Johnson, who previously coached DU women’s basketball from 2008-12, was announced as the Pioneers’ next head coach on Monday. That day, he met with the current DU team virtually, told his players at Fairfield (where he was an assistant) he was leaving, and remembered his late son, Davis, while eating that mac and cheese.

Monday would have been . Johnson’s son died at age four as a result of complications from intestinal malrotation in the middle of the coach’s first tenure at DU. Johnson, and their two daughters have celebrated his life every April 20 since he died by eating his favorite dish, one that he requested for his third birthday party where the little boy celebrated with Pioneers players.

“Davis’ birthday is always hard,” Johnson said. “It doesn’t feel right to do a birthday cake, but it doesn’t feel right also to ignore it. So mac and cheese became our family’s tradition to honor him. On Monday, I wasn’t with my family, but they were together, and they had mac and cheese.

“(Fairfield head coach) knew that I was in the office cranking away, trying to return phone calls and get staffing and recruiting going for Denver. So she went out and got takeout mac and cheese for me and brought it into the office and shared it with me, because she didn’t want me to have to be alone. Finding people like that (in this profession) that take care of you, it’s what helps get you through every day.”

Johnson was officially introduced as DU’s new/old head coach on Thursday at Hamilton Gymnasium inside the Ritchie Center, in what he called a “full-circle moment” in a place where the family’s memories of Davis still resonate. Johnson arrives back in Denver following a successful stint at Fairfield, where the Stags won three MAAC Championships and made three NCAA Tournaments in the last four seasons. Prior to that, he was the head coach at Boston College for six seasons, the job he left DU for.

The UC San Diego alum led the Pioneers to a program-best four straight winning seasons in his first stint, going 72-52 with a WNIT appearance in 2011. DU beat four Power 4 teams during that time — Minnesota, Oregon, Colorado and Vanderbilt — and went 24-4 at home over his final two seasons.

But Johnson struggled to replicate that success at Boston College, where he never had a winning campaign. His tenure there ended after the Eagles went 7-23 in 2017-18.

“You could argue that I never should have left Denver, because my family loved it here, and we had a great thing going,” Johnson said. “But I don’t live my life like that (by looking in the rearview). Which is why I’m so thankful for the opportunity to be able to come back, and put DU back on the map.”

Since the departure of Johnson — not to be confused with the former Avalanche player — the Pioneers have struggled.

DU’s had just two winning seasons in the last 14, and went 11-19 in 2025-26 under former head coach Doshia Woods. Johnson will have to rebuild the program at a time when the difficulty of its conference play escalates, as the Pioneers are moving from the Summit League to the West Coast Conference for this upcoming season.

Pioneers acknowledged the Pioneers’ athletic department “isn’t going to win (NIL) bidding wars (for players). We’ve got to focus on fit, and people who want to be here for really holistic reasons.” That philosophy extends to women’s basketball, which gets a much smaller portion of revenue-sharing money relative to men’s basketball and hockey.

In terms of venue, Hamilton Gymnasium, despite a planned upgrade ahead of next season to replace the current bleacher bench system with individual chairback seats, will be one of the smallest basketball facilities in the WCC with a capacity of around 2,000. More upgrades are expected to Hamilton over the next couple years as the university pursues a true arena vibe like most of the Pioneers’ future conference rivals already have.

“We want to see energy, progress, excitement, we want to see (Hamilton) packed,” DU vice chancellor for athletics Josh Berlo said. “We want to start talking about moving games, on occasion, into Magness Arena. We want to see a lot of what we see around a lot of our other programs: Success. It’s a journey, and it’s a space we haven’t conquered yet.”

Johnson said he plans on selling DU’s high-academic experience, its location and its culture in his recruiting, and focusing less on the Pioneers’ new, more prestigious conference affiliation. With that approach, he believes the women’s basketball program can take steps towards achieving consistency on the hardcourt. Berlo has called it the “last frontier” of DU athletics, considering the school’s national relevance in sports such as hockey, skiing, lacrosse, gymnastics and soccer.

“I feel like I oversold the ACC when I was at Boston College,” Johnson said. “The move to the WCC, it’s great and awesome, but we’re not going to be out there with recruits going, ‘Hey, come play in the WCC,’ because you know what, if that kid’s that good, she’s probably going to be recruited by the whole league.

“So we need to be all about Denver, and why we’re different and special and are going to be compete at the highest level in this league. So I need to do a better job than I did at BC of staying true to that and not being about the status, the glitz and the glamor (of a new conference). We’re going to push resources, and we’re going to be creative with our recruiting.”

While DU’s men’s basketball team faces the same challenge — the Pioneers just completed the first season under head coach Tim Bergstraser with a 15-17 record, and have not had a winning season since 2016-17 — Johnson knows a pillar of his recruiting must be getting top local talent to stay home in a state that has produced Division I girls hoops recruits in droves over the past few decades.

The Pioneers probably won’t get Colorado’s five-star prospects, but Johnson says the program will make a play for those players regardless. If DU can corral some of the state’s three-star players, and maybe even a four-star or two, it could turn quickly turn the Pioneers’ fortunes. Johnson will also need to be successful in keeping good players once he gets them, a staple of the success that his Fairfield staff had, and also find some hidden gems in the transfer portal.

“The high school and club coaches of Colorado feel the same way I do — they know we’ve got great players in this state,” Johnson said. “One of my goals is to have DU be a place that’s Colorado central.”

While Johnson works to set his staff and get re-settled on Buchtel Boulevard, those who know what the coach is capable of at DU have high expectations. The Pioneers have made the NCAA Tournament once, a first-round loss in 2001 after they shared the regular-season Sun Belt title with Louisiana Tech.

“If I look in my crystal ball, we’d be up there in the WCC year-after-year and we’re going to be perennially competitive,” said Emiko Smith, who played point guard for DU from 2009-13, the first three of those seasons under Johnson. “We should be knocking on people’s doors (for non-conference match-ups with bigger schools). Whether it’s the NCAA Tournament or the WNIT, making some sort of postseason play is the expectation moving forward.”

Robinson and Celena Miller were hoopers at the University of Denver at the time, and one day on the walk to the arena to prepare for a game, Miller broke out in song.

“The first time I really heard her sing, I was speechless and I was stunned,” Robinson recalled. “It was a situation where we were walking along, and she thought she could drop a couple notes and it wasn’t going to be a big deal. But I stopped in my tracks and was like, ‘Wait, what? You can ���𲹱�������sing.’

“‘So don’t stop. You need to run that back, Celena. Like, you need to sing to me all the time. And right now, I need a few more bars out of you. Go ahead and sing that song and absolutely jam it.'”

Fast forward nearly two decades, and Miller is still chasing the confluence of two dreams.

