PUEBLO WEST — Ian Imamura was steaming. He wasn’t helping his Pueblo West teammates with the Class 4A South Central League lead on the line as he got into foul trouble.
However, The Denver Post 2010 Gold Helmet winner from the past football season channeled his anger by scoring the Cyclones’ first eight points of the second half as they earned a regular-season sweep of rival Pueblo East 61-52 on Friday night.
Ranked No. 2 in The Denver Post/9News 4A poll, host Pueblo West, in front of a capacity crowd that sold out during the third quarter of the junior-varsity game, moved to 19-2 overall, 10-0 in league. The Cyclones clinched at least a tie for the SCL crown — their only other league title in boys basketball was in 1999-2000, in the Southern — and dropped the third-ranked Eagles to 16-3, 8-2.
Imamura, who will play football at the Air Force Academy, admitted that he “was mad, I was pressing. I didn’t think they were fouls.”
But once he gathered himself, his eight-point binge, including a rousing follow-up dunk, helped spark the Cyclones against the resilient Eagles. Pueblo West constantly had to fend off the Eagles, but Imamura (15 points, 13 after halftime) and Brandon Jackson, Garrett Miller and Connor Roumph (12 each) finished with their usual strong, complete efforts.
Imamura grabbed six rebounds in the second half, blocked a shot and added two assists. Roumph scored eight points in the second quarter, Jackson came alive late and Miller kept the Eagles’ defense chasing by making four 3-pointers.
“Just an all-around good win for our kids,” said Pueblo West coach Bobby Tyler, whose team can win the SCL outright with victories over Cañon City or Pueblo County next week.
Conversely, the Eagles, state runners-up the past season, may still be kicking themselves. They competed well enough, coach Dave Ryder said, and they received another strong effort from senior all-state guard Jordan Gregory (24 points), but beyond the turnover problems at key times, the Eagles missed assignments, forgot to play defense and stumbled when it counted.
“Mental mistakes kill you. They make you pay,” Ryder said.
Pueblo East 13 13 13 13 — 52
Pueblo West 7 21 14 19 — 61
Pueblo East — Gregory 8 6-9 24, Versteeg 1 6-8 9, Parks 4 1-1 9, Morgan 0 0-0 0, Lewis 1 1-2 4, Ibarra 1 0-0 2, Gavin 2 0-0 4. Totals 17 14-20 52.
Pueblo West — Roumph 4 4-6 12, Montera 3 0-0 7, Miller 4 0-0 12, Imamura 6 3-4 15, Kennedy 1 0-2 2, Jackson 5 2-4 12, Balagat 0 1-2 1. Totals 23 10-18 61.
3-pt. goals: Pueblo East — Gregory 2, Versteeg, Lewis. Pueblo West — Miller 4, Montera.
Neil H. Devlin: 303-954-1714 or ndevlin@denverpost.com
