Lincoln took a most unusual route to Boulder's Coors Events Center.

The Lancers came by Mexico and Africa.

Lincoln, powered by a diverse mix of players from all over the world, has reached the boys state semifinals for the first time in the school's 47-year history.

"This team is very, very diverse," Lincoln coach Vince Valdez said. "That's the thing that people really marvel at, because it's almost like an international team."

Reflecting the school's large Hispanic population, several players on Lincoln's team are from Mexico, including senior guard Jorge Gutierrez, who leads the team in scoring.

Another starter, 6-foot-7 senior Ruot Pal, is from Sudan. Pal's family fled their war-torn country to come to the U.S. in 1999.

"We really embrace our diversity," Valdez said. "Because we come from so many different cultures, we kind of formed our own culture. Our team culture."

The Lancers (18-7) have the most losses of any of Class 4A's final four teams, but the coaches from Broomfield (21-5), Widefield (21-4) and Ralston Valley (23-3) are aware of the minefield of a schedule that Lincoln went through to prepare for the state tournament.

Eleven of the Lancers opponents were 5A teams, including 5A semifinalists Aurora Central and Denver East.

"They are battle-tested," said Broomfield coach Kevin Boley, whose Eagles will face the Lan- cers in the semifinals tonight. "Even their nonleague 4A schedule was against really good opponents."

At one point the Lancers, who were the Rocky Mountain News preseason No. 1 team, had a 6-6 record. Valdez said his team had tunnel vision when it came to its record, thinking only about the end result.

"I think a lot of people got caught up in our record, that we had seven losses this year," he said. "That didn't concern us, what other people were thinking. We knew we were playing in preparation for the postseason."

The Lancers' only loss since mid-January was to Denver East (22-3).

Gutierrez, who burst onto the Colorado basketball scene last year by averaging 24 points a game when the Lancers were a 5A team, is the most explosive player in the tournament.

He averages 19.6 points a game and can be just as effective on defense, where he averages 4.6 steals. The 6-3 point guard has averaged 20.3 points in three tournament games, and he has the ability to take over a game when needed.

In the Lancers' quarterfinal victory against top-seeded Harrison, Gutierrez scored nine consecutive points between the end of the third quarter and the start of the fourth, when Harrison had pulled to four points.

His unique blend of quickness and power make him perhaps the toughest player in the 4A semifinals to game-plan against.

"He's an unbelievable athlete," said Boley, who saw Gutierrez last summer when he coached on the Colorado Select team. "He can do some special things, especially in the open court, and defensively, he's just a hawk."

Boley has taken Broomfield to the semifinals in four of his eight seasons, including a state championship in 2004.

The Eagles are a remarkable story as well, having reached the final four for the second consecutive season despite losing nine seniors from the squad last year.

Broomfield's fan support at the semifinals usually is the best of the four 4A teams, but Valdez hopes the Lancers will be able to match the Eagles in that department.

"The school spirit has been tremendous," he said. "The crowds are great and the community is absolutely excited. This team has brought a lot of people together. It's a beautiful thing to see."

Team-by-team capsules

Broomfield (21-5)

• Season recap: Northern League tournament champion; finished second in the West Division during the regular season.

• Top players: Ryan Garren (12.5 points, 86 percent at the free-throw line), Tim Halliday (10 points), Alex Barthule (9.6 points, 3.7 rebounds, 2.3 steals).

• Tip-ins: The Eagles shoot 76 percent from the free-throw line, the highest percentage since Kevin Boley became coach in 1999. After starting the season 4-3, the Eagles won eight in a row. They currently are on another eight-game streak after winning the Northern League tournament right before state. This is the third time in four years Broomfield has reached the 4A semifinals. The Eagles won the state championship in 2004, beating Fountain-Fort Carson in the final. Last season, they lost to Thomas Jefferson in the semifinals.

Lincoln (18-7)

• Season recap: Finished third in the Denver Prep League but first among 4A DPL teams.

• Top players: Jorge Gutierrez (19.6 points, 6.3 rebounds, 4.6 steals), Ruot Pal (13.8 points, 8.3 rebounds), Kadeem Thomas (13 points, 4 assists, 2.6 steals) and Francisco Cruz (12.8 points, 4.9 rebounds).

• Tip-ins: The Lancers are making their first appearance in the semifinals at any classification. Their best finish before this season was the 5A quarterfinals in 2002. Lincoln had a 6-6 record midway through the season, but the Lancers played half their schedule against 5A competition, including two of the 5A semifinalists this year (Denver East, Aurora Central). Since mid-January, the Lancers have gone 12-1. Lincoln is the only 4A team remaining that was not a No. 1 regional seed. The Lan- cers were a No. 2 seed.

Ralston Valley (23-3)

• Season recap: Finished first in the Jefferson County League.

• Top players: Pierce Hornung (13.3 points, 6.6 rebounds), Zach Johnson (12 points, 60 percent from three-point range), Grant Hamilton (11.6 points) and Brock Hornung (7.5 points, 1.4 blocks).

• Tip-ins: This is Ralston Valley's first appearance in the semifinals since the Mustangs won the 2003 4A state championship. The Mustangs lost to Widefield 76-63 in the third round of the state tournament last season. Johnson scored 17 points to lead Ralston Valley to a 64-61 victory against 4A semifinalist Lincoln earlier this season. The Mustangs are on a 12-game winning streak, which includes a quarterfinal victory against Pueblo South (23-2). Their average margin of victory in three playoff games has been 21 points.

Widefield (21-4)

• Season recap: The Gladiators finished tied with Harrison for first place in the Colorado Springs Metro League.

• Top players: Brandon Lutz (18.9 points, 41 percent from three-point range), Julien McCollum (14.3 points, 8.5 rebounds, 4.0 assists, 3.7 steals), Vincente Valdez (12.6 points) and Derek Brekken (7.7 points, 5.5 rebounds).

• Tip-ins: Widefield won a boys basketball state championship in 1985 while playing in 4A, the largest classification at that time. The Gladiators lost to Harrison in the quarterfinals last season but knocked out Ralston Valley in the third round. Widefield has won 12 games in a row. Eight of those victories have come against teams with winning records. Lutz led the Gladiators in scoring during the regular season, but McCollum has been the team's high scorer in the tournament.

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