The Denver East girls hoops coach was named the 2026 Women’s Basketball Coaches Association’s on March 26 at the NCAA Final Four in Phoenix. And while the Hinkley High School alum has been a critical part of Angels head coach Carl Mattei’s staff as the program returned to relevance with consecutive Denver Coliseum appearances, Miller keeps belting out notes that are impossible to ignore.

Under her stage name Lady Los, Miller is one of the top R&B singers in Colorado. Her smooth, soulful voice earned her . She’s performed all around the city, including as an opener for Grammy Award-winning artists Common and Durand Bernarr, and has sang at out-of-state festivals.

Mattei lauded Miller, who coaches the Angels’ C-team and works with the varsity guards, as a unicorn at the intersection of sports and music.

“She’s able to prioritize both basketball and singing/songwriting, and prioritize her time to where she can have extreme success at both,” Mattei said. “She’s a rarity in that sense. She has these dual passions she pursues with equal force.

“When she told me she opened for Common, I’m like, ‘OK, what can’t you do?’ And then she just starts giggling. I’m like, ‘OK, whatever Celena, see you at practice.’ Just imagine me opening for Whitney Houston, and how absurd that would be.”

Finding harmony in dual pursuits

Miller, who originally got to know Mattei by playing for his Mile Hi Magic club, grew up in a musically inclined household. She and her family would sing at church, on the way to games, and harmonize together in the living room.

As a player, Miller was a “tough, greedy kind of a guard in terms of her competitive demeanor and a take-no-prisoners kind of mentality,” explained CU assistant coach , who was Miller’s point guard coach at DU.

Miller translated that fierceness from her game into her coaching, noting that “nothing matters more to me than being able to empower young women through basketball and give them something that they can invest in themselves for their entire life, much like how this game helped fuel my journey through my music career.”

“I hope people can see what the girls on our team are doing — how they’re growing, improving, and succeeding — and I hope it makes them want to come play at East (and not open enroll elsewhere),” Miller added. “I hope they know they’re going to have the best preparation for playing at the next level and they don’t have to leave the city to do that.”

Miller started her coaching career as an assistant at Kent Denver, where she also taught PE. It was during that time that she realized she was in danger of leaving her music dream in the dust. She was a singer in multiple bands, but wasn’t pursuing music full-time.

“The kids were asking me about how I was going after my goals in music, and I realized, I couldn’t speak from experience that I didn’t have,” Miller said. “When they asked me about basketball and how to get somewhere they wanted in the game, I had answers, because I had done that.

“But at that time, I was dedicating all my time and focus to my career, which was education and coaching. And I kept asking myself, ‘Would you be more disappointed if you didn’t even try?’ I had coaches who told me, ‘You only regret the things you don’t do.’ And I didn’t want to have that regret.”

So Miller quit her job as a teacher and dove head-first into music. That was right when the pandemic hit, but Miller pressed on anyway despite not being able to tour.

She officially began her solo career as in 2022, and also founded her own record label and fashion line around the same time, Lady Los Productions. Her upcoming performances are at Equinox Brewing on April 25 as part of, at Two Moons Music Hall on April 30 as part of Freshmode Fest’s , and at Apprentice of Peace Youth Organization on May 1 as part of TheRAPy Sessions.

Robinson says that over the last six years, her favorite part of watching Miller’s full evolution into Lady Los “has been watching her find herself. “

“As a player, Celena always knew the type of player that she was, what she could bring to the game, and she understood where her talent lies,” Robinson said. “It’s the same thing in music. She’s using her craft almost in the same way she did with hoops, to make people feel something.

“For her, the joy of the game is equally tied to the joy of music. She’s finding a way to feel that joy in her life but also when she performs, and people hear her music and the soul that she puts into it, she’s finding a way to give people that joy as well.”

In addition to Miller’s fashion line, the 39-year-old has a day job as a booking agent for a tattoo studio. She’s working on her second studio album while collaborating on singles with various Denver artists and producers and performing with her band, the Moonbeams.

Miller’s ultimate goal is to continue to establish Lady Los, and to sign  for her music to be on shows, movies, and ads. She also wants to be a nationally recognized songwriter.

Amid all that, basketball remains at the forefront, too.

“I want to be able to still be in the gym, coaching basketball, cultivating the next generation of basketball stars and point guards,” Miller said. “I also want to be successful landing some gigs (in the music sphere) so I’m not having to stress about daily income, so that I’m able to invest my time and energy and expertise in the gym at Denver East.

“And so when (the bigger music breakthroughs) come, I hope I’m still there and that we’re still doing this and that we have a state championship under our belt. To be able to accomplish both of those pursuits, that would be the ultimate gift.”

In that moment, the trio of ex-Grandview superstars — Lauren Betts, her younger sister Sienna Betts and UCLA assistant coach Michaela Onyenwere — soaked in the Bruins’ run to the national championship after asserting the potency of Colorado women’s basketball in primetime.

For Lauren, her performance was an exclamation point on a stellar college career that saw her emerge as one of the country’s best players. For Sienna, the season was a prelude to greater things to come. And for Onyenwere, it was a full-circle moment that was easy to believe for those who have tracked the trio since their days dominating high school courts across Colorado.

“Lauren came up to me on the stage and she was like, ‘Michaela, we did it. We won a natty together,’ Onyenwere said.

“Lauren would come to my high school games and she would watch me play, and then both her and Sienna going to the same high school as me, all of us winning (multiple Ms. Colorado Basketball and Gatorade Player of the Year) awards, and now for all three of us to be on that stage accepting the trophy for a Division I national title — it was surreal for us to experience that together.”

An unstoppable force on the court

Lauren had a double-double in the Bruins’ on Sunday, April 5, scoring 14 points with 11 rebounds en route to earning the NCAA Tournament’s Most Outstanding Player. Sienna, a consistent contributor off the bench in 2025-26 despite missing the first part of the season due to tallied four rebounds in the first quarter of the title before a badly sprained ankle knocked her out of the game.

And Onyenwere, the UCLA alum and 2021 WNBA Rookie of the Year who is entering her sixth season in the league, proved to be a key addition to as a hands-on assistant who did everything from scouting to player development to scrimmaging against the starters in practice.

“We were teasing (Onyenwere) in the locker room (after winning the title) and she was really emotional,” Close said in the presser after beating South Carolina. “(Associate head coach) coach Tony (Newnan) was like, ‘About time (we won), we just had to get some better players.’ We were just giving her a hard time.

“… I didn’t know that she was going to be such a dang good coach. She’s really good. She’s probably got a long pro career that she’s going to live out first, but this was even better experiencing this with her than I thought.”

While Onyenwere was a driving force outside the court, Lauren became the Bruins’ unstoppable force on it.

