Niwot Boys Basketball Ends Season on Losing Streak

The last few weeks were not what the Niwot High School boys basketball team had hoped they would be.

Entering the final stretch of the season it was a long shot for the Cougars to make the playoffs, but if they had been able to take care of business and let the chips fall as they would, they would have had a slim shot at seeing the post season.

Niwot was not able to do that though, as they ended their season on a five-game losing streak. The most recent losses last week to Centaurus, 50-45, and Northridge, 66-63, were especially hard to stomach since they were so close. Against Northridge, the Cougars had a chance to tie in the waning seconds, but Kannegieter’s 3-point attempt fell short.

“It’s a weird place to be, on the outside looking in” Niwot Head Coach Preston Hardy said of his team missing the playoffs.

They finished with an 8-15 record on the year and a 4-10 conference record. Though Kannegieter, the Cougars’ leading scorer this year, will be leaving to graduation, in addition to season-long starters Walker Bounds and Michael Agado, there still is a lot of potential for growth on the team.

Juniors Jackson Kolakowski and Adam Barber played significant minutes for Niwot this year, and were both regular starters by the end of the year. Junior Jacob Sims was also an important player off the bench, connecting often from 3-point range, and will be an integral piece for next year’s team.

“We could have crumbled but we didn’t,” Hardy said of his team knowing they wouldn’t make the playoffs coming into this week. “That’s been the character of the team all year - we have worked really hard.” The 11 seniors on the squad were honored for their contributions at the beginning of the Northridge game.

Niwot 9 4 18 14 – 45

Centaurus 10 13 15 12 – 50

Niwot: Jackson Kolakowski 0 0-0 0, Ty Vigil 0 0-0 0, Joseph Ho 0 0-0 0, Walker Bounds 2 0-0 4, Ryan Kannegieter 6 5-5 18, Noah Radatz 1 2-2 4, Adam Barber 2 0-1 5, Michael Agado 2 0-1 4, Jacob Sims 3 0-0 8, Michael Oliver 1 0-0 2. Totals 17 7-9 45.

3-point field goals – Niwot: Kannegieter 1-5, Barber 1-7, Agado 0-2, Vigil 0-1, Sims 2-3.

Total fouls – Niwot: 16, Centaurus: 14.

Northridge 14 18 15 19 – 66

Niwot 21 14 9 19 – 63

Niwot: Jackson Kolakowski 0 0-1 0, Ty Vigil 2 0-0 6, Joseph Ho 0 1-2 1, Walker Bounds 6 4-5 16, Ryan Kannegieter 5 4-5 16, Noah Radatz 0 0-0 0, Adam Barber 0 1-2 1, Michael Agado 1 1-2 4, Jacob Sims 2 0-0 5, Michael Oliver 3 0-0 6, Roberto Ramirez 2 0-0 5, Mason Lopez 1 0-0 3. Totals 22 11-18 63.

3-point field goals – Niwot: Kolakowski 0-1, Ramirez 1-1, Kannegieter 2-10, Radatz 0-1, Lopez 1-1, Agado 1-2, Vigil 2-3, Sims 1-4, Oliver 0-1.

Total fouls – Niwot: 27.