BROOMFIELD — Aric Kaiser was as sneaky as a thief.
The Broomfield sophomore inexplicably got behind the Greeley West defense on Friday night and rolled in a layup in the final seconds to lift the Eagles to a 55-54 victory over the Spartans in the ever-tough Class 4A Northern League.
Coming into the game, there were four teams tied for the league lead, but the Eagles stayed just off the pace by improving to 13-4 overall, 11-3 in the Northern. Ranked No. 7 in The Denver Post/9News 4A poll, Broomfield dropped No. 2 Greeley West to 14-4, 12-3.
With the Northern having a season-ending league tournament to decide its seeding into the 4A state-playoff bracket, the Eagles needed this one.
“It’s great,” Kaiser said.
Greeley West, which fell behind by as many as 10 points in the second half after the Eagles switched to a zone defense and forced the Spartans to fire away (with not much success) from outside, put together a solid rally late.
The Spartans could have sealed it after Reed Miller, who was pesky throughout the game, blocked a shot down low and teammate Sean Blackmer was fouled after corralling the loose ball.
However, leading 54-53 with 9 seconds to play, Blackmer missed the front end of a one-and-one opportunity, Broomfield rebounded and guard Nick Tomsick lobbed a three-quarter-court pass to Kaiser who came in from the right side and had it roll around the rim and in.
“I guess they didn’t see me, I don’t know,” Kaiser said after heading downcourt. “Nick saw me and threw it.”
Said Broomfield coach Terrence Dunn: “I think they were so worried about Tomsick. He did a great job seeing the floor and getting the ball down there . . . it’s just another night in the Northern League.”
Greeley West had its way early, cruising to an assortment of leads. The Spartans used nice balance, and Miller and Alex Seier led an inside charge that also provided rebounding and defense.
But Broomfield, with Tomsick converting only 5-of-21 shots, also woke up, mostly from inside, where Nick Halliday and Luke Gorman led a scrappiness that nearly proved decisive and was strong defensively late.
“(Kaiser) was out there, he didn’t come off the bench, we just didn’t account for him,” Spartans coach Bill Whitehead said.
Tomsick’s 15 paced Broomfield, and Halliday added 10.
Seier (16 points) and Miller (13) led the Spartans.
Greeley Cetral 13 15 9 17 — 54
Broomfield 9 17 15 14 — 55
Greeley West — Mendibles 1 1-2 4, Miller 6 1-1 13, Blackmer 3 2-4 9, Seier 5 6-10 16, Rockwell 3 1-2 7, Hawkins 2 0-0 5, Niemann 0 0-0 0. Totals 20 11-19 54.
Broomfield — Nobles 0 0-0 0, Tomsick 5 4-5 15, Gorman 4 0-1 8, Dohm 3 2-2 8, Halliday 4 2-3 10, Reddy 0 0-0 0, Kaiser 3 0-0 6, Lockwood 3 0-0 8. Totals 22 8-11 55.
3-point goals — Blackmer, Hawkins, Mendibles; Lockwood 2, Tomsick. Total fouls — Greeley West 15, Broomfield 16. Fouled out — None. Technicals — None.
Neil H. Devlin: 303-954-1714 or ndevlin@denverpost.com