Her college career began with a lost year at Stanford, where she struggled to acclimate both as an athlete and an individual. That led to her transfer to UCLA, but even when she arrived in Westwood, she lacked confidence and wondered whether she wanted to keep playing.

Throughout that time, she remained bogged down by a battle with depression. So much so that during her sophomore year, she checked herself into the hospital and took a leave of absence from the team.

In an essay , Lauren called her mental health “an ongoing project.” But after helping lead her team to the title in Phoenix, she also recognized the impact of being open about her struggles.

“Basketball has given me the platform to change people’s lives,” Lauren said . “I was put on this earth not just to score points, but to help people. I’ve gone through my journey because other people have experienced the same thing, and I’m always going to speak my truth, because I know it’s going to help people.”

Now, Lauren is widely projected to be a top pick in the upcoming WNBA Draft.

ESPN’s latest mock has her going to the Washington Mystics. And while she gears up for her professional career, those closest to Sienna believe the younger sister is about to step out of her sister’s spotlight again, much like how Sienna did at Grandview after Lauren headed to college.

“This year wasn’t the role that Sienna anticipated or wanted (averaging 14.1 minutes per game), but she stayed positive, she stuck with it, and when she had the chance to play, she did really well,” said the sisters’ dad, Andy Betts, who played professionally overseas.

“Next year is going to be her coming-out party, and everyone who might’ve forgotten about her, they’ll see. She’s going to be able to show her full game and full potential at this level.”

Putting Colorado on the map

While the senior Lauren was the face of a stacked Bruins team that is likely to set a WNBA record for the most players drafted from one school in one class in league history, Sienna got to share in Lauren’s limelight in their one collegiate season together.

The two appeared together on the  and also starred in  that ran this season, featuring a cameo by their mom, Michelle Betts. The commercial was filmed in the UCLA gym at Pauley Pavilion.

“I’ve done a whole lot of crying with pride this year, because they’ve done so many amazing things together,” Michelle Betts said.

Lauren said Sienna “understood the moment” when the younger Betts checked into the national championship game. The win over South Carolina was a deja vu title moment, albeit on a much bigger stage, as the sisters also won the CHSAA Class 5A crown when Lauren was a senior and Sienna was a freshman.

“For her to get crucial rebounds, go up against really strong (South Carolina) bigs, that’s huge as a freshman. I’m just really proud of her,” Lauren said. She also told the ESPN telecast that Sienna “made this season my favorite season I’ve ever experienced.”

For Onyenwere, who Close recruited to coach this season instead of going to play in Europe, believes her and the Betts’ role in the Bruins’ first national championship was another significant stamp on the girls basketball legacy of a state that has produced top-end Division I players in droves over the past four decades.

“There has been times where Colorado has been deemed not a basketball state and we’ve been overlooked, or not recruited as much as we should have (as a whole),” Onyenwere said. “But this feat, it definitely communicates not to sleep on Colorado women…. I’m just really proud to represent Colorado, represent Grandview, represent this university and do it alongside two other really talented Colorado women.”

Sr. | G/F | 6-foot-3

Stats: 28.5 points, 6.7 rebounds, 2.4 assists, 1.2 blocks, 3.2 steals, Class 6A Great Eight

The blue-chip Texas signee led the state in scoring in the final chapter of a historic career. She finished as with 3,073 points; the McDonald’s All-American could play any position and is a two-time Ms. Colorado Basketball.

Sr. | SG | 5-foot-11

Stats: 17.0 points, 7.4 rebounds, 2.0 assists, 1.9 steals, Class 6A Final Four

The Wichita State commit has been the centerpiece of the Cougars’ rise to prominence over the past few seasons. A multiple-level scorer who could take over a game at a moment’s notice, Broadus’ leadership was also key for Cherokee Trail’s prominent freshmen.

Sr. | PG | 5-foot-11

Stats: 25.9 points, 7.1 rebounds, 3.5 assists, 4.4 steals, Class 5A Great Eight

Asp could do it all for the Kadets, consistently stuffing the stat sheet as she did as an underclassman at Colorado Springs Christian. A shutdown defender, too. She was committed to Boston College, but reopened her recruitment earlier this week.

Sr. | G/F | 6-foot-2

Stats: 27.7 points, 11.7 rebounds, 1.2 assists, 2.0 steals, Class 5A Sweet 16

The CSU signee was second in the state in scoring to Crittendon and has been a four-year force for the Roughriders, a run that included two state titles. Dominant in the paint while averaging a double-double, Hollier was also a threat from beyond the arc.

Soph. | F | 6-foot-4

Stats: 17.8 points, 7.5 rebounds, 3.2 assists, 4.2 blocks, 3.0 steals, Class 6A Sweet 16

She’s uncommitted, but not for long. Colorado’s next phenom and the early frontrunner for 2027 Ms. Colorado Basketball, Gilpatrick already has a stack of offers from Division I powers. She won gold last summer with the USA Basketball U16 team.

Sr. | SG | 5-foot-11

Stats: 23.1 points, 3.8 rebounds, 2.5 assists, 1.0 blocks, 3.5 steals, Class 6A Great Eight

The Utah commit has been unstoppable the last three seasons for the Eagles. Jones is an elite defender who can score through doubles and junk defenses, and is lethal from 3, shooting 41% from distance in her career. Lengthy, athletic, smart baller.

Soph. | PG/SG | 5-foot-8

Stats: 17.1 points, 3.1 rebounds, 3.4 assists, 2.5 steals, Class 6A state champion

The centerpiece of a young Falcons squad that ran the table to the title in a classification defined by parity, Banks-Thomas was equal parts dynamic scorer and flashy facilitator. The upside of being a pillar in more titles as the Falcons move to 5A is high.

Sr. | F | 6-foot-3

Stats: 16.4 points, 7.3 rebounds, 2.8 assists, 1.1 blocks, 1.8 steals, Class 6A Final 4

The San Diego State commit led the Angels to their first Final Four in 16 years, and her leadership and play also accelerated the progression of Serbian sophomore Mia Avramovic. She consistently dominated the paint and boards and shot 57% from 3-point range.

Coach Caryn Jarocki, Highlands Ranch

Record: 25-3, Continental League champion, Class 6A state champion

The 30th-year Falcons boss and Colorado’s all-time winningest girls coach won her eighth title, but first since 2011. This season was probably her best coaching job yet — the Falcons were young and inexperienced, but Jarocki got the most out of their talent.

