Legacy’s boys basketball team should have felt right at home in the first round of the Class 5A state tournament.
The Lightning weren’t on their home court, but they were playing at the very familiar Ralston Valley High School’s gym. Legacy (7-17 record) got the chance to play for the fourth time this season on the Mustangs’ court in Arvada after playing three times before the winter break at the Ralston Valley Round-up tournament.
The recognizable surroundings didn’t help Legacy’s shooting accuracy. The Lightning were off the mark from the start, shooting a miserable 18 percent from the field in the first half on the way to losing in the opening round 62-43.
“We were 5-for-28 for two-point shots in the first half,” Legacy coach Gunnar Johnson said. “We looked at the shot chart and they were all within 15-feet. You couple that with us not being able to get any rebounds too.”
No. 6 seed Ralston Valley never trailed despite playing without its leading scorer. Junior Davis Peterson was diagnosed with mononucleosis earlier in the week.
Legacy wasn’t able to take advantage of the absence of the 6-foot-6 junior being out of the lineup. The Lightning’s own big man – senior Mike Lehnerz – was in foul trouble most of the night and finished with just two points.
“We knew if we got him (Lehnerz) in foul trouble they wouldn’t have the size to match-up with us,” Ralston Valley senior Tanner Svejcar said. “We wanted to keep pounding it inside and get him out of there quickly.”
Ralston Valley entered the postseason on a three-game losing streak, but righted its ship against Legacy. Svejcar had a team-high 15 points, but senior Grant Hornung (14 points) and junior Andy Anderson (10 points) also pitched in double-digit points.
Legacy failed to get a player into double-digits. Justin Walters came off the bench for a team-high eight points for the Lightning.
The Mustangs led 35-15 at halftime, but Johnson felt the game was still winnable.
“Even when we were down 20 going into the locker room I still felt confident,” Johnson said. “I told the fellows we weren’t going to go 5-for-28 again from the field.”
Legacy did trim the lead to 40-26 with a 9-0 run in the third quarter, but Ralston Valley never allowed the Lightning to get any closer. The Mustangs defeated Legacy 55-48 at the early tournament that Ralston Valley hosted.
“Playing a team a second time is tougher, but I think we came out pretty determined tonight,” Ralston Valley coach Mitch Conrad said.
Legacy finished the season tied for eighth in the Front Range League that will have two representatives in the round of 16. Boulder (22-2) and Fossil Ridge (23-1) were the two Front Range squads that advanced to the Sweet 16 with wins Saturday.
Sweet 16 games were played Wednesday, March 2, after press deadline. The quarterfinals will be played Saturday, March 5, at the Denver Coliseum.