Boys Basketball Coach of the Year: Liberty’s Altmix helps Eagles soar to new heights

LIBERTY, Ill. — For a University of Illinois graduate who has remained loyal to his alma mater and is a basketball junkie through and through, walking out of the tunnel onto the State Farm Center court was like living out a dream.

Seeing his players live out their dream of playing for a state championship meant even more.

Therein is the reason why Greg Altmix became emotional at times throughout the state tournament experience, whether that was during a casual chat hanging out in the lobby of the hotel or talking about his Liberty boys basketball team during a welcome-home ceremony in the Liberty gym.

All Altmix ever wanted was for the Eagles to soar as high as possible.

This year, they did.

For the first time in school history in any sport, Liberty played for a state championship, going on a magical postseason run to reach the Class 1A state title game. A 54-41 loss to Yorkville Christian, a team ranked No. 1 throughout the season, didn’t diminish what the Eagles had accomplished.

Their enjoyment of the medal ceremony and their appreciation of the community support was widespread. When the Eagles exited the State Farm Center and walked up the ramp to the parking lot, they were met by a throng of parents and fans who waited outside in 30-degree temperatures to give their team a hero’s welcome.

The fact it coincided with the Illinois High School Association returning the state tournament to the University of Illinois campus was icing on the cake.

It brought Altmix home. A Quincy native and current teacher at Quincy Junior High School, he is a U of I graduate who remembers cheering the Illini from the upper deck of the venerable facility — it was known as the Assembly Hall in those days — as a student.

The Eagles dressed in the Illini locker room before the state championship game, adding to the memory-filled season which ended with a state trophy and Altmix being namexd the Muddy River Sports Coach of the Year.

Altmix sat down with Muddy River Sports Editor Matt Schuckman to talk about the season, his senior-laden team and the return to Champaign. Take a look: