Peter Baumann/Post Independent
It was a statement game featuring the two best boys basketball teams in the 4A Western Slope League on Saturday afternoon at the Chavez-Spencer Gymnasium in Glenwood Springs. And, just like in the old western shootouts, it was the Glenwood Demons who had spoken the loudest when all the dust had settled with a key 58-44 win over the Steamboat Springs Sailors.
The Demons more than hung tough with a tall and talented Sailors squad, as Glenwood used strategic position under the basket and a tenacious attack on the glass to limit Steamboat to one shot on many possessions.
“Basketball is a pretty simple game,” Demons coach Fred Heisel said following the big win. “You want to get good shots and you want to get more shots than your opponent. You can only do that if you clear the boards.”
The Demons not only cleared the boards, they also cleared the confident looks off the faces of the plucky Sailors early on by racing to a 20-12 advantage midway through the second period after a 10-all deadlock at the end of the first quarter.
Sailors senior guard Ethan Pyles hit a couple of 3-pointers to give Steamboat some momentum, but Glenwood seniors Will Narvaez, Patrick Young and Mitchell Burt all converted baskets as the Demons and Sailors traded body blows.
The ever-present Young ignited the Glenwood charge to the lead with a spinning baseline layup to put the Demons up 12-10. Senior guard John Iuele scored on two breakaway layups following Steamboat turnovers and senior post A.J. Adams came flying out of nowhere to grab a big rebound and get a score as the Demons took an advantage that the Sailors were never able to seriously challenge.
The Demons stayed the course by outscoring Steamboat 18-11 in the third stanza. Young hit a 3-pointer and Iuele found sophomore Reid Swanson open for a short jumper to put Glenwood up 29-19.
Connor Hansen would hit two long 3-pointers for Steamboat to make things interesting, but Narvaez scored falling away and Burt tallied a 3-pointer to make it 38-24 in favor of the home team.
Burt hit another jumper, this time from the baseline to put the Demons up 41-27 early in the fourth quarter. Steamboat was not able make a serious run at the lead from that point, as Glenwood spread the court with Iuele, Young, and Burt taking charge of the ball-handling duties for the conference-leading and No. 4 state-ranked Demons.
Young and Burt each netted 15 points to lead Glenwood. Iuele and Narvaez chipped in with 11 and 7 points respectively. Coach Heisel also singled out Narvaez and Adams as being a key to the victory with their work in the rebounding department.
Glenwood (12-3, 4-0 WSL) will take to the road on Friday night to face the Battle Mountain Huskies in another WSL game.
Girls: Glenwood 52, Steamboat 21
Senior post player Qwynn Massie scored 16 points and matched that number in the rebounding category as the Glenwood Demons overcame a sluggish start to up their unblemished record to 4-0 in the Western Slope League with a 52-21 win at home against the Steamboat Sailors in a Saturday afternoon basketball matinee.
Massie dropped in seven of Glenwood’s nine first-quarter points in a game that saw the score deadlocked at zero until 3:45 was left in the opening period. The Demons would shift gears a bit to take a 23-13 lead at intermission and give themselves some breathing room against a scrappy Steamboat squad.
“Steamboat was super patient and they managed to slow us down a bit in the first half,” Glenwood head coach Rhonda Moser said. “We adjusted at halftime and then came out and stayed after things. We’ve talked to the kids that it’s about winning all four quarters, not just the first or the second.”
Glenwood took a 35-15 lead after three quarters of play, and when sophomore Kenzie Winder hit a 3-pointer from the left side of the court, the Demons had doubled up the score on the Sailors at 42-21 with 3:32 left in the game.
Besides Massie’s big night, Glenwood got nine points from freshman Joslyn Spires and eight rebounds from junior Graci Dietrich. Guards Maddie Moser and Ella Johnson each contributed five assists for the Demons.
The Glenwood girls (12-3, 4-0 WSL) also take the court again on Friday night in Edwards, joining the boys in facing the Battle Mountain Huskies.
