WESTMINSTER, CO: Week 8 Recap | Trying to end the season on a high note

In the blink of an eye, the summer season at Ultimate Hoops Westminster has come and gone. It's hard to believe that eight weeks have already passed and we're already talking about the playoffs (playoffs?!?!) Week 8 brought us some great matchups with a lot of playoff implications, and here's how it all went down.

Bro Science Life - 93 Big Trouble in Lil Westy - 62

Bro Science Life came to the gym with only four of their players, which usually spells doom...but that's not the case for these UH veterans. Bro Science Life jumped all over Big Trouble from the get-go, taking a very commanding 53-43 lead in to the half. Justin Meineke came out firing, scoring 20 of his 35 points in the opening half. The M.O. for Bro Science Life is shooting the long ball, and if they're knocking down shots from beyond the arc, they're tough to beat. That's exactly what they did on Tuesday night, hitting 19 of 35 from downtown. On top of Meineke's 35 points, Dan Stoneberg was an efficient 7 of 12 from the field on his way to 21 points. Shane Jensen had a solid game for Big Trouble, dropping 23 points and grabbing 10 rebounds on the evening. Both teams finish the season 4-4 and advance to the single-elimination playoffs next Tuesday night.

Long Shots - 75 Slam Drunk - 73

Both of these rosters are filled with players with numerous UH seasons under their belts, but only one of these squads has had the season they (somewhat) envisioned. Slam Drunk came out of the gates like their hair was on fire. They haven't been happy with how the season is going, and they wanted to end it on a high note. They dictated the tempo, knocked down shots and found themselves with an 11 point lead at the midway point. The Long Shots, knowing they had a playoff berth on the line, refused to go down without a fight. The team of Life Time employees clawed their way back in to the game and took the lead with under eight minutes to play. Down the stretch, the game was back and forth and the Long Shots held a two point lead with under five seconds to play as a last ditch, midcourt effort from Marcus Jimenez went wide of the hoop, leading to the two point victory by the Long Shots. Derek Elliott led all scorers with 33 points while grabbing 11 boards. Long Shots finish the season at 4-4 and move on to the round of eight while Slam Drunk's season ends with a 1-7 record.

Splash City - 75 The Kardashians - 51

On paper, this looked like a great game between two teams with a lot in common: winning records; playoff bound regardless of outcome; talented rosters; and both teams lost key players to school obligations. But I think we can all agree that "on paper" doesn't mean anything in basketball. By the ten minute mark in the first half, this game was over. On offense, Splash City played decent, and I'm sure they'd tell you they could've played better on that side of the ball. Where they were dominant, however, was on D. They held The Kardashians to 33% shooting, forced 12 turnovers (while allowing three assists), and blocked ten, count 'em, TEN shots on the night, including one that almost decapitated the Regional Coordinator. It was a typical, balanced night for Splash City, who had four guys score in double figures, led by Reggie Jackson with 24. Splash City finished the season 7-1 and will have the two seed in the playoffs, while The Kardashians finished the season 5-3 and will hold the four seed.

Scorgasm - 85 FireSquad - 70

These two teams came in to their matchup with identical 7-0 records, and this was expected to be the game of the night, if not the season. To put it delicately, Scorgasm had other plans. Scorgasm was firing on all cylinders, playing outstanding team basketball in the first half, on both sides of the ball. On the offensive end, their patience was incredible as there weren't any possessions without a minimum of three passes. They were working inside out, side to side, until they found the open shot, which they usually knocked down. Defensively, they held the high-powered FireSquad offense to just 24 points in the first half. In the second half, FireSquad showed a lot of heart and didn't quit, even cutting the lead to single digits with under eight minutes to play. In the end, though, Scorgasm was able to hold off the comeback, play keep away and knock down their free throws to win the game 85-70. Beau Barney led the attack with 33 points while skilled big man Brian Stamer had 20 points and grabbed 16 rebounds. Scorgasm finished the regular season undefeated and take the one seed in to round of eight while FireSquad finished 7-1 and will be the three seed.

The Bad Boys - 70 The Gladiators - 43

From an outsider's perspective, things didn't look good going in to this game for The Bad Boys. They were missing one of their top players, and The Gladiators were playing for a shot at the playoffs. The Bad Boys thought this theory was nonsense. The Bad Boys played their usual lockdown defense, and held The Gladiators to 30% shooting on the night and locked up their playoff berth in the blowout. It also helped that The Gladiators forgot who Jake Morin was, as Morin shot eight of nine from the field, but rarely touched the ball in the second half. Matt Rice led the scoring for The Bad Boys with 18 points. The Bad Boys finished the season 4-4 and advance to the playoffs as The Gladiators finished 2-6 and will be looking ahead to next season.

Life Time Legends - 74 Young Bucks - 63

The two free agent teams squared off in the season finale on Tuesday night, in what proved to be one of the more exciting games of the evening. This game went back and forth as the lead never grew to double digits (until the final horn) as both teams wanted to finish their season with a W. In the end, the Legends were too much to handle, in particular, Tanner Stuhr, who had a MONSTER game and was easily the player of the week. Stuhr finished with 39 points and ten rebounds, leading the Legends to the 11 point victory. This was, by far, the best Life Time Legends team in Westminster history, finishing with a 2-6 record, while the Young Bucks weren't able to lock down a victory this season, but you can't question their effort each and every week.

The play-in games start at 7:00 on Tuesday night. I hope to see you all there.