Class 6A and 5A playoff capsules: girls

Now that the regular season has come to a close for the two largest classifications in Colorado, the 40 best girls teams in 6A and 5A will now go to battle. Ten local teams made the cut, with six hailing from 6A and four hailing from 5A

Due to the added postseason teams — up from 32 last year — sixteen squads from each class will have to engage in play-in games before the official “first round.”

Broomfield leads the local 6A contingent as the No. 3 seed, behind No. 1 Grandview and No. 2 Valor Christian. The 22-1 Eagles earned a bye in the first round, so they won’t hit the hardwood until March 5 for the second round. No. 31 Legacy, No. 37 Boulder and No. 40 Fairview will all have to play in before the first round.

A similar picture takes shape in 5A, with Mead landing the No. 2 seed and Frederick claiming No. 7 — with first-round byes for both — and No. 33 Longmont and No. 34 Niwot needing to play in.

The play-in games for girls basketball are slated for Wednesday night.

Class 6A

No. 34 Vista PEAK Prep at No. 31 Legacy

The Bolts enter the tournament for the first time since 2022 with their star player, senior Olivia Mortensen, pacing the offense with 23.6 points per game, 12.7 rebounds per game and 4.5 steals per game. She serves as the beating heart of the operation, as no other Legacy player has surpassed 4.4 PPG this year.

The Lightning, to date, have sifted through a tough Granite Peaks League with a 13-10 record, while Vista PEAK Prep, in the City League, has only won nine of its 22 contests.

The Bison do, however, boast a much more balanced offense thanks to Amirah Pena (13 PPG), Knakai Starks (12.8 PPG), Amaya Nance (9.8 PPG) and Eianna Jackson (9.7 PPG). Outside of that, the two squads look fairly similar on paper, with Legacy averaging 29.7 rebounds, 9.7 assists and 10.8 steals. The Bison have managed 25.5 rebounds, 11.2 assists and 10 steals on average.

No. 37 Boulder at No. 28 Overland

The Panthers won seven of their past nine contests to earn one of the final bids to the state tournament and can thank their top three scorers — sophomore Lexi Oder (14.5 PPG), senior Megan Matthews (14.3 PPG) and sophomore Remi Kingdom (9.4 PPG) — for much of that success. They excelled at rebounding, taking down 36.3 boards per game, while boasting 12.4 steals on average.

Overland, on the other hand, lost eight of its past 10 games, which is no doubt a testament to the tenacity of the Centennial League, which includes the likes of Grandview and Cherry Creek. The Trailblazers throw most of their offense onto Michaela Halton (16.9 PPG) and Ilaisaane Davis (11 PPG), but where they lack in rebounding (25.9 RPG), they more than make up for with thievery (16.3 SPG).

No. 40 Fairview at No. 25 Eaglecrest, 6 p.m.

The Knights squeaked into the final spot for the postseason after dropping seven of their last nine contests (12-11 season record). The GPL and their early-season victories lifted them in the RPI, just as sophomore Chloe Hickory elevated the team with her 11-point scoring average. The Knights averaged 26.9 rebounds, 9.8 assists and 12.2 steals.

The Raptors, of the Centennial League, ended their regular-season run treading above .500 with a 13-10 record, but just like the Knights, they leaned on one girl — Jada Bobb (13.9 PPG) — to carry much of the offense. They beat Fairview out in nearly every metric, with 29.6 RPG, 12.7 APG and 12 SPG.

Laying in wait: March 1, first round

No. 20 Monarch at No. 13 Columbine, Saturday

No. 24 Erie at No. 9 Arvada West, Saturday

Class 5A

No. 33 Longmont at No. 32 Grand Junction

The Trojans struggled to make waves in the GPL, winning just four games, to bring their season total record to 7-16. The low-scoring team (36.2 PPG) has relied mostly on its defense but has enjoyed 10.8 PPG from senior Kaila Patterson and a strong glass glass presence at 29.8 boards per game.

The Tigers share a similar story, winning just eight of their 23 games, and have lost seven straight dating back to Jan. 31. Harper Young does most of the heavy lifting with 9.1 PPG and 6.8 RPG, and the whole team accounts for 25.1 RPG.

No. 34 Niwot at No. 31 Aurora Central

The Cougars (10-13) have struggled mightily in league play, losing nine of their last 10 games, but saw most of their success in December. Senior Thalia Almaraz and freshman Alaina Loomis lead the offense with averages of 9.6 points and 9.4 points, respectively.

Niwot rebounds the ball well with 29.6 RPG, but its greatest strength lies in its kleptomania, with 18.1 SPG. The Trojans, by contrast, hold a 13-8 record and have won seven of their past 10 contests and rely chiefly on Jamaea Johnson-Gonzales (16.1 PPG) to lift their offense. They, too, rebound and steal the ball well with 29.9 RPG and 17 SPG.