Kicking & Screaming: 4A Sweet 16 standouts in defeat

<p>The Sweet 16 came and went as there were some outstanding matchups with some games that came down to the wire. There were a few standout performances and teams that closed down the stretch. But with that, teams who had a successful season seen it come to a close. Here are a few players who stood out in defeat in the 4A Sweet 16.</p> <h3 style="text-align: center;">Ben Mclaughlin – Golden</h3> <p>In Golden’s 65-62 nailbiting loss to Pueblo East, Senior guard Ben Mclaughlin did everything in his power to win the Demons the game. While he did not have a great day from the field, he still led all scorers. He finished with 24 points in the game, with his only three field goals being 3-pointers. Besides that, the free-throw line is where he spent most of the evening as he kept getting fouled. Mclaughlin went 15-18 from the FT line and dissected the defense. Golden was right there and had a chance to win the game, but Pueblo did a great job of closing Golden out. Great career for the senior.</p> <h3 style="text-align: center;">[player_tooltip player_id="916981" first="Austin" last="Peterson"] – Green Mountain</h3> <p>Green Mountain was also upset as they just had a few unlucky bounces. Although they lost, they did get a good game from their most consistent players all season long, and that was [player_tooltip player_id="916981" first="Austin" last="Peterson"], who shot the ball well and opened things up. Peterson finished with 14 points in the game as he hit four 3-pointers. He hustled on both ends of the floor, found the open spot, and let it fly. Peterson is a player that boosted his stock this season and had a great season and will only get better from here.  </p> <h3 style="text-align: center;">[player_tooltip player_id="915327" first="Blake" last="Schell"] – Green Mountain</h3> <p>In Green Mountain’s 56-50 loss in the Sweet 16 that seen their season come to a close, the player that has led them for the entire season made sure that he was going out with a bang. Senior guard [player_tooltip player_id="915327" first="Blake" last="Schell"] remained aggressive throughout the evening. He got his shots up, he attacked the defense and tried to make things happen for Green Mountain. The senior finished with 19 points in the game as he hit three 3-pointers, and he also had six rebounds as well. The Rams did not get the result that they wanted, but they did go out fighting.</p> <h3 style="text-align: center;">Makeah Scippio -- Harrison</h3> <p>We knew that size would play a big part in the Harrison versus Pueblo West game, and the Panthers made sure to use the size to their advantage as they have a few players that are capable of making plays. The Cyclones combatted it with execution, but that was not without a big man for the Panthers having a solid game. Makeah Scippio is not known to score the basketball. He is a bruiser that is a glass cleaner and protects the paint, but he had his highest-scoring game of the season in the 58-54 loss. Scippio finished with 15 points in the game. He was a force down low, Pueblo West struggled to keep him off of the boards, and he made his presence be known.</p> <h3 style="text-align: center;">Jordan Nguyen – Erie</h3> <p>Nguyen is a player that started to come on late in the season, and it is unfortunate as him catching a rhythm earlier could have changed a few things. Seeing as how he has played as of late coupled with the team finally getting into a zone of their own, it made sense that Erie relied on him with the season on the line. He gave all that he had. Nguyen finished with 16 points in the game as he hit three 3-pointers. He also got to the FT line and went 5-6, and when Northfield’s defense was crashing on him, he dished it off to open teammates finishing with five assists in the game. Nguyen is only a junior, so a big summer and anticipated senior year are where he will have to get better and continue the work from an up and down season.</p> <h3 style="text-align: center;">Kayan Hargrave – Erie</h3> <p>In Erie’s loss to Northfield in the Sweet 16, another player that stood out and tried to bring his team a victory was Hargrave. Hargrave is a 6’3 sophomore that showed potential this season. He is a capable scorer that can play and defend multiple positions, bang inside as well as step out and shoot it. In Erie’s 73-64 loss, he did a bit of everything. Hargrave did not shoot the ball exceptionally well but made sure that he would give his team a chance in the game and try and spark the team. Hargrave finished with 16 points as he hit two 3-pointers and also did a bit of dirty work as well finishing with three rebounds and three steals.</p>