The Crested Butte News Serving the Gunnison Valley since 1999
“We wanted to make a more concerted effort”
By Than Acuff
After a crushing late game road loss to the Center Vikings on Friday, January 24, the Crested Butte Titans boys’ basketball team rolled to 70-42 win over the Trinidad Miners on Saturday, January 25.
The Vikings are always a tough match up, especially in their house. To make it even tougher, Center just happened to have the hot hand to help their cause against the Titans.
“They’re always a tricky team to play,” says head coach Mike Bacani. “Their coach told me after the game they never shoot like that.”
But it was more than hot shooting as Center also came into the game with a plan to shut down the Titans’ leading scorer Adin Kurak. As a result, they played a modified box-in-one with one player following Kurak no matter where he was on the court.
Fortunately, perhaps inspired by his extended family in the stands, it was Luke Jennings’ time to shine as he put up 10 of the Titans’ 14 points in the first quarter alone. But Center had an answer for every basket with a couple three-pointers of their own to hold the Titans within two points by the end of the first quarter.
“Luke kept us in the game in the first quarter,” says head coach Mike Bacani. “Unfortunately, we didn’t really stop them. We were soft on defense early on.”
Center scored the first four points of the second quarter looking to build some momentum only to be slowed down by baskets from Bennett Crabtree, a block by Kurak and an eight-foot jumper from Eli Hulm. Two more three-pointers by Center helped the Vikings build a six-point lead with just over two minutes left to play and they managed to hold off Crested Butte down the stretch of the first half to take a 31-26 lead into halftime.
“They were unbelievably hot from three in the first half,” says Bacani.
Defense and rebounding led the way for the Titans as they held the Vikings scoreless through the first four minutes of the third quarter. In the meantime, Kurak, Bridger Flores and Owen Pugh all scored and the Titans were out front 35-31.
The effort of Tyus Fisher on the offensive boards set up Kurak for a three-pointer but the Viking shooters found their stroke again knocking down two more three-pointers and a handful of free throws to pull ahead 47-41 early in the fourth quarter.
Crested Butte’s defense stepped up again to handcuff the Vikings for five minutes straight. The Titans then slowly clawed back into the game to tie it up 49-49 on a bucket by Flores with 28 seconds left to play.
“We came back several times but them just removing Adin turned it into a four-on-four game,” says Bacani.
Center drew up a play with nine seconds left looking for the game winner and while their final shot missed the mark, a foul on the shooter sent Center to the line with one second left and the Viking player hit two free throws to seal the 51-49 win over the Titans. Jennings finished the game with 14 points with Flores dropping in 10.
“We were sped up a little bit and missing shots we normally make,” says Bacani. “We missed 10 layups in the second half. Just making some of those is the difference.”
Crested Butte licked their wounds and returned home to host the Trinidad Miners on Saturday and fueled by the tough loss, handed it to the Miners. After falling behind 4-1 to start, Hulm helped lead the Titans on a 13-2 run with a block, a steal and five points aided by a couple three-pointers from Kurak for a 14-6 lead. Crested Butte continued to pour it on in the second quarter as their defense held Trinidad to three points in the entire second quarter to build a 38-9 lead by halftime.
“We wanted to make a more concerted effort to deny passes and deny scoring,” says Bacani. “Eli and Tyus were denying the wings, those two set the tone on defense, and we generated fastbreak opportunities by our defense.”
The two teams played even basketball through the third and fourth quarters, but the damage was done as Crested Butte cruised to the 70-42 win. Kurak led the Titans with 30 points, Hulm scored 12 while Flores and John Mitchell each scored seven points.
The Titans return to the road this next week for games against Del Norte and Telluride. Their next home game is Friday, February 7 when they host the Ridgway Demons.
“Del Norte should be another tight game like Center,” says Bacani. “We do need others to step up and the coaches need to keep working to get Adin in positions to score, even when teams run a box-in-one on him.”