Girls Basketball League Predictions Class 2A

Girls Basketball League Predictions Class 2A

In Class 2A things are much different than 3A.  In Class 2A you must finish in the Top 4 of your district to make it to Regionals (5 for District 5 or 3 for District 3).  I will pick essentially which teams are making it to regionals and some District have more than 4 good teams and picking those districts will be extremely tough.  I really like the new set up for Class 2A this year with 32 teams making it to regionals and not just 24.  I also am glad they are giving District Champions the right to host and makes the District Title a huge goal.  Remember the team I am picking to win the District will host a regional.

District 1

1. Del Norte
2. Sanford
3. Sargent
4. Custer County

District 1 I believe has a clear-cut favorite that everyone is chasing but one-off night and they could lose.  My #1 team is Del Norte who is 5-3.  Del Norte has 3 losses, two of them to #1 Centauri (3A) and Swink is the other loss #2 in 2A.  Del Norte lost some talented seniors but as some of the players that came of the bench get more time they will become very dangerous.  My #2 team is Sanford at 5-3.  Sanford has 3 losses to 3A teams.  Sanford lost to Lamar (#4 in 3A), Monte Vista, and Centauri (#1 in 3A).  Sanford, I feel is the one team that can really challenge Del Norte for the #1 spot.  Sanford, I believe is solid at #2 just as long as they take care of business they should meet Del Norte for the District Championship.  At #3 is Sargent who is 4-3.  Sargent big problem seems to be scoring and showed last night against 1A #5 Sangre De Cristo.  If Sargent can figure out their scoring woes they can challenge for the #2 spot but also must figure scoring out to lock up the #3 spot.  The #4 spot was much tougher to pick.  I went with Custer County for the #4 spot but the rest of the District will be fighting for that spot.

District 2

1. Yuma
2. Wray
3. Holyoke
4. Haxtun

District 2 is loaded with top teams once again and 5 teams will be fighting for the 4 available spots.  My #1 team is Yuma at 7-0.  Yuma is currently my #1 team in 2A and have proven it all year.  Yuma took an early season win over Wray 52-42 and also some tough wins against Kansas opponents.  At #2 is Wray at 5-2.  Wray won’t have the #2 spot just handed to them and they figured that out real quick with their 61 to 53 win over Holyoke in OT.  Wray lost some talent from last year but have plenty returning to make a solid run.  At #3 is Holyoke at 8-1.  Holyoke caught me by surprise and have played extremely well this season.  Holyoke has huge wins against Fleming, Vanguard, and Haxtun (twice).  Holyoke did pick up their first lose of the season against Wray in Overtime.  Holyoke can challenge both Wray and Yuma for the #1 & #2 spot.  At #4 is Haxtun at 6-3.  Haxtun has also played well this season but with two losses to Holyoke already I believe they will be fighting for the #4 spot.  Haxtun will be looking to hold off Wiggins and Merino for the #4 spot.

District 3 (Only 3 teams make it to Regionals)

1. Ignacio
2. Dolores
3. Norwood

District 3 is one of the more cut and dry District.  Ignacio is the clear-cut favorite for the District 3 title.  Ignacio is very solid and a State Tournament team from last year.  Ignacio returned a ton of talent and will look to improve through the rest of the year.  At #2 is Dolores at 3-5.  Dolores is 1 of 3 teams with a win in District 3 and should finish second.  At #3 you can pick a variety of teams and I went with coach at #3 with Norwood.  The bottom 4 teams in District 8 have a combined 1 win.

District 4

1. Limon
2. Denver Christian
3. Burlington
4. Byers

In District 4 I believe that we have a solid 4 teams.  District 4’s bottom 3 teams are 4-15 combined so the Top 4 must take care of business and should be the Top 4 teams going into Regionals.  My #1 team in District 4 is Limon at 7-0.  Limon has not played the toughest schedule but with every player returning from last years team they have blown past every opponent expect 1.  Limon played Denver Christian last week and grabbed a huge confidence builder beating Denver Christian 55 to 43.  At #2 is Denver Christian at 6-3.  Denver Christian has played a brutal schedule but will be battle tested going forward.  Denver Christian has losses to Resurrection Christian, Kent Denver, and Limon (All 3 teams are ranked).  Denver Christian does have some impressive wins as well with wins against Clear Creek, St. Mary’s Academy, and Heritage Christian.  #3 is Burlington at 4-4.  Burlington played Yuma, Wray, and Holyoke all tough this year.  Burlington gained some valuable experience in those game but will be looking to hold Byers off for the #3 spot.  At #4 is Byers at 5-4.  Byers started the season 0-2 but won 3 straight to bounce back from that.  Byers has also won 2 of their last 3 but lost to Simla this week 61 to 38.  Byers will look to challenge for the #3 spot but must take care of business to secure the #4 spot.

