The Fossil Ridge boys basketball team defeated Ralston Valley 74-54 at home during the third round of the playoffs.

Fossil struggled to find their footing early in this matchup, as the Sabercats only led 32-26 heading into halftime, as Ralston Valley made a deep three-point buzzer beater to end the second quarter.

“We came out flat…we weren’t ready…after halftime we need to come out with more intensity,” said junior, Tyler Brown.

Brown is known for his magnificent defense, affectionately given the nickname “Lockdown Brown”. As the primary defender for their best player, freshman, Tanner Braketa, Brown held the top scorer to only ten points on 3-16 shooting.

In addition to his fabulous defense, Brown contributed on the offensive end, as one of four Sabercats in double digits. Brown scored thirteen points on a perfect 3-3 shooting behind the three point line, making him Fossil’s most efficient scorer on the evening.

“It’s all practice, you have to put in the work. I had a rough start to the season from the three-point line, but I’ve been able to recover from it,” Brown said.

Another standout performance came from junior, Domenic Leone. Leone has led Fossil through these first two playoff games, leading the team averaging 17.5 points and 10.5 rebounds on the big stage. In addition, Leone has thrown down a massive dunk in each contest, spiking the energy both on the bench and in the crowd. Leone credits his diverse athletic prowess due to his status as a three-sport athlete, playing football in the fall and baseball in the spring.

Leone, and the rest of the Sabercats, now look ahead to the Great Eight, as they take on the 26th seeded Legacy High School. Fossil already beat Legacy earlier in the season, handling them 71-39 at home. Since then, Legacy has become red hot, winning four games in a row, including two in a row against top ten teams. 

“It should be a good game. It will be a lot of fun to play at the Coliseum for the first time ever…These are my last games with our seniors, which is a sad thought but a great thought too,” Leone said.

Fossil will take on the Legacy Lightning at the Denver Coliseum on Saturday, March 5 at 12:30 p.m.