For the first 18 years of his coaching career, Matt Barnes was celebrated as a great coach but someone who couldn’t get his teams over the hump in the playoffs.
Now, he’s quickly inching his way up the state record books as one of the best ever.
Barnes coached Olympus to its sixth state title in the past 11 years on Friday night in a tense 5A final at the University of Utah, with the Titans pulling away in the final minute for the 53-46 victory over Bountiful.
Olympus beat Bountiful twice during the regular season, but the championship matchup was tight throughout, with nine ties and 14 led changes.
It wasn’t until the final 16 seconds, when Davian Lazarus drained two free throws giving the Titans a four-point cushion, that the Titans could start to sense that the 3-peat was about to become a reality.
Olympus becomes the seventh program in state history to win three straight championships. Lone Peak holds the record with four from 2011-2014.
“People always ask me, ‘What’s the favorite one?’ or whatever. They all have special meaning, but this one, you know, to come back three in a row, Gavin (Lowe’s) last year, it’s pretty awesome,” said Barnes, whose six coaching state titles are tied for the third most in state history.
Incredibly, on six of those titles, Olympus has cut down the nets at the Huntsman Center, where the Titans have won an incredible 18 straight games dating back to a semifinal loss to Bountiful in 2014. Olympus won the 2022 title at BYU, but the quarterfinals and semifinal games were played at Utah.
Earlier this season the Olympus administration had a ceremony officially naming Olympus High School’s court Matt Barnes Court. During Friday’s postgame celebrations, Olympus athletic director Kael Ashton joked that the Huntsman Center is also Matt Barnes Court.
“I just cherish every year,” Barnes said. “I’ve been so fortunate to coach there for so many years and I’ve had so many great teams come and go and we’ve never been able to win it. Won it back in ’16 and the luck we’ve had and the love that’s gone our way and the belief my kids have, it’s crazy.”
Olympus beat Bountiful by 24 and 14 points earlier this year, but right out of the gates on Friday it became clear that this game would be different.
