Season Recap: Denver Prep League (5A/4A)

Though it ended a bit prematurely, the 2019-20 season is in the books. Now that there’s some distance between the end of Colorado’s latest prep campaign and today, we’ll take a look back at what transpired in each of our state’s conferences. Here’s a snapshot of this winter’s action in the Denver Prep League.   Who won the league in ’19-20? Both Denver South (19-5) and George Washington (19-6) finished atop the league with matching 8-1 records but the slight edge went to the South Rebels, who won 53-52 against GW in their only head-to-head meeting of the winter. Far Northeast (15-9) ended up third with an 8-2 conference record and Denver East (16-8) – last year’s DPL champion – was next at 7-2 in league play. Seven of the league’s 12 teams finished with overall records of .500 or better.   Five players who shined this winter [caption id="attachment_120408" align="alignright" width="300"] [player_tooltip player_id="95071" first="Tosjanae" last="Bonds"][/caption][player_tooltip player_id="95071" first="Tosjanae" last="Bonds"], 2020, 5-5, SG, Far Northeast One of the more electric and exciting players in Colorado, Bonds was outstanding this winter and had more than a few memorable performances. There was one, however, that stood out above the rest. On Feb. 8, the unsigned senior accomplished on of the most rare feats in basketball by posting a quadruple-double. She finished a 73-43 victory over Denver East with 40 points while going 14 for 18 (78 percent) from the field. Bonds also had 18 rebounds, 10 assists and 10 steals in the game, and turned the ball over just once. Overall, Bonds averaged 24.9 points – best in the state – 7.7 rebounds and nine steals per game, and shouldn’t remain unsigned much longer.   [player_tooltip player_id="134339" first="Jordynn" last="Conner"], 2021, 5-10, SF, Denver East This was a great junior season for Conner, who was a few bounces of the basketball away from averaging a double-double. The Angels small forward ended up averaging 12.7 points and 9.5 boards to go with the 2.1 assists and 2.9 steals she was good for on a nightly basis. Perhaps no player in the DPL raised her stock more than Conner, who showed all season long that she is a versatile player with good size and athleticism who can do a number of things to help her team win on the basketball court.   [caption id="attachment_151010" align="alignright" width="300"] [player_tooltip player_id="116758" first="Timiya" last="Guevara"][/caption][player_tooltip player_id="116758" first="Timiya" last="Guevara"], 2021, 5-4, PG, Denver South Guevara was an electric scorer this season and finished third in the entire state with a scoring average of 22 points even. Small but explosive, and a fearless finisher at in the paint and in traffic, Guevara lit it up nightly and finished her junior season just 80 points shy of 1,500 for her career. That’s not all. A true do-it-all guard, Guevara also averaged 6.3 assists, 5.8 rebounds and 5.8 steals a night, and could be counted on for at least two or three “wow” plays any time she took the court. Guevara is currently ranked No. 12 in her class and did more than enough to stay right there heading into the summer months.   [caption id="attachment_145629" align="alignright" width="300"] [player_tooltip player_id="95224" first="Jaida" last="Redwine"][/caption][player_tooltip player_id="95224" first="Jaida" last="Redwine"], 2023, 5-3, CG, George Washington Boy, this sure was a good year for young players in the DPL. There’s no better example of that than Redwine, who was fourth in the league with a 16.9 ppg scoring average as a freshman. Redwine scored double figures in all but four of the Patriots’ 25 games, including a career-best 28 points against Vanden (CA) on Dec. 19. The 5-foot-8 guard also averaged 4.9 rebounds, 3.5 steals and 2.5 assists per game while shooting 40 percent (31 for 77) from 3-point range. Already establishing herself among the top prospects in Colorado’s 2023 graduating class, it’s often hard to believe Redwine is only a freshman. She’ll certainly be a player to track over the next three years, especially if she continues to grow and improve and follow the trajectory she’s currently on.   [caption id="attachment_145631" align="alignright" width="300"] [player_tooltip player_id="95127" first="Maya" last="Whiteside"][/caption][player_tooltip player_id="95127" first="Maya" last="Whiteside"], 2021, 6-0, SF, George Washington Easily one of the best all-around athletes in the DPL, Whiteside was a force to be reckoned with in 2019-20. The versatile junior forward was the Patriots’ anchor, and always found a way to impact the game however she could. On nights when she had her entire inside-out toolset working, Whiteside was flat out dominant. She averaged 11.9 points, 7.3 rebounds, 3.2 steals and 3.3 blocks, and finished her junior season with seven double-doubles in 25 games. Whiteside shot a higher percentage from 3-point range as a sophomore than as a junior, and took fewer long-range attempts in 2019-20, but certainly didn’t do anything to hurt her stock in that regard. She is currently the No. 7-ranked 2021 in the PGH Colorado rankings and is well her way to living up to her immense potential as a recruit.   [caption id="attachment_150927" align="alignright" width="300"] Giavonna Meeks[/caption] Who was voted all-conference in 2019-20? First Team [player_tooltip player_id="95071" first="Tosjanae" last="Bonds"], Far Northeast [player_tooltip player_id="95224" first="Jaida" last="Redwine"], George Washington [player_tooltip player_id="95127" first="Maya" last="Whiteside"], George Washington [player_tooltip player_id="134339" first="Jordynn" last="Conner"], Denver East [player_tooltip player_id="116758" first="Timiya" last="Guevara"], Denver South [caption id="attachment_144331" align="alignleft" width="300"] [player_tooltip player_id="117687" first="Jasmine" last="Arreola"][/caption]Second Team [player_tooltip player_id="145436" first="Tay" last="Williams"], Denver South [player_tooltip player_id="117687" first="Jasmine" last="Arreola"], Denver West [player_tooltip player_id="115766" first="Iyahnni" last="Qualls"], George Washington Giavonna Meeks, Northfield [player_tooltip player_id="95218" first="Brooke" last="Murrell"], Thomas Jefferson