspen went just 9-for-25 from the free-throw line, something coach Steve Ketchum called simply embarrassing, but still won .
The Mustangs kept within shouting distance into the fourth quarter, despite turning the ball over 20-plus times.
“We certainly had our chances,” Mustangs coach Ken Vecchio said. “When we did what we were supposed to do, we got pretty good looks, but too many times we made a hurried decision.”
Aspen’s Andrew Papenfus scored 23.
In other games:
• Buena Vista senior Josh Morgan scored 27 points in a win over Peak to Peak.
• Kent Denver’s Jared Smith scored 24 points and Matt Brittan added 16 in a win over Pagosa Springs.
• Top-seeded and two-time defending champion Faith Christian shot 77.8 percent (14-of-18) in the first half of a win over Eaton. Joel Hegarty scored 16 points to lead the Eagles.
Girls
It’s rare that the No. 1-seeded team, sporting a perfect record and a victory over the two-time defending Class 3A champions, would not be favored or get the respect a top seed deserves.
But in the case of Colorado Springs Christian, it’s a reality.
The Lions (25-0) wasted little time flexing their muscles against crosstown rival St. Mary’s, making a 26-7 halftime lead stand up for a victory.
“I just don’t and can’t worry about that kind of stuff,” Lions coach Lisa Guhl said. “Really, we are just so focused on one game at a time that a lot of other people can be excited about the No. 1.”
The Lions make their hay on the defensive end and it showed against the smaller Pirates in the first half. St. Mary’s made just 3-of-22 shots in the first 16 minutes.
“We were really pleased with the defensive effort,” Guhl said. “The girls kind of came out in a nice place. They weren’t nervous and came out focused.”
While the bigs altered shots, guards Becca Bultje and Sarah Guhl drew the assignment of slowing down reigning Class 3A Ms. Basketball, Christina Whitelaw. Mission accomplished — Whitelaw finished with three points on 1-for-14 shooting.
“The one thing we were trying to avoid was letting them get a big lead,” Whitelaw said.
In other games:
• Two-time defending champion Holy Family rolled to a win over Brush.
• Pagosa Springs, led by 20 points and 10 rebounds from Mary Brinton, defeated Estes Park .
• Olathe remained unbeaten with a win over Coal Ridge.
