BOULDER -- A rough outing over the weekend cost Broomfield boys basketball big. The team took a shot to its ego. It learned it has a number of issues to confront. And it got knocked down from No. 2 to No. 6 in the Class 4A rankings.
The Eagles wake-up call Friday night in the loss at top-ranked Lewis-Palmer, however, did not go unheeded. The team still showed some rough edges in Monday night's opener of the Fairview Festival Tournament. But it also was a much scrapper and hungry squad in its 61-53 win over Pine Creek.
"We were really looking to come out after that tough loss (at Lewis-Palmer) and get our confidence back," Broomfield senior Spenser Reeb said. "I think we did that tonight."
Broomfield faces Fountain Fort Carson (4-1) 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, in the second round of the tournament.
The Eagles (3-2) kept their opponents winless on the season with everything clicking coming in and out of halftime. Pine Creek (0-3) was reeling after Broomfield forced 10 turnovers over that time, leading to slew of points.
Reeb benefited from a good deal of the turnovers with the forward coming up with his biggest offensive showing of the season. The forward recorded his fourth double-digit game of season by scoring 13 of this game-high 19 points in the second and third.
"Our defense really fed our offense tonight," Reeb said. "It's something we've been trying to do for awhile."
Broomfield had two other players break into double digits with Evan Kihn finishing with 12 points and Alec McLain with 10. The team also had Pine Creek stymied for the better part of the game. Pine Creek's Rhett Lopez finished with 10 points, but the center had to wait until Broomfield's sluggish fourth to get out of single digits.
Broomfield let up on the gas late, allowing its opponents to score 21 points in the fourth. Despite the overall strong showing, the finish earned little praise from Terrence Dunn.
"We kind of blew up in the last few minutes there," the Broomfield coach said. "We need to play with more confidence and consistency."
Even with some nits to pick about the finish and the Eagles 17 turnovers, Dunn believes his team got off on a good foot in the tournament. And he believes the Fairview Festival comes at the right time for Broomfield.
"I think we have a great opportunity in this tournament," the coach said. "Our best basketball is in front of us, we haven't play our best yet, but we have the opportunity to make strides here."
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Broomfield 61, Pine Creek 53
At Fairview HS
PINE CREEK (0-3)
Bray 2 0-0 5, Coker 2 0-0 5, Roberson 2 1-1 5, Morin 1 1-2 3, Hamstad 2 0-0 5, Black 3 2-2 9, Meachum 3 0-1 7, Franey 2 0-0 4, Lopez 2 6-7 10. Totals 17 10-13 53..
Jukkala 1 1-2 3, Macrae 0 3-4 3, Perse 2 3-4 7, Reeb 6 4-8 19, Kihn 3 6-8 12, McLain 4 2-2 10, Wristen 0 0-4 0, Hull 2 3-6 7. Totals 18 22-38 61.
3-point field goals -- Pine Creek (5): Bray, Coker, Hamstad, Balck, Meachum; Broomfield (1): Reeb. Total fouls -- Pine Creek 27, Broomfield 18 . Fouled out -- None. Technical fouls -- None.