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Senior sweep for Basalt boys

Dale Strode
The Aspen Times
Aspen, CO, Colorado
Jim RyanBasalt High School's senior boys stand together for a Senior Night photograph. The BHS seniors are, from left, Spencer Glasener, Bertillio Garcia, Josiah Maner, Alex Jaycox, Dylan Rakowski, Patrick Reynolds and Sean Ryan.
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BASALT – The Basalt High School boys basketball team did a lot more than celebrate Senior Night this weekend.

The Basalt boys swept two crucial Western Slope League games and assured their position in this week’s district tournament.

The Longhorns might even have a home playoff game Thursday night, depending on the league tiebreakers.



“It’s nice to get a couple of wins to get into the district tournament,” Basalt head coach Rolf Schildman said Saturday after the Basalt boys beat Gunnison, 47-39.

“We had some rough games early. But, these guys have a come a long way,” Schildman said.




One night earlier, the Longhorns beat Olathe by the same 47-39 score.

The twin wins improved Basalt’s record to 7-12 overall and 6-10 in the Western Slope League.

The Longhorns are tied with Gunnison and Grand Valley for fourth place behind league-champion Roaring Fork (15-1), runner-up Aspen (14-2) and No. 3 Moffat County (13-3).

The top four teams in the league will host first-round tournament games Thursday night.

The tournament semifinals and championship will be next Friday and Saturday at Palisade High School.

Tournament seedings are expected Sunday or Monday.

The Basalt girls (1-18 overall, 1-15 in league) dropped both weekend games.

The Longhorns will open the playoffs in the Tuesday-night pigtail game at Aspen (2-17, 1-15).

“(Saturday), it was really about defense,” Schildman said of the win over Gunnison. “We got some big stops when we needed them.”

Bertillio Garcia got the Longhorns off to a fast start with seven first-quarter points.

“He got us going in the first quarter and again in the third quarter,” Schildman said. “That was good.”

Schildman said the game was back-and-forth.

“Patrick Reynolds had some clutch free throws down the stretch. He scored eight points in the fourth quarter. That was big for us,” Schildman said.

Reynolds finished with 11.

“And I was very happy with the play of our big guys, Spencer Glasener and Javier Huerta,” the Basalt coach said.

Huerta added nine points after leading Basalt with 16 points in Friday’s win over Olathe.

“Olathe played zone all night. And we got in a good rhythm. We moved the ball,” Schildman said.

“And once again we were playing better team defense,” he said. “As a team we are starting to work well together.”

The weekend sweep also marked the final regular-season games for Basalt seniors Connor Chaffee, Josiah Maner, Sean Ryan, Dylan Rakowski, Reynolds, Glasener and Garcia.

dstrode@aspentimes.com