Arvada West Upsets Montbello
By Matt Langley
Langleyscouting.blogspot.com
2/27/2013
Denver, CO- The Arvada West Wildcats scored the only upset of the first night of the 5A state tournament defeating the host Montbello Warriors 52-41 on Wednesday night. The Wildcats used a zone defense that frustrated and kept the bigger more athletic Warriors off the offensive boards while being efficient on the offensive side of the ball on the way to the upset.
Arvada West was able to handle the Warriors press, taking their time and making crisp passes down the court to set up its offense. Freshman Luke Neff scored the first four points for the Wildcats while the Warriors struggled to figure out the Wildcat’s zone defense. The Warriors gained some traction and were able to take the lead 8-7 after an old fashion three point play by senior Malik Taylor with 2:30 left in the period. The Wildcats were able to control the tempo of the game with their zone defense, rebounding, and patience on offense. The Wildcats lead 12-10 with 1:15 left in the quarter, when Montbello senior Kedrick Stewart made a three-pointer to give the Warriors a 13-12 lead at the end of the quarter.
The second quarter started with a 2:00 scoring drought for both teams with each team not allowing the other any second chance shots. Taylor broke the scoring drought putting the Warriors up 15-12 with 6:00 minutes left. Thomas Neff scored his fifth point of the half with 5:00 minutes left in the quarter trimming the Warrior lead to one. Then with 3:30 left in the quarter Warriors senior AJ Hayes scored his seventh point of the half pushing the Warrior lead back to 3, 17-14. Senior Mike Porter then nailed a three pointer for the Wildcats to tie the score 17-17 with 1:40 left in the quarter. Senior Leandro Grubbs made one of the few lay ups of the night for the Warriors with a minute left in the quarter making the score 19-17. The Wildcats missed a one and one opportunity that gave the ball back to the Warriors with 40 seconds left in the quarter. The Warriors ran the clock down to 10 seconds before starting to attack the Wildcats. The Warriors missed two shots in the paint as time ran out but led 19-17 going into half time. The Warriors simply refused to take advantage of their size in the post, or if they were able to get into the paint, the guards were unable to make the passes to cutters or out for open threes. The Warriors basically abandoned any attempt to establish an inside game.
The Wildcats scored more points in the third quarter than previously combined in the first two quarters of the game. The first four minutes of the quarter the offense started to pick up for both teams with Thomas Neff swishing a three-pointer to take the lead for the Wildcats at the start of the quarter. The Warriors would tie the score at 22 with a three-pointer from junior Anthony Carter. The Wildcats interior passing was excellent during the game. Two times the Wildcats drove into the lane then dished off to the cutting senior Kaleb Whiting for lay-ups as the Montbello defense rotated over to help. Porter then scored on a tough shot in the paint to give the Wildcats a 30-27 lead with 3:15 left in the quarter. The Warriors’ Hays hit a three pointer to tie the score 30-30 with 1:40 remaining. Then Thomas Neff decided to put the Wildcats on his back. The sophomore scored five points in the final 1:20 of the quarter giving the Wildcats a 35-30 lead going into the fourth quarter.
The Wildcats only made two baskets in the fourth quarter but went 14 of 18 from the free throw line. Most of the quarter there was little offense. The Wildcats only attempted four shots in the quarter, all of those in the first 4:00. The Wildcats then put the ball in the hands of the Neff brothers. The freshman point guard dribbled at least 25 seconds off the clock himself. Except for three times, the Warriors fouled Thomas. The Warriors went on an epic 6:00 scoring drought. They missed shots in the paint, and when they did make a driving shot, they were called for a charging foul. They also missed a number of three point shots all while the Wildcats grabbed every single defensive rebound. Meanwhile, the Wildcats kept eating time off the clock not even attempting to shoot after 3:30 left in the quarter. Montbello’s last chance to get back in the game came when the Wildcats were up 43-35 and shooting one and one and pulled all of their players out of the free throw lane. When the shooter missed the first shot, the Warriors failed to realize the one and one situation and threw the ball to the official standing out of bounds giving the ball back to the Wildcats. Thomas Neff went 9 of 10 from the line himself and 7 of 8 in the last minute giving the Wildcats the 52-41 victory.
The Wildcats Thomas Neff led all scorers with 22 points, while Hays was the only Warrior in double figures with 13 points. The Wildcats advance to play Eaglecrest at 7:00 PM at Eaglecrest High School to go to the Sweet Sixteen of the 5A playoffs.