District 5 (5 teams into regionals)

1. Paonia
2. Soroco
3. Vail Christian
4. Hotchkiss
5. West Grand

Picking District 5 was very tough.  District 5 normal top team Paonia lost an amazing group of seniors and are a bit down this year.  The rest of District 5 is playing well but I believe coaching will become a big factor and that is why I am going with Paonia as my #1 team.  Paonia is 6-2 on the year.  Paonia two losses are to Olathe and Delta.  Paonia does have a solid win against Hotchkiss and Coal Ridge.  Paonia will have to fight the rest of the District to repeat at champions.  At #2 is Soroco at 6-3.  Soroco has played a tough schedule and if I had a pick a team to beat Paonia it would be them.  Soroco has 3 losses to solid team; Moffat County (split against them), Cedaredge, and Montrose (4A).  Soroco also has good wins against Moffat County, Northridge (4A), and Rangely.  Soroco early season win against Rangely is huge going into the rest of league.  At #3 is Vail Christian at 8-0.  Vail Christian has not played the toughest schedule but have also won every game by 10+ points.  Vail Christian opened league play with a 44 to 29 win over West Grand.  They are back in action tonight and tomorrow against Hayden and Plateau Valley.  At #4 is Rangely at 8-2.  Rangely has played solid this year but picking up a loss to Soroco could hurt their shot at a #1 seed in District Tournament.  Rangely though picked up an important win over Meeker 42 to 37.  At #5 is Hotchkiss at 6-3.  Hotchkiss proved they can be a thorn in your side losing to Paonia by just 3 points.  Hotchkiss could be another team to make a huge leap up the standing if they play solid basketball.  Hotchkiss 2 other losses are to 3A Delta and Cedaredge.  Hotchkiss will have to keep Meeker and Plateau Valley from taking their #5 spot.

District 6

1. Swink
2. Rocky Ford
3. Hoehne
4. Fowler

District 6 has a clear-cut favorite to win the league title but must play consistent basketball to make sure they host a Regional.  My pick at #1 is Swink at 7-1.  Swink one loss is to #4 Lamar by 7.  Swink has a lot of talent from last year returning and they used that to their advantage when they beat Del Norte by 3.  Swink already has wins against Fowler, Hoehne, John Mall, and Swallows Charter in league and all were by 15+ points.  Swink should finish the season as your District 6 champions.  The rest of the league will be battling for the rest of the spots and with some of the early season results it is anyone guess to how the league will play out.  I am going to go with Rocky Ford at the #2 spot.  Rocky Ford is 7-1 but were beat 17 by 1A Sangre De Cristo (#5).  Rocky Ford also sneaked by Crowley County (32-22) but did beat Las Animas for a monster win in league.  Rocky Ford travels to Swink tonight 1/12 and a loss to Swink will essentially give Swink the #1 spot in Districts.  Rocky Ford will need to play solid basketball to lock up the #2 spot.  After Rocky Ford things get messy.  I thought Hoehne would be an easy pick but their lose to Las Animas nearly had me rethink things.  I am still going to go Hoehne at the #3 spot but I could have easily picked Las Animas or Fowler for the #3 spot.  I am going Las Animas at the #4 spot but like I said Fowler could have easily gone their as well as I believe those 3 teams will fight for the #3 and #4 spot.

District 7

1. Highland
2. Clear Creek
3. Dayspring Christian
4. Lyons

District 7 has only 2 teams with losing records and the race for the four available spots will be a good one.  At #1 I have Highland who is 7-2.  Highland faced early adversity with losses to Yuma and Eaton but have since won 5 straight games including solid wins against Liberty Common (3A), Dayspring Christian, and Front Range Christian.  Highland won’t have an easy time winning the championship with the other Top 4 teams chasing them.  At #2 is Clear Creek who is 6-2.  Clear Creek is always hard to judge with them playing in the 3A Frontier League.  Clear Creek made Regionals last year and returned most of the team from last year they are right behind Highland for the #1 spot.  Clear Creek’s two losses are to Kent Denver and Denver Christian.  At #3 is Dayspring Christian who is 4-2.  Dayspring Christian had one loss coming into January against Limon.  Dayspring Christian won 4 straight games after that.  In January they played Highland to open their league schedule and came up just short losing to Highland 47 to 43.  At #4 is Lyons who is 5-4.  Lyons has struggled to get consistent play this season but have also played a tough schedule.  Lyons will need consistent play to snag the #4 spot.  Chasing Lyons for the #4 spot will be Gilpin County, Dawson Schools, and twin Peak Charter.

District 8

1. Simla
2. Ellicott
3. Calhan
4. Dolores Huerta

District 8 will be a battle for the #1 spot and with 4 teams all with just 1 lose it looks to be a great race.  At #1 I have Simla who is 6-0.  Simla is a State Tournament team who returned the majority of their players.  Simla is off to a solid start this season but still missing a big signature victory.  Simla is 1-0 in league as well with a close 38-32 win over Peyton.  Simla will have their signature games against Calhan (1/20), Limon (1/23), and Ellicott (1/26), these 3 games will show us how good Simla is.  At #2 I have Ellicott who is 6-1.  Ellicott started the season 6-0 before running into a very good 3A Manitou Springs team.  Ellicott has had their challenges this season but after losing in the Regional Final are looking to avenge that loss.  At #3 is Colorado Springs School who is 7-0.  Colorado Springs School has yet to play in January and hit the buzz saw tonight 1/12 against Calhan.  Colorado Springs School did grab a solid 54 to 48 win over Peyton and give them some confidence.  Colorado Springs School will be watched closely to see how good they are.  At #4 is Calhan who is 5-1.  Calhan lone loss is to Burlington.  Calhan has played well to start the season and will need as much consistency as possible to hold off Peyton for the #4 spot.