Colorado’s Most Clutch Players
As long as basketball has been played, there have been games that come down to the wire. Whether its a YMCA league for 8-year-olds or the NBA, common are the contests that feature pressure-packed moments.
So it only stands to reason that players who prove capable of stepping up in those moments consistently would be in high demand.
With that, we have compiled a list (in no particular order) of players in Colorado who we would most want to have the ball in their hands with the clock winding down and our team in need of a big play.
Brevin Brimble, 6-0 2017 guard, Doherty
It was the first regular-season game of the year. Doherty vs. Cherokee Trail. With only a few seconds left coming out of a timeout, Brimble cut the ball as a Cougars player came flying in his direction. In one calm motion, Brimble took a quick side dribble as the defender flew by, pulled up and buried the game-winner, a sign of things to come for a player who seemed to make one big shot after another during Doherty’s memorable run to the 5A quarterfinals. That poise in the face of a guy flying straight at him showed everything you need to know about Brimble’s ability to handle pressure.
Colbey Ross, 6-1 2017 guard, Eaglecrest
Ross simply makes winning plays when his team needs them most. Eaglecrest looked doomed down the stretch in its state semifinal game against Rangeview last year. But then it was Ross to the rescue, making one huge play after another on both ends of the court to steal a spot in the championship game for the Raptors. He did it again during this past club season. Ross simply knows how to win.
David Simental, 6-0 2017 guard, Pueblo West
Say what you want about Pueblo West’s strategy to play keep-away down the stretch of the 4A state tournament last season, when the guy keeping the ball away is Simental, the plan is likely to work. Simental’s strong ball-handling and ice-water-in-the-veins shooting, particularly from the free throw line, helped the Cyclones win their fist state title. He can simply be trusted to make the right play.
Sam Masten, 6-2, 2018 guard, Rock Canyon
He’s not going to get there. He doesn’t have the angle. Those are the things we found ourselves instinctively saying last season when I’d see Masten head to the basket. Just when you’d think there wasn’t a window of space for him to work with, he’d create one with an ever-so-subtle move, showing he was going one way only to alter his path or his shot slot at the last second. This gives Masten an advantage in clutch situations, because even when defenses key on him, he has the deceptive ability to make a play when he has to.
Braxton Bertolette, 6-2 2017, Fossil Ridge
You’re down three with the final seconds ticking down. You need a 3-pointer to send the game into overtime. Yeah, I’m going to pick the guy who once made 16 of them — in one game. Bertolette does not need a lot of space to fire a would-be game-changing shot. And he’s shown he can make them when they count.
Luke Wilson, 6-1 2017 guard, Boulder
Another from the mold of just-knows-how-to-win type of players, Wilson is a guy you want because you know he’ll go out and bleed for a victory. What’s more he’s one of the state’s best outside shooters. Wilson’s clutch gene was a big factor in helping the Panthers take home the Front Range League crown last season.
LeChaun Duhart, 5-11 2017 guard, Grandview
Smoky Hill thought it had Duhart guarded well coming out in the closing seconds of the teams’ Centennial League clash last year. But with a simple shake, Duhart got the separation he needed to rise up and knock down a game-winning shot. Duhart also made a number of huge plays in Grandview’s upset of Overland last year. What’s Duhart’s biggest strength? It’s his even-keel demeanor. You don’t see him sweat.
Jon’il Fugett, 5-11 2018 guard, George Washington
Fugett differs from other players on the list in that he comes up biggest in the clutch on the defensive end. In seemingly countless games during this past club season, Fugett turned a game his Colorado Hawks team was on the brink of losing into a victory with his ability to force a turnover in the backcourt when the Hawks had to have one. He just applies so much harassing pressure that opposing guards panic. Sometimes the biggest play isn’t the shot that goes into the basket, but the steal that sets the shot up.
Hunter Maldonado, 6-5 2017 guard/forward, Vista Ridge
Maldonado nearly single-handedly carried his team to a state championship game last year because he simply hunted the basket — no pun intended — when a bucket had to be made. He does it from the outside, by driving to the basket, or by cutting off the ball, as we saw him do to help the Miners win a game this spring. He just has a special toughness that helps him keep his pulse down in those situations. It’s the biggest reason he’s heading to blue-collar Wyoming.
Certainly, there are other candidates who would be worthy to put on the list. Think we forgot someone? Feel free to share you top clutch player in the comments section!