Honorable Mention

Delaney Dennis, Jr. F, Northfield; London Taylor, Jr. G, Northfield; Jojo Martin, Fr. G, Standley Lake; Grace Worsley, Jr. F, Windsor; Jayda Rogers, Soph. G, Highlands Ranch; Courtlynn Yaussi, Jr. PG, Loveland; Lauren Thompson, Sr. G, Chaparral; Kennedy Spellman, Sr. G, Eaglecrest; Kiarra Spellman, Jr. G, Eaglecrest; Makenzie Jones, Jr. G, Mullen; Addie Evans, Jr. G, Green Mountain; Austin Duncan, Sr. F, Kent Denver; Berkeley Schenider, Sr. G, Lutheran; Jaya White, Jr. G, Arapahoe; Grace Hall, Jr. G, Denver East; Kantyn Pearson, Sr. G, Green Mountain; Mayce Oberg, Sr. F, Montrose; Izzy Johnston, Sr. G, Arapahoe; Chloe Parker, Sr. G, Riverdale Ridge.

Caryn Jarocki, the architect of the Falcons’ girls basketball dynasty that ripped off seven state titles in the first dozen seasons of this century, hadn’t been to the pinnacle

So in the fall, Jarocki assigned her team some reading: “What It Takes to Win Championships” by Jeff Janssen. Once a week at the start of the Falcons’ open gym, players would sit in a circle on the floor to discuss the book and its relevance to Highlands Ranch’s goals for this winter.

“The book talks about how unselfish you have to be to win a championship, and how you have to be a servant leader and look out for the people on the team, not just yourself,” Jarocki said.

“It’s really kind of an interactive book because there’s questions at the end of every chapter that make them reflect upon themselves and their teammates. The cool thing was that they were really honest with each other about themselves and about their teammates, and they were really good at discussing it.”

The book was a launchpad for the Falcons’ season, which culminated in a Class 6A championship victory over Northfield, earning Jarocki the title of All-Colorado girls’ hoops Coach of the Year.

It was Jarocki’s youngest title team, considering the Falcons had just one major senior contributor in Kniyah Dumas. Highlands Ranch saw four freshmen play significant minutes. Its leading scorer was All-Colorado sophomore guard Kimora Banks-Thomas, and its two main veterans, besides Dumas, were junior twin sisters Addie and Katie Moon.

Getting young Falcons to soar

Jarocki molded that talent and got it to gel at the perfect time with decisive wins over Arapahoe in the Great 8 and Denver East in the Final 4 before beating Northfield 54-51 in a back-and-forth championship. That victory left Highlands Ranch as the last team standing in a parity-laden 6A field with as many as 10 teams that could make a run at the title when the playoffs started. The Falcons ended up winning it as the No. 7 seed.

“At the end of the day, our freshmen didn’t see themselves as freshmen,” Banks-Thomas said. “They saw themselves as contenders, and that’s a credit to Coach J continuing to tell us, ‘Even though you’re young, you can do this. You can win the title.’

“She kept instilling that in us and didn’t stop until we were all dousing each other with water in the locker room (after the championship).”

Kniyah Dumas and freshman Na’Ziah Newbins split the point guard duties this season. Freshman guard Kaze Dumas, as well as freshman forwards Kennedi Toliver and Kylah Murdock, also played important roles. Fittingly, for a team that had to grow up as  it went, it was Newbins who sank two free throws in the waning seconds of the championship to clinch the trophy.

Prior to Newbins stepping to the line, Jarocki pulled Kniyah Dumas aside and told her to pump up her fellow point guard.

“Coach J told me to go over to Newbins and (breathe some) confidence into her,” Kniyah Dumas said. “Basically, calm her down, make sure she wasn’t worried about the crowd. I told her to knock them down and that this was the moment she’s been waiting for all season. It worked, and I think Coach J knew that message would be more effective coming from a fellow player, and not her.”

The Falcons also overcame key injuries en route to the crown. That included being without sophomore guard Jayda Rogers (ankle) and Addie Moon (knee) for about the first month of the season. Then Katie Moon injured her knee late in the regular season but returned in the playoffs and contributed 15 points off the bench in the championship game.

Katie Moon had played just nine combined minutes across the Great 8 and Final 4, but a side chat with Jarocki following those games enabled the junior to finally find her rhythm when the Falcons needed it most.

“(Katie) was forcing things offensively and making a ton of mistakes, so her and I talked after (the Great 8) about that,” Jarocki. “She recognized she was forcing things. I told her to just let the game come to her.

“She had been out for weeks with her injury and she just wanted to be where she was when she left, which was in a great place. But after we talked, she figured it out. And she had a whale of a game in the championship.”

A softer side of Coach J

While Jarocki was pressing all the right buttons, the Falcons coming into their own before her 64-year-old eyes unveiled a different side of the seasoned, usually serious coach. That was evident when she came into the Highlands Ranch locker room following the team’s Great 8 victory.

“We had the Final 4 plaque in the middle and we were all sitting around it, chanting, ‘Final 4! Final 4!’ and Coach J walked in and started chanting it with us,” Banks-Thomas said. “That was a family moment for this team, because we definitely tapped into a side of Coach J that I’ve never seen before. We tapped into her happy side. We saw so many smiles.”

And tears, too, which was a first for Kniyah Dumas.

“She actually cried when she talked to me and another senior after the championship,” Kniyah Dumas said. “It was sort of a medium cry, but still — I thought was pretty awesome because everybody could see that sometimes she could be pretty tough, but it showed her vulnerability and how she really cared for everyone like we knew all along.”

If the dominance by the Continental League champs this season is any indication, there’s probably more smiles and happy tears in Jarocki’s immediate future.

Because of Highlands Ranch’s ongoing, dwindling enrollment affecting program numbers — the Falcons had only 19 total players this year and no JV team — the Falcons are moving down to Class 5A for the next cycle.

The returners are disappointed about it, even though they’ve known about it for a couple of years now. Jarocki maintains it’s “the appropriate move for us.” With every primary contributor minus Kniyah Dumas coming back, the Falcons are the immediate heavy 5A championship favorite in 2026-27.

Entering her fourth decade as the Falcons’ boss — and with 10 championship games, 19 Final Fours and 27 Great Eights on her blue-and-white resume — Jarocki’s trophy case probably isn’t complete quite yet.

“Our mentality going into next year is just the only person in the way of another championship is ourselves,” Banks-Thomas said. “And I don’t think Coach J is going to let ourselves get in the way.”

Next stop, nationwide.

capped her historic prep career this year, breaking the CHSAA scoring record while leading the Ravens to a fourth straight Denver Coliseum appearance.

For her supremacy — the Texas-bound guard/forward led the state with 28.5 points per game while also averaging 6.7 rebounds, 3.2 steals, 2.4 assists and 1.2 blocks — she swept every top honor. She won the state Gatorade Player of the Year, MaxPreps state Player of the Year, the CHSAA Class 6A Player of the Year and, for the second time, The Denver Post’s Ms. Colorado Basketball.

