After winning its first Continental League title and making its first appearance at the Denver Coliseum, Legend girls basketball isn’t done on its march toward ultimate history.
The Titans easily dispatched of Front Range League champion Horizon, 62-35, to open the Great 8 games on Thursday at the Denver Coliseum.
“We knew what we were capable of at the start of our season, but we didn’t know fully what we could do with our talent,” junior guard Maley Wilhelm said. “Now we do.”
Morgan Ives (2) of Horizon Hawks drives as Maley Wilhelm (5) of Legend Titans defends during the first half of a Colorado state high school basketball tournament Great 8 game at the Denver Coliseum on Thursday, Feb. 29, 2024. (Photo by AAron Ontiveroz/The Denver Post)
Legend used a dominant first quarter in which the Hawks didn’t score a field goal to take an early 11-2 lead, weathered a Horizon rally in the second quarter, and then pulled away in the second half. It was the Titans’ second win over Horizon this year after beating them 70-53 in a tournament at the beginning of the season.
Wilhelm’s three fast-break lay-ups on Titans’ steals was a turning point in the third quarter, and Wilhelm finished with a team-high 13 points. By the time junior guard Ava Gavi drained a pair of threes to start the final frame, Legend had the game in the bag, and Horizon never got close again.
“We had the intensity on defense, and we were pretty good on the glass today, but the one big, glaring weakness was not having composure on offense (in the second quarter),” Legend head coach Darren Pitzner said. “We played the second half with much more composure, and much more under control. You can’t come to the Coliseum and force tough shots. That’s Rule No. 1 coming here.”
Head coach Darren Pitzner of Legend Titans works against the Horizon Hawks during the first half of a Colorado state high school basketball tournament Great 8 game at the Denver Coliseum on Thursday, Feb. 29, 2024. (Photo by AAron Ontiveroz/The Denver Post)
Pitzner, in his first year as the Legend coach, is headed to his fifth Final Four. He also made school history at Green Mountain, leading the girls to their first three Final Four appearances there, and was an assistant coach on the 2017 Lakewood girls team that lost in the state championship game to Grandview.
The Titans (24-2) blew the doors off opponents for much of the season with a high-octane approach on offense while also placing a premium on defensive pressure. Their lone setbacks came via forfeit to Lutheran (due to a player eligibility issue) and on the road to No. 1 Cherokee Trail, 52-42 on Jan. 8.
The Cougars haven’t lost to an in-state team all season and appear to be the Class 6A championship favorite, but not if Legend has anything to say about it. The Titans’ win over Regis Jesuit in the Continental League championship on Feb. 16, 68-53, underscored the team’s belief it could make a deep tournament run.
Grace Stanley (3) of Legend Titans drives against the Horizon Hawks during the first half of a Colorado state high school basketball tournament Great 8 game at the Denver Coliseum on Thursday, Feb. 29, 2024. (Photo by AAron Ontiveroz/The Denver Post)
“The girls knew they could be in the mix, but we also knew we had to prove we could play with the top teams,” Pitzner said. “That’s where the Regis win was really big, because it showed we were in that top group.”
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Gavi, the team’s top three-point threat at 39% coming in, started slow on Thursday before draining a pair of decisive threes in the fourth. She finished with 10 points, seven in the fourth, while senior forward Katie Lamb (a Fort Lewis commit) led the team with eight rebounds and five assists. Horizon was paced by 13 points from junior center Kaitlin Schumann.
“At halftime, my teammates came up to me and told me, ‘Don’t stop shooting,’” Gavi said. “‘We’re going to keep finding you.’ That’s what they did, and I finally hit them.”
The Titans, who play either Regis Jesuit or Cherry Creek in next week’s Final Four, aren’t satisfied after Thursday’s big win. Junior forward Mason Borcherding finished with nine points, while junior guard Aislyn Korella had seven in a balanced scoring effort.
“We’re ready to prove ourselves even more,” Borcherding said.
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