Steamboat Springs boys basketball

Steamboat Springs — 7:30 p.m. Friday: Steamboat (10-4) vs. Eagle Valley (0-13)

2 p.m. Saturday: Steamboat vs. Palisade (6-7)

The Steamboat boys hit double-digit wins Tuesday with a victory at Rifle, and as a reward, the Sailors will get the next four contests at home.

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First up is severely struggling Eagle Valley, which has yet to come within 12 points of winning a game this winter. The Sailors hammered the Devils, 69-33, on Dec. 20 in Edwards.

Saturday will be much trickier for Steamboat as the squad hosts the deceivingly good Palisade Bulldogs. Don’t let Palisade’s losing record fool you — the Bulldogs are 5-2 in 4A Western Slope League play and could throw the Sailors into a tie for second place.

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Palisade is led by senior Marques Combs, who averages 12 points per game but was shut down by Steamboat’s Robi Powers on Jan. 9, a 48-40 Sailors win.

Steamboat Springs girls basketball

5:30 p.m. Friday: Steamboat (4-10) vs. Eagle Valley (10-3)

1 p.m. Saturday: Steamboat vs. Palisade (11-2)

This weekend likely will be the most difficult back-to-back games the Sailors girls will face the rest of the season.

Eagle Valley comes into Steamboat on Friday as one of the 4A Western Slope League’s most-improved teams. The Devils won 12 games all of last year and already have knocked down 10 opponents this season with seven more contests to go.

On Saturday, first-place Palisade will be in town. The Bulldogs will host 12-2 Glenwood Springs three days later, so maybe the Sailors can catch them looking a little too far ahead. Palisade is deep with three players averaging right around 10 points per game.

Steamboat Springs hockey

6 p.m. Friday: Steamboat (1-13) vs. Summit (3-6-1)

5 p.m. Saturday: Steamboat vs. Resurrection Christian (9-2)

This weekend marks the final time this season the Steamboat hockey team has a chance to score another win in front of its home crowd.

The Sailors host three-win Summit on Friday night, a Tigers team that is coming off two 6-0 losses.

Senior night on Saturday definitely will be a much taller hill to climb with Resurrection Christian. The Cougars are ranked No. 7 in the latest Colorado High School Activities Association poll and look poised to make a deep state playoff run.

Steamboat will close out the season with lengthy trips to Cherry Creek, Columbine and Mullen.

Hayden boys basketball

7 p.m. Friday: Hayden (0-11) vs. De Beque (0-11)

4:30 p.m. Saturday: Hayden at Vail Christian (7-4)

It could be a great Friday night for the Hayden High School boys.

On paper, it looks like a matchup between a pair of winless squads, but for the Tigers, it very well could mean their first win under new head coach Jody Harvey.

De Beque has given up 63 points or more in 10 of the Dragons’ 11 losses this season. Hayden has improved since it opened the season two months ago but has been gashed by some slow starts as of late.

The Tigers will hit the road Saturday for a game at Vail Christian, a team they hung with early Jan. 10 but got tired late in a 24-point loss.

Hayden girls basketball

5:30 p.m. Friday: Hayden (3-8) vs. De Beque (1-10)

3 p.m. Saturday: Hayden at Vail Christian (8-3)

The Tigers girls are starving for their first win of the new year, and they’ll get a fine opportunity Friday at home against De Beque.

Like the boys game, the girls contest pins a pair of struggling — but not winless — squads. Hayden has lost five straight varsity games dating back to Dec. 13. The Dragons’ only win came against a start-up program in Caprock Academy.

On Saturday, Hayden will be at surging Vail Christian, which has its eyes set on a league-title push. The Saints downed the Tigers on Jan. 10, 40-25.

Soroco boys basketball

7:30 p.m. Friday: Soroco (8-5) at Vail Christian (7-4)

4 p.m. Saturday: Soroco vs. West Grand (8-5)

The Soroco boys could either make huge strides this weekend in the 2A Western Slope Gore League standings or sink to below .500.

At 3-2 in conference play, the Rams sit just behind Vail Christian and West Grand, their Friday-Saturday opponents. Soroco’s two losses came against the Saints and Mustangs a few weeks back, though.

Vail Christian is undefeated in the league and West Grand is 4-1. Slow starts killed the Rams against the Mustangs on Jan. 10 and against the Saints on Jan. 13.

Steamboat and Soroco wrestling

7 a.m. Saturday: Sailors and Rams at Valley Classic (Center)

The Steamboat and Soroco wrestling teams saved the lengthiest for the almost-last.

The teams make the nearly five-hour drive to Southern Colorado for Center’s Valley Classic, a large 22-team tournament. It will be one of the last bits of competition either team will see before their respective regional tournaments in February.

The Sailors won their home invitational last Saturday and battled well in a home triangular on Tuesday against Glenwood Springs and Eagle Valley. Soroco’s pair were at Paonia’s Screaming Eagle Invitational during the weekend.

Steamboat will be at the Meeker Duals on Feb. 7 for its final regular-season competition, and Soroco will be at a four-way meet at West Grand on Feb. 5.

To reach Ben Ingersoll, call 970-871-4204, email bingersoll@SteamboatToday.com or follow him on Twitter @BenMIngersoll