Talk about a stacked district.
The oddly named Confluence-Metro-Longs Peak District hosts five of the top 18 teams in the Class 3A CHSAA Selection & Seed Index.
Forge Christian is in first place, with Yuma right behind them in second place, with both entering the postseason with records of 16-3. Manual is 13-6 and No. 11, Stargate is 12-7 and No. 16, and Prospect Ridge Academy is 9-10 and No. 18. The only outlier is William Smith, who is 1-10 and ranked 54th.
Yuma is the second seed in the district. The Outlaws will enter Friday's semifinal at Manual High School with a bye. They will play the winner of this Tuesday's Manual vs. William Smith game at 4:30 p.m., which Manual won easily.
The Outlaws faced Manual in their season opener on December 1st, losing 79-70.
“That was the first game of the season,” head coach Dave Sheffield said. “We're different, they're different. There's more familiarity in the late-season games than in the early-season games. We have a lot of film of each other now.
Top-seeded Forge Christian is on the other side of the bracket and will face the winner of last Tuesday's game between Stargate and Prospect Ridge Academy in Friday's semifinals. The semifinal winners will compete in the district championship game Saturday at 5:30 p.m., with the third-place game taking place at 2:30 p.m.
The district champions will host a four-team district tournament next weekend. However, it is possible that his second team in the district will host the district tournament, as he may have at least one district tournament winner who is not in the top 16 of the index. This is a requirement for the district winning team to host the district tournament.
Sheffield said he didn't want to think about the Outlaws hosting a district tournament even if they didn't win the district. “You won the district. That's your decision.” .
Yuma finished the regular season with two wins last week.
It started early last week with a 72-32 win at Caliche. The outcome was never in doubt as the Outlaws led 25-8 at the end of the first quarter and led 42-10 at halftime.
They shot 51 percent, including 9 of 21 from long range, grabbed 40 rebounds and had 15 steals.
Brody Sheffield had 14 points and 10 rebounds with four treys, Cristian Duarte had 11 points, Myles Rutledge had nine points, Alex Pensado had nine points and four steals, Jonathan Thomson had nine points, six rebounds and three assists, and Edwin Munoz had eight points and two assists. Cesar Gamboa had five points and three rebounds, Noe Quesada had five points and three steals, and David Covarrubias had two points and seven rebounds.
Yuma closed out the regular season with a 62-45 victory over Byers last Friday.
The Outlaws trailed 16-6, but settled for a 20-13 lead at the end of the first quarter. By halftime, the lead had increased to 37-19. They led by as many as 22 points, 56-34, early in the fourth before Byers closed in on the final score.
Both teams made six 3-pointers, but Yuma shot 47 percent from inside the arc and made seven free throws, holding a 47-27 advantage on the glass.
Duarte had 23 points and 3 steals, Munoz had 11 points and 4 rebounds, Thomson had 11 points and 17 rebounds, Sheffield had 9 points, 10 rebounds and 5 assists, Gamboa had 7 points and 8 rebounds, Pensado had 3 assists and 2 steals, Quesada had 1 point and Rutledge had 2 rebounds.
“I think it was a great regular season for us,” Sheffield said. “We’ve seen great growth in a variety of players.”
