Boulder Creek Rising

The Boulder Creek Jaguars have certainly been impressive this week at the Great Desert Shootout. The Jags are 3-0 in tournament play so far in a strong 15 team field. Boulder Creek’s first round opponent was Tempe High, who they dispatched in an easy 76-56 win. The Jags employed a balanced attack with Alex Dykhuizen (17 points, 12 rebounds), Josh Braun (15 points), Ryan Crane (13 points, 7 assists, 8 boards) and Joe Simpson (12 points, 7 rebounds). It was a great team defensive effort as well as the Jags opened strong and never trailed in the game. Again, the Jags displayed an aggressive team defense which proved too much for Tempe to overcome.

Boulder Creek next faced an athletic Thunderbird team in their second round draw. The Jaguars were sluggish in the first half and trailed by 9 at intermission. However, they came out strong in the second half and won going away 79-58. Alex Dykhuizen and Ryan Crane led the way for the Jags with 23 points each. Dykhuizen also had a team high 16 rebounds while Crane poured in 7 three pointers. Sophomore, Weston Newell and junior, Joe Simpson had strong efforts, contributing 9 points each and applying terrific defensive pressure, with Newell also getting 3 steals. Point guard Ryan Zettle had 4 assists and 4 steals while freshman Josh Braun had 8 points and 7 rebounds.

The most exciting contest in the tournament up to this point for Boulder Creek took place as the Jags faced off against a very quick and talented Buckeye team. Buckeye previously scored a tournament best 110 points in their win over favorite Mundelein. The Jaguars trailed for most of the game and were down by 13 entering the 4th quarter. Besides defensive intensity, poise and confidence are becoming trademarks of the team. A furious rally in the 4th quarter forced an overtime session, where the Jags prevailed in a clutch 81-74 victory. The Jags were paced by Alex Dykhuizen (28 points, 12 rebounds), Weston Newell (17 points, 3 assists), Ryan Crane (15 points, 3 assists) and Josh Braun (11 points, 3 assists). Ryan Zettle added 3 assists and harassed the opposing guards throughout the entire game.

Boulder Creek now stands at 11-2 for the season and are confident going into the championship game against Dysart. Game time is 6:30 PM tonight at Cactus Shadows HS.