FREDERICK’S RUN COMES TO AN END
Air Academy stymies potent Golden Eagles’ offense in 5A semis
DENVER >> Frederick’s Luke Justice wore a towel over his head and a hangdog look across his face as he headed off the court at the Denver Coliseum. This was the other side of the hoops pageantry the Golden Eagles delivered throughout the winter.
This seemed cruel. A weakened left ankle betrayed Justice in the Class 5A state semifinals Friday night, though he’d still found a way to form a productive one-two punch with fellow senior Matias Aldana against top-ranked Air Academy. It wasn’t enough for the fifth-seeded Golden Eagles, who lost to the Kadets 7459, bowing out in high school’s version of the Final Four for a second straight season.
“It’s tough,” Justice said. “I wish I could have been able to do more. Wish I’d been at my full ability.”
Everyone with Frederick’s rooting interest did.
Justice and Aldana each finished with 17 points. Aldana led the charge early, scoring eight of the team’s first 12 to power a quick start. Justice, coming in averaging a team-leading 22.4 points per game, didn’t score his first basket until there was 2 minutes, 52 seconds left in the half. It was clear he wasn’t 100%.
On a hard fall in the opening quarter, Justice had aggravated an ankle sprain he said he suffered less than a week ago. Frederick was up six at the time.
His crisp cuts, strong drives, and that ability to scribble through defenses whenever he pleased, things that made him one of the best scorers in state, was now gone.
“I couldn’t turn, I couldn’t drive at my full ability, couldn’t use my jab step. I couldn’t slide