The Denver Post����ap 2026 All-Colorado girls basketball team

The 6-foot-3 hooper now takes her generational talents to the national stage over the next month. First, the in Arizona. Then, the in Oregon, where she'll make her debut. And finally, the Jordan Brand Classic in Los Angeles, another high school senior all-star game.

"I'm definitely super excited for this (all-star game tour)," Crittendon said. "These are games you see online when you're a kid, and I've wanted to be a part of for a long time. So it's awesome that all my hard work is translating in that aspect, and not just in my own state.

"With these types of games, there's so much talent on the floor and it's hard for the ball to be spread around everywhere. So I'll try to find different ways to affect the game without having the ball in my hand, like getting stops or steals or rebounds on defense and hopefully letting those things translate into points on the other end."

Crittendon's primetime exhibit actually began before her senior season, when she competed in the SLAM Summer Classic at historic in August. Crowds lined up around the block to get into the high school showcase at the Manhattan streetball mecca. Crittendon scored double-digit points in the game and ended up on

From Harlem, Crittendon traveled straight to Los Angeles for the Nike Academy, a camp for elite high school prospects, and then to the Mamba League Invitational.

A generational record for a generational player

By the time Riverdale Ridge's season began on Dec. 4, Crittendon picked up right where she left off, dropping 30 points in a win over Fossil Ridge.

She broke Tracy Hill's 43-year old scoring record of 2,934 points on Feb. 14, and after the Ravens lost in the Class 6A Great 8, Crittendon finished her career with 3,073 points. Ravens head coach Tim Jones predicts it will be decades before anyone sniffs Crittendon's scoring mark.

"It's a shot in the dark to break it," Jones said. "It's one of those things where you've got to be something different, something generational like Bri is. I don't see it being broken any sooner than another 40-some years."

After committing to Texas on Nov. 19 — choosing the Longhorns over her other finalist, CU — Crittendon had nothing left to prove entering her senior season from an individual standpoint. Yes, she was chasing Hill's record, but she was clearly the de facto best player in the state, and the five-star was also ranked among the in the country.

Crittendon maintained that her focus was on "staying present with my team and enjoying our last year together, and even enjoying the hard moments, while staying excited about the future and continuing to grow."

That's exactly what Jones saw from the versatile, three-level scorer who played every position for the Ravens but profiles as a wing/small forward at the next level.

"She adjusted a lot defensively by guarding different positions, forcing herself to be uncomfortable in spaces, coming to the perimeter and playing smaller, quicker guards," Jones said. "She also became more keen on how defenses were playing her and finding new, different spaces to score. Overall, she became more strategic in her game."

Best on the biggest stages

Amid Crittendon's rise, there was some behind-the-scenes criticism by coaches and basketball pundits around the state about who she was putting up wild scoring numbers against. Riverdale Ridge played her freshman and sophomore seasons in Class 4A, winning the title there in 2024, before moving up to Class 6A for her junior and senior seasons.

Even after jumping two classifications, the Ravens ran roughshod over their Rocky Mountain League opponents. Over the past two seasons, Riverdale Ridge was 24-0 in league, with a 70.5-point average margin of victory. But Jones points out that Crittendon usually played half the game or less in those blowouts, and that when Riverdale Ridge played marquee opponents in its non-conference schedule or in the state tournament, her scoring didn't dip.

As a case-in-point this season, Jones cited Riverdale Ridge's game against Ontario Christian, the California powerhouse filled with blue-chip recruits, which won the CIF open division state championship before finishing Crittendon scored 31 points against Ontario Christian despite facing consistent double-teams by fellow Power 4 recruits.

"Look at all the biggest matchups she's had, and she excelled," Jones said. "We've played the best of what Colorado had to offer the past few years, even in scrimmages. We played nationally-ranked teams out of state. She's produced on the biggest stages. She did it with her club, averaging over 30 points a game in one of the toughest circuits (the Select 40) in the country.

"So we can't keep saying (her scoring averages) are because of the league or classification she played in."

Ex-Regis Jesuit star , another two-time Ms. Colorado Basketball who went to Texas, agrees.

Akigbogun, who is currently an assistant coach at Denver East, calls Crittendon a "remarkable" scorer who "can consistently make something out of nothing."

"I think people are foolish if they say that there could be an asterisk next to that record because to score 3,000 points, you have to score the ball," Akigbogun said. "It doesn't matter who you're playing against — to be able to score at that high of a level in every single game, it's hard to do."

Amid all her success and accolades, Crittendon's teammate Chloe Parker noted that No. 3 remained level-headed and coachable.

"She set the bar high for our school and for Colorado girls basketball going forward," said Parker, an Air Force pledge. "She's consistent. She's never going to be super high or super low — whether she just broke the scoring record, or we lost at the Coliseum, it was the same Bri every single day."

Akigbogun says that no matter what the future holds for Crittendon — Texas coach Vic Schaefer said he believes she can be an All-SEC player, while Crittendon's ultimate ambition remains the WNBA — the Riverdale Ridge superstar's legacy is cemented in Colorado high school girls basketball lore.

"She's going to continue to strive to do great things, and it's good to look at different seasons of your life with separation," Akigbogun said. "What you've done in high school is different than what you'll do in college.

"But no matter what she does or doesn't do, it doesn't take away from what she's done now. What she's done in this state at this level in her four years is going to be forever remarkable, regardless of what happens later on. Anybody that's going to be watching high school basketball, her name is always going to come up in those circles when talking about the great players Colorado has produced."

“They’re a ton of fun,” the venerated Highlands Ranch girls basketball coach, who won her eighth Colorado state title on Saturday, told me when I brought up the Falcons’ Moon twins. “They’re crazy. But they’re fun. They’re good, clean fun.”

More than that, though, they’re good. Like, really, really good. Katie Moon and her twin sister, Addie, don’t just finish each other’s sentences. They finish each other’s passes.

Addie got into foul trouble (two rebounds, one point in 19 minutes) early in the second half. So Katie came off the bench and put up 15 points in a 54-51 win over scrappy Northfield with a brace, having dinged her kneecap about a month ago.

“(Katie) just knew in the back of her mind that she just wanted to be here for her team,” the twins’ father, TK Moon, said during the postgame celebration. “The fact that she had to step up because her sister was in foul trouble — that’s sisterhood. And that’s teamwork.”

That’s kind of bonkers, considering just how young this team actually is.

The Falcons won the 6A title Saturday with just one senior contributor among their top eight in their rotation. The Moons? Juniors. Star guard Kimora Banks-Thomas (20 points)? Sophomore.

