Greeley resident Jesse Tijerina shrugged as a watch party for the University of Northern Colorado men’s basketball team broke up Wednesday evening.
Northern Colorado lost to Montana 91-83 in the Big Sky Conference championship game in Boise, Idaho.
Tijerina was among a small group of fans who gathered at a Greeley sports bar to watch the Bears play for the tournament title and the automatic bid to the 68-team NCAA Tournament.
UNC hosted watch parties at The G.O.A.T. Sports Bar Tuesday and Wednesday evenings for the men’s basketball games from Boise and the NCAA Division I Wrestling Championship selection show and bracket reveal.
Tijerina was bummed by the loss to the Grizzlies, but he and his fellow fans will soon have a reason to watch together again.
UNC (25-9) earned a spot in the 32-team National Invitation Tournament before they arrived in Boise as the No. 1 seed in the Big Sky tournament. The NIT field will be announced Sunday night after the release of the NCAA Tournament teams.
NIT games will be televised on ESPN networks.
Tijerina, his wife, Missy, a UNC graduate, and two other couples, all alumni, watched the game from a table around other Bears’ fans. Approximately 30 people attended Wednesday’s watch party and about 50 came to The G.O.A.T. for the semifinal win Tuesday over Montana State.
Tijerina regularly attends games at Bank of Colorado Arena, but he and his group couldn’t make the trip to Boise.
“We want to be present in our community,” he said. “It sends a good vibe. I think it does a lot for the people in the community to be present for UNC.”
Greeley resident Caden Gillmore, right, reacts to an official’s call while watching the Big Sky Conference Tournament men’s basketball championship game between the University of Northern Colorado and the University of Montana. Montana beat UNC 91-83 Wednesday, March 12, 2025 in Boise, Idaho. Gillmore was among the UNC fans who watched the game at The G.O.A.T Sports Bar in Greeley. (Anne Delaney/Staff Reporter).Second-seeded Montana (25-9) led for 33 of the game’s 40 minutes. The teams split their two regular-season games — with each team winning by large margin on the opponent’s home court — and shared the Big Sky regular-season title. Both teams had 15-3 conference records. UNC was the No. 1 seed on a tiebreaker.
The Grizzlies were up by 14 points early in the second half. UNC came close to pulling out the win in the final five minutes despite not leading after the 8:16-mark of the first half.
Four of the Grizzlies’ starters scored at least 15 points, and the Bears couldn’t come up with a stop on defense when needed late in the game.
Langston Reynolds made a layup with 5:01 to play to cut Montana’s lead to 71-69. Isaiah Hawthorne came up with a key defensive rebound and he made two free throws for a one-point game, 74-73 Montana with about 3:35 left — while raising the energy level and hopes among the fans at The G.O.A.T.
Kai Johnson, who led Montana with 23 points, made a layup on the other end and converted the three-point play on a foul by Quinn Denker. Less than a minute later, Johnson hit a 3-pointer for an 80-73 lead and that was the ball game.
UNC guard Jaron Rillie matched his season high with 24 points (10 of 15 from the floor), and he led the Bears with six assists and four rebounds.
UNC athlete department administrator John Kietzmann watched the game seated at an elevated table with other fans. Kietzmann was also disappointed with the loss. He quickly noted the NIT bid and plans to be made for the school’s first appearance in the tournament.
Kietzmann was also thrilled with the watch party turnout. A crew from KUSA 9News in Denver was also in attendance.
“This is what it’s all about,” Kietzmann said. “For these people to come out this late (the game started at 9:30 p.m.), to be around Bears fans, it’s awesome. It’s what we’re trying to build.”
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