Many high school basketball fans are still talking about a Feb. 17, 2007 faceoff between Denver Prep League rivals Denver East and Montbello at Manual High's Thunderdome. It went down more than a year ago, and some say it was one of the best high school games ever played in Colorado.

The Montbello Warriors escaped with an 82-79 double overtime win, and both teams' play rekindled a rivalry that Montbello coach David Carey and his father, East coach Rudy Carey, say has always been there.
"We revived that rivalry. It's always been a rivalry, but last year with us beating them, it brought that rivalry back to a peak," David Carey said.

"The three teams are kind of like a tri-rivalry," Rudy Carey said, speaking of East, George Washington and Montbello. "Because of the demographics, all of the kids know each other so well, but because of our tradition, everyone takes a shot East."

At the start of Montbello's final practice of the regular season Feb. 20 and in preparation for their much-anticipated rematch with East, 1545 Detroit St., on Feb. 21, David Carey shared some inspiring, motivational thoughts with his team. He told his players that despite their 10-11 record as of Feb. 20, they still had work to do and more to prove.

"For you seniors in here, this is it," David Carey said.

Both teams spent about an hour walking through some defensive and offensive scenarios, not so much their own, but that of each other's. As of Feb. 26, East was one of the top five teams in class 5A with a 18-5 record.

"We didn't do anything special (to prepare for Montbello)," Rudy Carey said. "We knew they were going to be well-coached. We had to prepare for their style of defense."

Rudy Carey's team knew the incentives heading into the game: beat a team that beat them last year and get one step closer to a high seed in the upcoming state tournament.

"We don't focus on beating Montbello," Rudy Carey said. "Our major objective is to win the state championship. If we win, the sun is going to come up tomorrow, and if we lose, the sun is going to come up tomorrow. It's just another basketball game on the road to what we're after."

Warriors senior Nate Nelson knew the significance of this game, not just to try to finish the regular season at .500, but also knowing some of East's game tendencies.

"I'm telling my team to box out, work hard and get ready for what's coming up," Nelson said before the game. "They like to block shots, so we have to pump fake and get them in the air."

Nelson was one of only five seniors on the team, noting that the loss of last year's seniors has made this season more challenging.

"We're going to try to do the same thing we did last year. Most of the team that was here last year was gone, so we have to work with this team."

Fellow senior Marcus Crowder wasn't too worried about the hype surrounding the Feb. 21 game, saying discipline was going to be the key factor to get them over the hump.

"It's another game, but we have to come ready to play," Crowder said, who didn't play in last year's matchup due to injury. "The most exciting part for me is actually being able to play."

Senior point guard Lee Hall echoed Crowder and Nelson's sentiments, saying the anxiety leading up to the game was immeasurable.

"I'm going to have a lot of emotions," Hall said. "It's a battle of emotions. The crowd gets emotional. You can just feel it. You get goose bumps just walking into the gym. You have to bring your A game."

For David Carey, this practice was another opportunity to beat the Angels and gain more bragging rights against his dad.
"It's a weird thing at first (coaching against him), but I'm getting used to it," said
David Carey, who coached against his father twice before coming into the Feb. 21 game. "Once that ball goes up, you completely forget about who's at the other end."

Noting that people create a lot of hype because of the relationship, Rudy Carey pointed out the fine line between basketball and family and East and Montbello.

"David is my son, first and foremost, before basketball. Basketball is secondary when it comes to that," Rudy Carey said. "I always taught him to be competitive. His allegiance should be to the kids he coaches and my allegiance is to the kids I coach."

David Carey said that although the Warriors have had a tough year (record wise), he was proud of the fight his team showed during the season.

"We've grown as a team, and as long as I see growth in these kids, at the end of the day that's what it's about."

The Warriors fell to East 55-46 Feb. 21 in a tight game. Although the seniors had plenty of motivation to beat East one more time, most of the players would be left to wonder if they prepared hard enough.

For East, their road to another state championship (and a fifth under Carey)continues at 7 p.m. Feb. 29 when they will face either Mountain Vista or Wheat Ridge at East in the second round of the 2008 state tournament (East earned a first-round bye).