Any discussion about Green Mountain’s girls basketball team aren’t complete without mentioning seniors Candice Chase and Kayla Desai.
It’s easy to think that if one or the other has an off night, the Rams could be in big trouble.
The Rams put that theory to rest in their 61-46 win over Gateway in the first round of the Class 5A state tournament Wednesday, Feb. 21, at Green Mountain High School.
While Chase led the Rams in scoring with 20 points, Desai was held to just three points.
Other players such as junior Rachel Harbinger and sophomore Danielle Stephan stepped up. Harbinger scored 11 points, and Stephan picking up 10 points for Green Mountain (13-9 record).
“Everyone’s been working hard to move up in situations when Kayla (Desai) or myself has a rough night,” Chase said. “It’s a big relief to know that if I miss a shot or am being guarded, that my teammates can get rebounds or put up shots. It makes the game a lot more fun.”
Green Mountain led 5-2 about midway through the first quarter when Chase and Desai converted back-to-back 3-pointers, giving Green Mountain an 11-2 lead. The Rams held a 15-5 lead at the end of the first quarter.
Green Mountain was held scoreless for more than half of the second quarter allowing the Olympians to cut the deficit to 15-9.
Hardinger got the Rams on the board with a free throw with 3 minutes, 15 seconds to go in the second quarter. It started a 7-0 that gave the Rams a 22-9 lead. Green Mountain took a 28-13 lead into halftime.
“You just have stay focused in situations when you’re cold,” Chase said. “You just have to keep your head in the game and keep playing hard. You have to do what you know how to do.”
Green Mountain went on a 12-0 run in the middle portion of the third quarter to open up a 44-16 lead. The Rams cruised to a 47-22 lead at the end of the third quarter. Their defense did its job by holding the Olympians (7-17) to just one successful field goal in their first 16 attempts of the quarter.
“Any defense that plays as well as we did tonight makes it tough on anyone,” Green Mountain coach Jim Miller said. “If they stay aggressive it forces the other team to take more outside shots than they want. I was really proud of them for playing that way tonight.”
Green Mountain will hit the road to face the No. 2 seed, Cherry Creek Bruins (20-2), at 7 p.m. Friday, Feb. 23, at Cherry Creek High School.
Miller knows that his team is the underdog and that they have nothing to lose.
“We’ve talked about how in all the brackets in college upsets happen,” he said. “There’s always someone like a George Mason or a Gonzaga that pulls off upsets. We’re not scared, we’re going to lay it on the line.”
For Chase, the key for Green Mountain will be if everyone can simply play up to their capabilities.
“We know we have the talent to play good,” Chase said. “We just need to come out that night knowing that everything is on the line. We want to win really bad and we have to play really hard with no regrets.”