Backcourt mate Jayda Rogers (11 points, 12 rebounds), whose ball-handling and board work steadied Highlands Ranch against a tenacious Northfield defense? Sophomore. who knocked down two clutch free throws, including one after a Northfield timeout that put the Falcons up three with 4.7 seconds remaining? Freshman.

How can that many underclassmen have that much ice flowing through them?

“We told (Newbins), ‘Knock these down just like in practice,'” Addie recalled. “We’ll distract each other, and we’ll make it funny in practice. But we know when it’s game time, and we need to knock down shots, we’ll knock them down.

“We have such good chemistry that we created over the summer that we all trust each other, no matter if you’re a freshman or a senior. Everyone can (help) with whatever we need. Everyone can have a night. That’s just how we roll.”

They’re rolling down to 5A next year. And Jarocki’s seen that look in her kids’ eyes before. Her Falcons teams won seven state titles from 2000 to 2011, becoming one of Colorado’s first hoops dynasties of the 21st century.

“I mean, 5A better watch out,” Addie said. “We’re a little frustrated that we’re moving down (a class), but our schedule is still going to be challenging … but it’s going to be great next year. And the next couple years after that.”

Jarocki, savvy to the last, is a little more careful when it comes to throwing around the ‘D’ word. But when you play the kind of defense her Falcons did Saturday — Northfield shot 41.7% from the floor and was 0-for-9 on 3-pointers — it’s not hard to set the bar a Mile High.

“One year doesn’t make a dynasty, but we’ll see what they do next year,” Jarocki said. “I think they’ll be hungry again … They don’t like losing. Neither do I.”

Losing? The Moons? Oh, they hate it. Completely. Unflinchingly. Even if it’s losing to each other in drills.

“Oh, we fight all the time,” Addie chuckled. “When we have workouts, I’ll have a bloody nose. We’ll get into it with each other.

“I mean, we’re the most competitive. We always push each other on the court. But we always also get (one another) better. And it’s so fun having like a person in the gym always rebounding for you and passing for you. It’s like a built-in best friend.”

“So who wins the fights?” I asked.

Addie leaned in with a whisper.

“I’m going to say, ‘me,’ but she’s definitely going to (disagree),” she continued.  “I mean, it’s me. Let’s be honest. It’s going to be me.”

Addie grinned.

“Don’t tell her I said that.”

Addie was born first, by about a minute. They’ve been hooping it up together since the second grade. Time flies.

“How do we tell who’s who?” I wondered.

“I have more of a narrower face,” Katie said.

“She is totally calling my face fat!” Addie interjected.

“And she has highlights in her hair,” Katie continued.

It’s even harder to separate them than it is to tell them apart. The twins last fall committed to play collegiately at Colgate University in upstate New York, two time zones and about 1,725 miles east.

“It just felt like home to us,” Katie explained. “It’s kind of in the middle of nowhere. Honestly, the basketball is really good there. I know they kind of struggled this year, but we’re hoping to make a really good impact freshman year.”

As for next year, 5A, best of luck. The Falcons outrebounded a taller Nighthawks roster 30-28, with 23 defensive boards on the day, limiting a fast, flowing Northfield offense to a series of one-shot possessions.

With 30 seconds left in the third quarter, Highlands Ranch up 34-28, Jarocki cupped a hand to her mouth.

“We need to get the ball!” she shouted. “We need to get the ball!”

They got it. And eventually ate enough clock late, in the face of a furious Northfield press, to put the Nighthawks away.

“It’s so surreal,” Katie said. “I’m just trying to be in this role of leadership, and everyone’s been calling me the spark when I go in for two minutes or one minute. I’m in just to make a huge impact.”

At one point, the twins danced up to their father, cradling the championship trophy between their arms. Then they puckered up, each kissing it on the side while cellular cameras in the crowd sparkled and flashed.

Good, clean fun, all right. And it’s only just getting started.

For Kent Denver, that they have.

Under the direction of head coach Ann Abromaitis (née Strother), a former Highlands Ranch star who won two national championships at UConn before playing professionally, the Sun Devils are headed to their first state title game.

In Abromaitis’ first two seasons, Kent Denver lost in the Sweet 16, but the Sun Devils broke through to a deep playoff run this year. They beat Timnath 53-46 on Friday in the Class 4A Final Four at the Denver Coliseum, avenging a narrow loss in the season opener on Dec. 2.

“I think we were all (a little starstruck) when she got hired,” said Kent Denver senior post Austin Duncan, a Washburn commit. “Knowing where she’s been and what she’s done, we thought good things were going to come of it — and here we are.

“She runs with us all the time (in practice). There’s dimes all over when she plays — behind-the-back passing, and she can shoot the ball from anywhere still. She’s still got it, and that rubs off on us.”

Coupled with the Kent Denver boys also beating Timnath in Friday’s Final Four, the Sun Devils join Class 5A Lutheran in going for a rare championship double-dip on Saturday at the Coliseum.

The Kent Denver girls were led by 15 points and 8 rebounds from Duncan, their senior stalwart on a team heavy in youth. The Sun Devils start three freshmen in point guard Elise Drogin-Tundermann, guard Emerson Hamman and forward London Barry. But that trio played beyond their years, with Drogin-Tundermann dropping 14 points and Barry adding 9.

“We have just the right combo — some young players who don’t know any better, who have never been here on a stage like this,” Abromaitis said. “They’ve worked hard and put in the time for this and know how compete. Then we’ve also got a senior leader (Duncan) who doesn’t want to go out. That’s a pretty good recipe.”

As a player, Abromaitis has experience at the Coliseum, and she won a pair of Class 5A titles (then the biggest classification) with Highlands Ranch as a junior and senior.

In her senior year in 2001-02, the CHSAA Hall of Famer was named the  one of only two Colorado females to earn that honor, along with ThunderRidge’s Abby Bartolotta (née Waner), who earned it in 2005. Abromaitis says she’s had conversations with this year’s team about competing at the Coliseum, which is notoriously unfriendly to shooters.

“I remember what it felt like to be here, and I’ve talked about that with them,” Abromaitis said. “I know we’re probably going to come out, shoot a couple airballs, get those nerves out. We’ve just got to play through it, work through it, and they really did that to win Wednesday (in a Great 8 matchup against D’Evelyn) and then again against Timnath.”

The Sun Devils led for the majority of the game against the Cubs, and used an early 8-0 run to create separation plus strong 3-point shooting (9-for-19) to cement the win.

‘Run Devils’

In the boys game, the game started the opposite way, with top-seeded Kent Denver quickly going down 8-0. But the Sun Devils ripped off a 15-2 run in the second quarter to reassert control, then didn’t step off the gas en route to an 82-72 victory.

