Chaparral had come out slowly in recent games, senior guard Josh Adams said, so the Wolverines wanted to make a point.
They grabbed the lead early and held on to it Friday night as Adams and Cory Calvert further underlined their status as Colorado’s top guard duo in a convincing 76-61 victory over Columbine in Class 5A’s Great 8 at the Denver Coliseum.
Chaparral (23-3) will play fellow Continental League member Highlands Ranch in the final four at the University of Colorado in Boulder on Thursday. It’s the first trip to the semifinals in program history.
Columbine, which won its first Jefferson County League title in more than a decade, ended 21-5.
“We wanted to come out and do something about that,” Adams, bound for Wyoming, said of previous mediocre starts.
The 6-foot-1 Adams did plenty, scoring 30 points, getting to the basket regularly, dunking twice and sparking a Wolverines team that displayed speed, quickness and athleticism the Rebels simply couldn’t handle.
“We’ve got some speed,” Chaparral coach Rob Johnson said.
Only problems with running its delay game late, which Johnson said his team will need next week, kept the score close. Adams, Calvert (17 and signed with BYU), Reece Elliott (11) and Brandon Malone (10) kept the Rebels chasing.
Columbine, Johnson said, actually played well and had lots of moments.
“(The Rebels) were tough,” he said.
However, despite 26 points by Nick Carpinello, including six 3-pointers, and 10 points by Josh Daly, the Rebels also were beaten down the floor and to the basket regularly, and had eight shots blocked.
“They hit shots early and they shot the heck out of it,” Thielking said.
Columbine got within 12 points late, but ran out of time and Chaparral went on another binge.
“We could never string together stops,” Thielking said.
It’s difficult when facing a team with two Division I guards.
Of the schools’ first semifinals, Johnson, said, “we’re looking forward to it.”
