Eagle Valley closes year on 12-game winning streak to clinch No. 4 seed in 5A state tournament

Eagle Valley dispatched Battle Mountain 67-55 on Thursday and finished the regular season with a 20-point win over Roaring Fork to enter the state tournament on a 12-game winning streak.

The Devils clinched the No. 4 seed in the 5A state tournament and will face the winner of No. 29 Thomas Jefferson and No. 36 Coronado on Feb. 27 in Gypsum. Eagle Valley’s girls basketball team also made the playoffs after securing the league title for the second-straight year; the girls are the No. 32 seed and will face No. 33 Cheyenne Mountain on Feb. 25.

After falling to the Devils by 21 points in the teams’ Jan. 29 meeting, Battle Mountain kept things close through the first half on Thursday. The score was 32-29 at the break. The Devils got the gap up to 18 with 4:02 left in the game, but the Devils were able to claw back to within single digits in the final 22 seconds.

Jackson Wansley drilled six 3-pointers to lead the Huskies with 18 points in the loss. Battle Mountain rebounded with a 69-65 win over Cedaredge on Saturday to finish the year with a 7-13 record.

“Even though our record wasn’t what I had envisioned for us, our team improved in every category over last year,” said first-year Battle Mountain coach Shawn Johnson, whose team raised its offensive output by four points per game from last season. “Our defense improved, holding multiple opponents below their scoring averages. Seven wins hasn’t happened here for some years — incredible for the Huskies.”

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Beyond the numbers, Johnson said seeing the “culture and pride” tilt in a positive direction has been even more important.

“The team put in work, never put their heads down and improved everyday in every way,” he continued. “For my first season, I couldn’t be happier with the buy in and new direction we are heading.”