ARVADA - Midway through the second quarter of Faith Christian's game against Cedaredge, a heart-shaped balloon dropped from the ceiling of the Eagles' gymnasium.

It was about the only thing that could slow the Eagles.

Top-seeded Faith Christian dismantled the Bruins 82-43 in the first round of the Class 3A boys basketball state tournament.

The Eagles, 23-0 and seeded No. 1 in the Hill Region, shrugged off a nearly 2-minute scoreless drought to start the game to rattle off a 13-0 run.

Led by Nick Gill's 10 first-quarter points, including two three-pointers, the Eagles quickly built a 22-2 lead. Faith Christian didn't relent.

Gill added eight more points to his total in the second quarter, which included two more three-pointers.

"He's been shooting well for quite some time now," Faith Christian coach Andrew Hasz said. "He was really on (Friday)."

The junior finished with 25 points, including five three-pointers.

The onslaught continued into the second half, when Abram

Ziemer scored 10 of his 16 points, as the Bruins (7-16) keyed on Gill.

"Abram had a big game and

really played well inside for us," Hasz said.

More impressive for Faith Christian was its defense. The Eagles held Cedaredge to 10 first-half points.

"I was impressed with our defense," Hasz said. "Our whole team defended well. It was a great team effort."

It also was the 16th time this season Faith Christian has won by more than 20 points.

Tyler Stratman finished with 17 points to lead the Bruins.

Cedaredge......2	8	15	18	-	43
Faith Christian......22	25	17	18	-	82

C - Tyler Stratman 6 5-7 17, Bowie Murphy 1 0-0 3, Yance Waibel 0 0-0 0, David Laird 1 1-2 3, Jonathon Crews 1 1-2 4, Ryan Marah 2 2-2 6, Kurt Jones 0 1-3 1, James Cotharn 0 0-0 0, Bo Baker 1 0-1 2, Gage Parham 0 0-0 0, Freddie Hotz 2 2-2 7. Totals 14 12-19 43.

FC - Jobi Wall 4 2-2 10, Abram Ziemer 6 3-3 16, Marcus Kirkwood 3 0-2 6, Nick Gill 9 2-2 25, Vince Colson 1 4-5 6, Sam Chapman 1 1-2 3, Samuel Hegarty 2 0-1 5, Aaron Coon 0 1-2 1, Joel Hegarty 0 2-2 2, Chase Grabau 1 0-0 2, Josh McBeth 1 0-2 2, Tim Yeager 1 2-4 4. Totals 29 16-27 82.

Three-point goals - C, Murphy, Crews, Hotz; FC, Gill 5, Ziemer, Hegarty. Fouled out - FC, Marcus Kirkwood.

YUMA 60, ST. MARY'S 49 - There was to be no drama this time for Justin Coughlin and his Yuma teammates against St. Mary's.

A year after losing a Class 3A Sweet 16 home contest to the Pirates, by one point, Coughlin and the Indians (12-12) dominated the second half, leaving no question about the impression the loss left on them.

"We're looking to get back to Moby Arena; that's our plan," Coughlin said.

Coughlin showed that he can take over a game. The teams entered the third quarter tied at 25-25, but Coughlin had a quarter to remember at both ends of the court.

He not only scored 11 of Yuma's 19 points in the period, but he added four blocked shots that took some of the energy out of the Pirates (15-8). Coughlin, who leads the state in blocks, finished with six to complement a 25-point game.

"It was a tight game coming out of the half," Coughlin said. "My teammates got me the ball at the right time. The guards have been outstanding all season."

St. Mary's senior Mike Garcia scored 23 and kept the team afloat with 16 points in the second half.

St. Mary's......16	9	9	15	-	49
Yuma......12	13	19	16	-	60

SM - Rene Vizcarra 1 0-0 3, Sean O'Keefe 3 0-1 6, Johnny Thomas 0 0-0 0, Mike Garcia 9 3-6 23, Trevor Williams 2 0-0 4, Justin Cobb 1 0-1 2, Nick Murray 0 0-0 0, Ted Zook 2 0-0 4, Tommy Kraus 1 2-2 4, Burton Crosby 1 0-0 3, Reggie Cousnar 0 0-0 0, Matt Gonzales 0 0-0 0. Totals 20 5-10 49.

Y - Logan Wilkins 1 3-4 5, Justin Coughlin 11 2-4 25, Lucas Lubbers 0 2-2 2, Chad Rayl 5 3-4 15, Blake Roth 3 2-2 9, Nolan Bohm 0 0-0 0, Adam Hill 1 1-2 4, Kendall Murphy 0 0-0 0, Michael Dischner 0 0-0 0, Daren Spencer 0 0-0 0, Andrew Terrell 0 0-0 0, Mitch Wills 0 0-0 0. Totals 21 13-18 60.

Three-point goals - SM Garcia 2, Vizcarra, Crosby; Y Rayl 2, Coughlin, Hill.

Adam Dunivan, Special to the Rocky

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