A bye in the first round came as an unwelcome sight to the Durango Demons.
Durango High (15-6) was awarded the No. 4 seed in the Richard Tate Region of the CHSAA Class 4A Boys Basketball State Championships.
The Demons won’t have to play in the first round of the tournament. Instead, they will await the winner of No. 5 Air Academy (17-6) and No. 12 Coronado (9-14), who will play Wednesday night at Air Academy.
“It is nice because it is a higher seed than the last seven years. To get that respect feels good,” DHS head coach Alan Batiste said. “As a coaching staff, we always want to play a first-round game to get our feet wet in the tournament. Plus, we wanted a home playoff game.”
Durango’s second-round game will be played at 5:30 p.m. Friday at Valor Christian (19-4), who earned the top-seed in the Richard Tate Region.
“We knew if we got the fourth seed we would have to play on the road in the second round. We were expecting to get all of our fans a home game if we could have got the fifth seed and played the first round,” Batiste said. “Now, we won’t host at all.”
The one positive to not having to play in the first round Wednesday is the Demons’ coaching staff will be able to scout the Air Academy-Coronado game.
“Both of those Colorado Springs teams play in a tough league. We know they will be competing hard,” Batiste said. “I think it is an open field across the board this year in 4A; you have to expect every team to bring it.”
Fresh off a league tournament championship, the Durango boys are eager and ready to compete in the state tournament.
“Our boys are playing with a lot of confidence after winning district. That is a big accomplishment for Durango basketball,” Batiste said. “It will come down to execution and who is playing the hardest.”
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