Another season of high school basketball is under way. Last season ended with the Sand Creek High School girls and boys teams dominating Falcon School District 49. However, both the girls and boys teams were built around great senior players who have since graduated, which should make for a much more competitive district.Boys basketballSand Creek High SchoolSand Creek opened their season against Palmer High School (Colorado Springs). The Scorpions jumped on Palmer from the opening tip and took a 20-6 lead by the end of the first quarter, dominating the game with a 71-53 victory. They then traveled to Canyon City, and the latter did not score more than 9 points in any quarter, until Sand Creek pulled their starters in the fourth quarter. Sand Creek won 71-35.On Dec. 12, Sand Creek played Mitchell High School (Colorado Springs) and scored another win 83-62. Their first lost came the next day against Doherty High School (Colorado Springs), with a score of 59-50. The Scorpions resumed their winning ways with back-to-back victories against Grand Junction and Colorado Academy (Denver). They lost their last game before the holidays to Denverís Mullen High School by a score of 79-72. Their next game is Jan. 5 against Denverís Montebello High School.Falcon High SchoolFalcon started the season Dec. 1, with a loss against Colorado Springs Christian at home. On Dec. 2, they played Elizabeth High School and bounced back with a win, 81-64. The next game, they lost to Pueblo High School, 72-54.During the Palmer High School tournament, they won their first game against Mesa Ridge High School (Colorado Springs), and lost the second game to Palmer, 59-42. In their final game in the tournament, the Falcons narrowly won with a 4 point win against Alamosa High School. On Dec. 16, they played Sierra and lost, and two days later followed their trend of alternating wins and losses, with a win against Coronado High School (Springs).Vista Ridge High SchoolVista Ridge High School had a disappointing start to their season, with four wins and four losses. They lost their first game in a nail biter against Mitchell by just 1 point, 51-50.The Wolves had their first home game against Harrison High School (Springs) Dec. 9. The home crowd was happy when Vista Ridge won this game 53-38. After that they traveled to Ponderosa High School in Parker for the Ponderosa Invite tournament. They lost their first game against Loveland, 54-41. Their next game in the tournament against Vista PEAK Preparatory (Aurora) brought them a win, 48-43. The next morning they played Fort Morgan and won their second in a row 56-50.Vista Ridge also entered the Pueblo East Coaches Classic. They lost their first two games in the tournament against Durango High School and Mitchell, and came back winning their last game against Pueblo County High School, 63-35.Girls basketballSand Creek High SchoolThe Sand Creek girls basketball team won their first game of the season Dec. 4 against Fort Collinsí Poudre High School. It was a thriller, going into overtime when Sand Creek came from behind to score 8 points and tie the game in regular play. They kept up the momentum and won in overtime, 42-38.In their next game, they beat Sierra 54-43. Their first loss of the season was a close one against Holy Family High School (Broomfield). Sand Creek lost 58-51. But they came back, winning their first game at home. They beat Thomson Valley High School out of Loveland, 79-62. On Dec. 13, they played Cherokee Trail High School (Aurora), winning another close one, 59-52. Their winning streak ended right before the Christmas break, with a 68-59 loss against Palmer.Falcon High SchoolThe Falcon High School girls team started the season on the right foot, with back-to-back wins against Elizabeth and Palisade High School (Mesa County). However, they had to go up against power house Valor Christian High School (Highlands Ranch) and lost 78-46. Their next game with The Classical Academy (Springs) gave them a win, 45-30, but things went downhill from there with three straight losses to Lakewood High School, Poudre and Grand Junction Central.Vista Ridge High SchoolThe Vista Ridge girls team got off to a rocky start. They lost their season opener against Widefield High School (Springs), 49-33. Then won a hard-fought game against Grand Junction Central, 42-40, but lost the next three to Wheat Ridge High School, Eagle Valley High School (Gypsum) and Harrison. Even though they had a blowout win (56-16) Dec. 12 against Aurora Central High School, the Vista Ridge girls team lost their next three to Durango, Widefield and Harrison.Basketball season has a ways to go, so weíll see how it all stacks up for D 49 teams.
