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Joel Reichenberger

Joel Reichenberger's column appears Sundays in the Steamboat Pilot & Today. Contact him at 871-4253 or e-mail jreichenberger@SteamboatToday.com.

Steamboat Springs — I don't feel bad saying the overwhelming success of the Hayden girls basketball team and coach Eric Hamilton has surprised me.

When I first interviewed Hamilton before the season began, he came off different than any coach I'd ever talked to. He seemed boarish in his approach to coaching and ignored common sense for years, opting to continue to apply for head coaching jobs at local high schools while refusing to even consider trying to start as an assistant and move up.

He told me in that interview that he had a scheme, a fast-break, full-court press scheme that would carry the day and prove his stubbornness correct.

So far, he's been right.

The fast-paced offense and pressure defense has helped the team to a spectacular season. With four games remaining before the playoffs, the Tigers seem poised to make a run to the state tournament.

And even more impressive, Hamilton seems convinced that those schemes he took so much preseason pride in won't be enough in the nail-biting games that await.

Hayden didn't look good in its Friday night victory against North Park. The Tigers let the Wildcats off the hook after taking a 19-4 first-half lead, and North Park threatened to close within four points in the final minutes.

A lot of that was by design, however. Hayden didn't try to keep the game close, and certainly North Park proved to be a team not to toy with. But the Tigers tried throughout the game to score from the outside and generate new and reliable sources of points.

If the team can connect with those goals, it could be unbeatable. Opponents have slowed Hayden by swarming scoring leader Holli Salazar, playing a sagging, help-focused zone that keeps her touches few and far between.

She's still been able to get on the board - she shared the team's top scoring honors in last week's loss to Paonia with 11 points, then led the way again Friday against North Park with 15. But teams have been successful in containing her and preventing her from taking over.

If Hayden is able to develop options outside it's top two or three scorers, it will be a very dangerous club. Options are what make a playoff team hum.

Hayden's players didn't always handle North Park's pressure well. It's the second time in as many weeks the Tigers have looked susceptible to their own brand of basketball.

They also didn't preserve the lead very well.

One long 3-point shot was hoisted less than five seconds into a late-game possession. The shot missed, and a desperate Wildcat squad quickly had the ball back and was on the hunt for more points.

Tigers players also picked up silly fouls far away from the basket.

There are a lot of small things the team needs to fix if it's going to play deep into the postseason.

But it has to be comforting to Tigers fans to see that Hamilton isn't a one-trick pony.