TAYLORSVILLE — Silas Mills has fond memories of the first time the Salt Lake Community College men’s basketball team made it to “Hutch,” the nickname for the national junior college tournament held in Hutchinson, Kansas.
That happened in 1994 when Mills, the former Utah and Utah State player and current SLCC assistant coach, led the Bruins to a fifth-place finish in the school’s debut on the NJCAA’s biggest hoops stage. He earned all-tournament honors back then.
“That was like dinosaur ages then,” Mills said, laughing. “That was ‘93-94. That’s a long time ago.”
One thing that’s changed since that prehistoric period: the Bruins and their powerhouse program are now almost expected to qualify for the national tourney every year.