Boys basketball searching for an identity
By Dan Karpiel
The Surveyor
To call the month of January disappointing for the Berthoud High School (BHS) boys basketball team would be an understatement. The Spartans have dropped six straight Tri-Valley Conference (TVC) games, losing their most recent to Mead 68-42 on Jan. 26.
The young Berthoud squad appears to be a team that, even 16 games into the season, is still in search of its identity. Head Coach Mike Burkett said after the loss to Mead that he “feels just awful” and is, “grasping at straws here.
“I’m trying to figure out what you can do; trying anything I can try,” he said.
Starting a lineup that featured three sophomores and a freshman, along with senior Jamie Gray, the Spartans found themselves down 8-1 at the 5:57 mark in the first period. Berthoud had several decent shot attempts rim-out while the Mavericks took advantage of five Berthoud turnovers and out-rebounded the Spartans by nearly a two-to-one clip to take a 17-9 lead.
“We got ourselves some opportunities, we had some layups and we missed, I think, five of six of them,” Burkett said after the game. “I think we were one-for-six from the free-throw line and you’re not going to beat a whole lot of teams when you do that.”
The Spartans staged a rally midway through the second, as a pair of buckets from Gray, one from sophomore Jake Yuska, who contributed six points on the night, and a trey from senior Dylan Adaza got Berthoud to within six, 24-18, in the second. Yet Mead added six from the floor and another two from the line, halting the Spartans’ nascent rally and giving the Mavericks a 32-18 halftime lead.
A steal and dunk late in the third from Berthoud sophomore standout McCallan Castles was the Spartans’ last gasp of the night, as Mead outscored Berthoud 36-24 in the second half on their way to the 26-point win.
Burkett, although disappointed with the last six games, was adamant his team will give it all they have in their final seven.
“What I told the kids is you can get bitter or you can get better … and you’re going to have some days when you take some lumps,” Burkett said. “But these are great kids from great families [and] if this is as bad as it ever gets, losing a basketball game, they’ve got it pretty good.”
The good news for Berthoud (4-12, 1-6 conf.) is they host Erie (1-15, 0-7 conf.), the one TVC team whom they have beaten, on Jan. 29. The Spartans then have the opportunity to exact revenge on each of their TVC rivals over the course of their final six games of the season.
- November, 30 2017
Lady Spartans planning to climb the l...
By Dan Karpiel The Surveyor On a metaphorical six-rung ladder of achievement, the Berthoud High...
- December, 11 2014
Boys basketball ready for home opener
By Dan Karpiel The Surveyor Photo by Angie PurdyBerthoud’s McCallan Castles...
- February, 16 2017
Boys basketball winding down difficul...
By Dan Karpiel The Surveyor In modern American culture, sports have what many believe to...
- February, 01 2018
Threes and free-throws push Spartans ...
By Dan Karpiel The Surveyor It can really be a thing of beauty when everything...
- December, 08 2016
Boys basketball looks to rebound afte...
Berthoud's Karsten Bump goes up for a shot during the Spartans...
- January, 22 2015
Berthoud basketball suffers fifth str...
Berthoud's Cody Braesch goes up for a shot during the boys'...
- Spring training begins for Spartan ba...
- Berthoud “Bombers” win championship i...
- Spartan baseball undefeated in April
- Spartan golf team has enormous partic...
- Berthoud golfers win R2J Championship
- Berthoud golf team begins season swing
- Boys soccer wins in season opener
- Spartan soccer ends season on a high ...
- Berthoud soccer squad seeing signific...
- Bothun leads Spartans to second place...
- Spartans send ten runners to state cr...
- Clark wins Patriot League Cross Count...
- The 12-team playoff cannot come soon ...
- Spartans lose 14-13 in controversial ...
- Berthoud High School football game wi...
- Lady Spartans fall to Jefferson Acade...
- Thompson Valley tramples Lady Spartan...
- Berthoud girls stand out in All-Star ...
- Tychsen leads Lady Spartans to first ...
- Top five finish for girls golf
- Lady Spartan golfers battle for state...
- Spartans fall to Frederick in state s...
- Spartan softball comes back against N...
- Softball finishes regular season 20-3
- Back in the water and back winning
- Spartan swimmers set new school recor...
- Berthoud swimmers shine in Break the ...
- Berthoud boys head to state tennis to...
- Berthoud sending two lines to state c...
- Lady Spartans earn second place at re...
- Spartans steal the show at Roosevelt ...
- Brooke Nelsen leaps over 30-year scho...
- Half-mile state champion Williams ret...
Obituary – Shirley French
Community NewsBHS places third in 4A Colorado Knowledge Bowl 2024
Community NewsRide along with Berthoud’s snowplow drivers
Community NewsSpartans steal the show at Roosevelt High School
Community NewsSurveyor launches Berthoud Beat podcast
Local News
COMMUNITY CALENDAR:
Community Calendar – add an eventHomestead Fine Art Gallery First Fridays OPEN HOUSE
05 Apr 4:00 PM - 7:00 PMHomestead Fine Art Gallery First Fridays OPEN HOUSE
03 May 4:00 PM - 7:00 PMHomestead Fine Art Gallery First Fridays OPEN HOUSE
07 Jun 4:00 PM - 7:00 PMHomestead Fine Art Gallery First Fridays OPEN HOUSE
05 Jul 4:00 PM - 7:00 PMHomestead Fine Art Gallery First Fridays OPEN HOUSE
02 Aug 4:00 PM - 7:00 PMHomestead Fine Art Gallery First Fridays OPEN HOUSE
06 Sep 4:00 PM - 7:00 PM