The annual Fairview-Boulder boys basketball game means a little less now that both teams are in separate conferences.

The packed and rowdy Fairview gymnasium the teams played in front of Thursday night — well, that told a different story.

Knights senior guard Spencer Brown took in the atmosphere following his team’s 58-45 win. The home fans swarmed him with pats on the back as he was all smiles en route to the locker room.

Fairview has now beaten Boulder in six straight meetings dating back to 2020 and is 17-10 in the series since 2006.

Brown called the win “very” special as he improved to 4-0 against Boulder since his freshman year. Pending an unlikely meet-up in this winter’s Class 6A postseason, he’ll be among the few local players who can say they’ve never lost in this rivalry.

“I wanted to go 4-0 since I was a freshman,” said Brown, who had 21 points in a one-point victory over the Panthers a year ago, then 14 on Thursday. “Last year, we let them hang around even though we were the better team. This year, we just showed them who’s better.”

Trevor Ochs had a team-high 19 points for Fairview (10-2), which moved up to 20th in the 6A rankings. He hit one 3-pointer in each quarter as he finished with at least four 3s in a game for the fourth time this season.

Toray Davis — the school’s big-time football prospect — added 11 for the Knights, who won their fourth straight since falling in overtime to Longmont on Jan. 7.

“If we didn’t hit a shot, our defense more than made up for it,” Ochs said. “I feel like everyone had great minutes tonight. We played as a team, hit shots and played insane defense.”

Boulder (6-7) was led by Lewis Racine’s career-high 21 points in the loss.

The Panthers kept things within reach in the first half — they never led, but they also never trailed by more than nine during it.

Minutes after the break, Cole Morrow’s free throws brought Boulder within six before the Knights responded with a 9-0 run to seize control.

From there, the Panthers got the lead down to single digits a few times. Miles Lutt’s 3 in the final minute of the game got them within seven before Fairview sealed things from the free throw line.

“I know it’s Fairview. I know it’s a rivalry. I know the stands are packed and it’s always crazy,” Boulder coach Matthew Smith said. “But we’ve got to find a way to get beyond that. How do we take that next step?”

The Panthers get back into play in the 6A/5A Rocky Mountain League as they’re home against Riverdale Ridge on Tuesday. The Knights are at Silver Creek on Tuesday as part of the 6A/5A/4A Granite Peaks League slate.