BOULDER — One of basketball’s oldest adages is a simple one: you can’t teach height. And that goes a long way to explain why the Broomfield girls are once again Class 4A champions.
The Eagles’ 55-47 victory over Longmont on Thursday night at CU’s Coors Events Center was almost entirely due to their length, whether it manifested itself in the trapping defense that forced 30 Trojans’ turnovers or the inside pindowns on offense that led to numerous layups and free throws.
Even so, that sizeable advantage was barely enough to hold off the game Trojans (24-3), who came this close to preventing Broomfield (27-1) from taking its fourth straight title.
Over the last five years, the Eagles have laid their opposition to waste, going 133-5.
It was hard to tell whether it was nerves, the palpable intensity emanating throughout the building, great defense or just awful basketball that was on display for much of the opening half. A 12-0 run by the Eagles to close the first half gave them a 24-23 edge at intermission.
That spurt was certainly helped by the six turnovers committed by Longmont in the final 3:30 of the second period. For the half, the Trojans were guilty of 16 miscues; perhaps even more damaging was the fact that star guard Jamie Katuna finished the half with three personal fouls.
However, Broomfield really wasn’t much better off in any aspect of play. The Eagles had eight turnovers of their own and center Renae Walters had three personal fouls.
Longmont took a 47-46 lead with 2:25 to play in the game, but as was the case in the opening half, the Eagles took control in the latter stages, closing the game with a 9-0 run.
Anthony Cotton: 303-954-1292 or acotton@denverpost.com
