Pueblo West’s deep ball spoiled the night at Boulder High School, where the Panthers played in their first postseason game in five years on Tuesday.

The brand-new, Class 6A play-in round didn’t appear to feature teams on the playoff fringes as the visiting Cyclones looked far more ‘state title contender’ than ’35 seed’ as they missed only a few times from deep in what blossomed into a jaw-dropping, 3-point exhibition on the Panthers’ court.

Despite Pueblo West’s 11 3s — on a shooting clip likely around “70%,” Boulder coach Matthew Smith thought — the 30th-ranked Panthers were able to stay within striking distance into the final minutes. The Cyclones, who never trailed thanks to the 3-ball, then pulled away for good on the strength of their size mismatch in the paint — namely 6-foot-8 center Andrew Trujillo. Boulder lost, 73-54.

“I watched 10 different films of them before this game, and I’ve never seen them shoot like that,” Smith said. “You can’t say anything negative about them. They were a class act, played the game the right way. They were coached very well and they just hit their shots.”

A ‘tip of the cap’ to Pueblo West, signed Boulder — regardless, the loss wasn’t any easier to swallow for the Panthers (14-10).

Evident on their players’ faces at the horn, there was no avoiding the oncoming hurt. This was a tough ending in what was Boulder’s best season on the hardwood in years. But, the Panthers said, it doesn’t take away from the bigger picture.

“We’ve already talked about it postgame here. We’re the first Rocky Mountain League winners. Nobody can take that from us,” Smith said. “2025 is going up on that wall and when they’re 50 years old and they come back, that number belongs to them.”

Cole Morrow scored 18 of his 23 points before halftime. The third-leading scorer in 6A (22.8 PPG) crossed 1,000 points in the loss. His 547 points this winter were the most scored in a season at Boulder, Smith said.

Like his coach expressed after the game, Morrow said the season was bigger than just basketball.

“Just all my teammates and being with coach the last three years, developing those relationships is just everything,” Morrow said. “I’d been close to some of my teammates off the court ahead of this season. But now I’m close with all of them and we talk constantly. The relationships are the main thing.”

On the court, the senior came alive after Pueblo West started the game on an 8-0 run. He did his best to counter the hot-shooting Cyclones, even as they went up by as many as 13 in the second quarter. He helped usher a late surge before halftime as Lake Smith’s triple-doink 3 at the horn got the Panthers within 33-29.

The problem was the Cyclones (14-10). They never let up.

Out of the half, a 9-1 run swelled the visitor’s lead back into double figures. Boulder’s Smith did what he could to keep things within reach, scoring 11 of his 16 points after the break. But Pueblo West nor its unreal shooting efficiency faded.

The Cyclones put things to rest over the final 3:18, closing the game on an 11-2 run. They’ll travel to No. 3 Chaparral for the 32-team, 6A first round on Friday.