Senior guard Sam Glynn paced Kent Denver with 23 points, while sophomore forward Henry Czaja added 19 points and star senior guard Caleb Fay (an Air Force commit) also showed up in critical moments despite dealing with some foul trouble. Fay finished with 15 points, and junior guard Liam Ash had 14.

A 13-2 run in the fourth quarter all but put the game on ice for Kent Denver, as the Cubs failed to match the Sun Devils’ depth and also had issues with Kent Denver’s ball pressure. Even when Timnath made a run late in the fourth quarter, Kent Denver was unfazed.

The team still has the same “Run Devils” identity of a season ago, even though they lost four starters to graduation.

“Everyone talks about Caleb, which they should, but it����ap not a one-man show,” 33rd-year head coach Todd Schayes said. “No one worries about who scores. We play fast, we sub a lot. I really think we can be as many as 16 deep.”

The Sun Devil boys have only lost to Class 6A opponents this season, with defeats to Northfield, Fruita Monument and Eaglecrest. Like the girls, a stacked schedule prepared them for the tense moments at the Coliseum as the boys are now one win away from a repeat championship following a dominant run through the tournament in 2025.

Schayes, who has taught sixth-grade history and English at Kent Denver for over three decades alongside his coaching career, notes that Abromaitis’s “fantastic coaching” enabled the girls’ program to catch up with the boys.

“She can’t be (longtime, intense UConn coach) Geno (Auriemma) — she found that out that first year,” Schayes said with a laugh. “So over the last two years, it����ap been less Geno’s coaching style and more her’s. She’s smiling more. The girls have bought in, and the moment is never too big for them.

“Her players and my players are each other’s biggest cheerleaders. We are screaming for them, they are screaming for us. I’m so happy for them and it����ap a phenomenal thing for our community to have both teams playing for the title.”

The girls take on Holy Family in Saturday’s championship at the Coliseum, while the boys play University.

Twice, the Rams rose to the challenge to make program history by advancing to the program’s first state title game.

Green Mountain lost its leading scorer, senior guard Kantyn Pearson, to a right knee injury in the regular season finale. But the Rams beat Standley Lake anyway to win the Jeffco League crown.

Then, with Pearson cheering on from the bench, the Rams rallied from a 15-point deficit after one quarter on Thursday to in the Class 5A Final Four at the Denver Coliseum.

The Rams will face top-seeded Lutheran in Saturday’s championship game. Lutheran beat Standley Lake, 38-36, in a defensive battle in the other 5A semifinal.

“You look on paper and you see we lose about 16 points a game without Pearson in the playoffs, and other teams can be like, ‘Welp, their best player is out, they’re cooked,'” Green Mountain head coach Matteo Busnardo said. “But other girls have stepped up. We’ve had to figure out how to play without her in a short period of time.

“And the bond that has been in the making (back to youth basketball) has come through. All of that was on display in (Thursday’s) comeback against Montrose.”

In an era where open enrollment and transfers dominate the rosters of top basketball teams, the Rams are entirely homegrown. Green Mountain’s core group of juniors that led them to Thursday’s victory — including Ella Cockrum, Cadyn Cavanaugh, Addie Evans, and Grace Herrig — played together throughout elementary and middle school on a Rams’ feeder team.

Herrig paced the Rams with 11 points and 8 rebounds against Montrose, while Evans had 8, Cockrum 7, and Cavanaugh and senior captain Peyton Coil both had 6.

Montrose dominated the opening frame, racing out to a 24-9 lead behind the sharpshooting of freshman Landree Johnson and senior Maggie Legg. Both of those ballers finished with 16 points, but it was the Rams’ defense that proved critical for Green Mountain to build off a defeat in its Final Four appearance a year ago.

Green Mountain uncorked a 12-0 run in the second quarter as the Red Hawks endured a scoring drought that stretched past six minutes. Then the Rams took control for good with a 19-2 run in the second half. That settling in pleased Pearson, who let her teammates know about the flaws in their defense in the huddle following the first quarter.

“We had the whole, giant student section behind us, so we were trying to have flashy steals and flashy blocks,” Pearson said. “So I kind of yelled at them, said, ‘Stay down, stop jumping.’

“The rest of the game showed we’ve got no quit. Because when we decide to show up, I think we’re the best team in the state by far.”

Herrig said the Rams focused on eliminating open looks for Johnson, who hit three 3s in the first quarter. Green Mountain was visibly rattled, but a tough schedule this season — the Rams’ lone loss came to Class 6A Final Four participant Cherokee Trail, and they are now riding a 24-game win streak — gave them confidence they could come back.

“We had to lock down on defense, and that’s what we did,” Herrig said. “We had to dive on the floor, get every rebound, every 50/50 ball. We did all of those things starting in the second quarter like it was the final minutes of the fourth.”

Green Mountain’s turnaround over the final few quarters saved Evans’ 17th birthday, as the Coastal Carolina beach volleyball commit admitted that had the Rams lost, “I probably would’ve gone home and not talked to anybody.”

Evans also emphasized that the Rams’ run through the playoffs without Pearson has provided ample incentive.

“Losing Kantyn before playoffs, that was all the motivation we needed,” Evans said. “We want to win it for her. We’re playing for her. Because we know she’d give anything to be on the court with us.”

Pearson’s torn ACL/MCL on Feb. 16 left the Green Mountain gym in stunned silence. Pearson says hip dysplasia in both hips likely makes her more susceptible to the knee injury. She played all season through pain, with torn labrums in both hips. And she balled out with the memory of her late brother, Cayson Pearson, constantly on her mind.

Cayson Pearson died by suicide in early 2024, during Kantyn Pearson’s sophomore year. Kantyn had one of her breakout games a few days after her brother’s death. Her family started the in his honor, awarding scholarships to middle/high school players to help offset the cost of club as well as to seniors headed to play college hoops.

“The scholarship fund is really awesome because it’s giving people the chance to go and play basketball who maybe otherwise couldn’t afford it, which honors the biggest thing my brother really loved — playing basketball,” said Kantyn Pearson, who plans to attend BYU.

“… For me, I’m grateful for the high school career I’ve had, even with the injuries. I’m grateful for the lessons basketball has taught me, like how far hard work can get you. I honestly don’t have a lot of natural talent, and I’ve spent hours every day on my own, shooting by myself. It’s been awesome to be able to be as good as I am and I think my brother would be proud of me.”

While No. 3 Montrose finishes its season with a program-record 26 wins, the No. 2 Rams advance (26-1) to Saturday’s title to face Lutheran, who they beat 48-41 in overtime on Dec. 16.

No. 1 Lutheran 38, No. 5 Standley Lake 36

The Lions got the game-winning bucket from junior center Isla Koffmann to set up a rematch against Green Mountain in Saturday’s title.

