Greeley West Spartans Come Up Two Baskets Short in 5A State Playoffs

My hat is off to Coach Tory Hanson and the Greeley West Spartans for a fantastic season. Even though our boys came up a bit short tonight, I couldn't be any prouder of an incredible team effort and the entire coaching staff should be honored.

Coach Tory Hanson and his entire staff did a wonderful job this year in not only teaching our kids how to better themselves on the court but more importantly, off the court. One thing a good coach does is teach his players more than just a game. After all, it's just a game, but a good coaching staff can teach lessons that will be carried through the rest of their lives.

Charley Barnes, TSM

The Spartans came well prepared this evening in the first round of the 5A State playoffs and even though they came up short in the end, I feel like they were truly the better team on the court tonight and when the final buzzer sounded and they lost, they all held their heads up and showed some true sportmanship. As a Father, it was one of my proudest moments, and sadest at the same time.

Greeley West led most of the game and with the exception of a few controversial calls late in the game and some shots that wouldn't drop ate away at our 7 point lead. As you can see in the picture, it was all tied up at 59 with 59.9 seconds on the clock. At this point, I was no longer in the "seated" position.

What happened in the last minute was just a haze. Two really bad "non calls" and several shots that wouldn't fall including two 3's and it was over just like that. I felt worse than the team did I think. It was right there for the taking but Heritage played through it and will continue their quest in a 5A State title; congrats to the Heritage Eagles.

Again, my heartfelt thanks and congratulations on a great season go out to every player on that Varsity team.