Carter Kreischer drew a last-second charge to send Lewis-Palmer past Pueblo West, 56-54, and back into the Class 4A state title game for a second straight season.
With the Rangers leading by two with under ten seconds to play, Cyclones senior Nieyem’e Smeyer-Williams drove hard to the bucket and hit a running lay-up with about a half-tick left.
But Lewis Palmer’s fifth charge call of the game negated the score — and caused an uproar from the Cyclones’ fans — as the Rangers advanced for a shot at championship redemption after falling to Valor Christian in the title last season.
This was the game deciding play
Pueblo West 54
Lewis Palmer 56— BasketballColorado (@Bball_CO)
The first quarter was low scoring, with the Rangers leading 10-8 as each team attempted to settle in. But the pace picked up in the second, and Lewis-Palmer used junior forward Joel Scott’s put-back at the buzzer to take a 30-25 advantage into halftime.
Intensity picked up on both ends of the floor in the third, with the Cyclones repeatedly almost taking the lead, only for the Rangers to strike back each time.
And it was Lewis-Palmer that, again, came up with a buzzer-beating basket to give the Rangers momentum when junior guard Ethan Forrester sunk a long three to make it 42-36 heading into the final frame.
Scott led the Rangers with 17 points and 10 rebounds, while junior guard Matthew Ragsdale — who hit the game-winning three against Widefield in the Great 8 — had 12 points. Smeyer-Williams paced the Cyclones with 22 points, while senior guard Pierre Taylor had 12.
No. 2 Lewis-Palmer (25-2, Pikes Peak League champions) takes on No. 5 Longmont on Saturday at 3 p.m., back at the Coliseum. No. 6 Pueblo West finished 20-7.