Koffmann had a double-double with 14 points and 15 rebounds, while senior guard Berkley Schneider chipped in 12 points and 9 rebounds. The Gators were led by freshman guard Jojo Martin, who hit the buzzer-beater to take down Windsor in the Great 8, as Martin had a double-double with 13 points and 16 rebounds.

Lutheran led for the vast majority of the game, and Standley Lake’s struggles from beyond the arc (1-for-17) were pivotal in the Gators’ narrow defeat.

Denver East and Northfield are playing in opposite sides of the bracket of the Class 6A Final Four on Thursday. If both win, it will set up the first all-DPS championship game in the half-century since girls basketball became a sanctioned CHSAA sport.

There is no love lost between the programs, who have played a handful of physical, tense games over the last two seasons. That includes three showdowns this year and last year, over which the re-established old guard Denver East owns a 5-1 record against upstart, relatively new Northfield.

“It’s been a really competitive rivalry between the top teams in the DPS,” said Denver East head coach Carl Mattei, “and this has been brewing for the last couple of years for bragging rights in the city.”

The Angels have seen a resurgence under Mattei, who is in his fourth season on City Park Esplanade. Denver East is the last DPS girls team to win a hoops title, accomplishing the feat in 2010, and is one of only two DPS programs to do so, along with Montbello in 1997.

Mattei, who built Regis Jesuit into a powerhouse, went to eight title games and won three of them in his He was initially talked into applying for the Denver East job by a couple key DPS stakeholders, including Angels boys coach Rudy Carey and ex-longtime district athletic director John Andrew.

‘They don’t need to go play in the suburbs’

Mattei said he took the job because “when I looked at what Denver East could be, I thought it could be the Cherry Creek of DPS (girls basketball).” The Angels were successful under the prior coach, Dwight Berry, who led them to the 2010 title. But Denver East struggled to consistently make deep tournament runs.

“I had to get the kids to believe that they could compete with the Grandviews, the Cherry Creeks, the Regis Jesuits, the Highlands Ranches,” Mattei said. “Players in (the Denver East neighborhood) can actually stay in the city and represent our city, and be part of being the jewel of the city that is the Denver East Angels. They don’t need to go play in (the suburbs).

“That’s what Rudy and (Denver East principal) Terita Walker wanted for this program, and I think that’s where we’re at right now.”

The Angels are headlined by senior forward Mairead Hearty, a San Diego State commit who is averaging 16.9 points a game. Junior guard Grace Hall, a Division I recruit, is averaging 12.3 points. And senior sharpshooter Liana Valdez, a Western Nebraska commit who is a four-year starter like Hearty, can make teams pay from beyond the arc.

Hearty, who lives a couple blocks from Denver East, is jazzed with the ascension of the program at the school she walks to. The Angels went from a first-round playoff exit in Mattei’s first season, to the Sweet 16 the next, to the Great 8 last year and now the Final Four.

“I’ve been in this neighborhood my whole life, watching games (when I was little), so I’m so excited to be in this situation with this team,” Hearty said. “I couldn’t have dreamed it up any better what we’ve been able to accomplish the last four years.”

While much of Denver East’s roster is homegrown, the Angels’ other X-factor is an import.

Sophomore Mia Avramovic is averaging almost a triple-double with 10.1 points, 10.0 rebounds and 9.0 blocks, a swat rate which ranks second in the nation. The 6-foot-6 center moved to Colorado from Serbia, where she’s played on her country’s before the school year began.

She’s still extremely raw, but Mattei says Avramovic “has made tremendous strides this season.”

“At home (in Serbia), she just had to be a shot blocker — she wasn’t really allowed to shoot or dribble,” Mattei said. “But she’s developed her game so much that she has offers from Oregon State and Utah. She’s been invited to the Nike Elite Camp in June. She’ll be playing with (a high-level club) this summer. All this after she came in and initially really struggled with her ball skills.”

Driving Avramovic’s development is Mattei’s coaching staff stacked with his former players.

That includes , a two-time Ms. Colorado Basketball for Mattei at Regis Jesuit who is his lead assistant; Celena Miller, who played for Mattei’s club team and then at DU, and is a rising R&B star ; , who played for Mattei at Douglas County before going on to CSU; and , who played club for Mattei and later at Arizona State.

“Forget the state — I’ve got the best staff in the country,” Mattei said. “It’s incredible what I have as coaches and how they are working to develop our talent.”

With those familiar faces behind Mattei on the bench, he’ll take on an old foe in Thursday’s Final Four to set up a possible shot against Northfield in the title.

Mattei and Highlands Ranch boss Caryn Jarocki, the state’s all-time winningest girls coach, developed a rivalry when Mattei was at Regis Jesuit. The Raiders and the Falcons met in the title game three times, with Highlands Ranch winning in 2008 and ’11 and Regis Jesuit triumphing in 2013.

Denver East and Highlands Ranch played earlier this season, a 51-49 win by the Angels on Dec. 9. Both teams had key players injured in that game, including Hearty. Mattei believes his team’s tough out-of-state schedule, which included trips to New York and California, has prepared the Angels for the rematch.

“We have to keep an eye on (Falcons leading scorer) Kimora Banks-Thomas, because she can light it up from anywhere,” Mattei said. “And we can’t get into a run-and-gun game with them. We play two different types of basketball, and when we beat them at their place, we tried to control tempo.”

Northfield a program on the rise

Meanwhile, Northfield faces top-seeded Cherokee Trail. The Nighthawks are trying to get back to the championship after losing in the Class 5A title game to Roosevelt two years ago.

Northfield’s heart and soul is junior guard Madison Bethel, the daughter of head coach Sydney Price. The Nighthawks also feature a trio of transfers who have accelerated their status as a Class 6A force despite the program only being eight years old. Junior forward Delaney Dennis transferred from Denver East prior to last school year, while junior twin guards London Taylor and Paris Taylor transferred from Cherry Creek before this school year. The Taylors were granted immediate eligibility by CHSAA.

London Taylor is the team’s leading scorer with 14.6 points per game, while Bethel, Dennis and Paris Taylor are also averaging double figures. Price declined an interview request for this story, saying she wanted to “remain focused on the game plan during this pivotal and important time.”

Cherokee Trail head coach Tammi Statewright says her Cougars “have to be able to handle the physicality of the DPS way of play” as CT vies to make its first title game.

“I feel like (the Centennial League) is pretty physical, but in a different way,” Statewright said. “We got to be able to handle Northfield’s ball pressure because they’re tough, they’re strong. If we don’t handle that well, we’re not going to make it through.”

Northfield takes on Cherokee Trail on Thursday at 5:45 p.m. , with Denver East and Highlands Ranch following at 7:15 p.m.