Hansen going to junior college

Chris Hansen still has the highest hopes for his basketball career and has made a decision he believes will lead him there.

Hansen, a standout basketball player at Fossil Ridge High School, has decided to take the junior-college route and will play next season at Northwest College in Powell, Wyo.

"I have a dream to play Division I basketball, and I'm not ready to give that up," Hansen said. "I think this is the right route. It will give me a chance to work on the stuff that coaches say I need to work on to play Division I."

After missing his junior high school season with a broken leg, Hansen returned as a senior and led the state in scoring.

A 6-foot-5 guard/forward, Hansen averaged 28.7 points, 9.3 rebounds and 3.0 assists. He set a school record by scoring 46 points in a win Jan. 25 over Monarch and scored 30-plus points in 10 games and 40 or more in four games.

Hansen, an all-Colorado selection by The Denver Post, helped Fossil Ridge to its best season in school history. The SaberCats went 24-2 and reached the Class 5A state quarterfinals.

Still, offers from Division I colleges didn't come pouring in.

"It was very disappointing," Hansen admitted. "I felt like I put the work in that I needed to, but that's how it is. There's not much I can do about it."

Hansen's next step will be to try to duplicate the success at the junior-college level and show Division I coaches he's capable of succeeding at the top level.

While he found success in nearly everything he did in high school, his defensive abilities and a perceived lack of quickness likely cost him the offers he so desired.

"I think this is an excellent decision for him," Fossil Ridge coach Matt Johannsen said. "He didn't get the local interest he wanted, so he looks at this as the best way to get back here."

Johannsen said he believes Hansen is capable of playing on the Division I level.

"Everybody loved his skill set; offensively, they'd say it was as good as they've seen," the veteran coach said. "I think missing his junior year did hurt, and he wasn't on many teams' radars.

"They saw what he did his senior year, but I think a lot of people want to see if he can do it again."

Hansen said the plan now is to play one season at Northwest College and see what interest he can generate.

Ideally, he said, he would like to return and play for one of the DI programs in Colorado. If that is not an option, he said he'd look elsewhere.

"That would be my first choice," Hansen said. "I know you can't be too picky about that stuff, so we'll see what happens."

Northwest College went 17-14 last season, losing to Northeastern Junior College in the Region IX Tournament. Northwest is coached by Andy Ward, who led Eastern Wyoming College to Region IX titles in 2003 and 2004.