The first-ever top-10 matchup between the Colorado Mesa and Fort Lewis men’s basketball teams lived up to the hype. The Mavericks and Skyhawks traded baskets and the lead in the second half before Fort Lewis’ 73% 3-point shooting in the second half helped push it over the edge and beat Colorado Mesa 87-79 Friday night on the road.
A few hours earlier, the Fort Lewis women’s squad was in a battle with the Mavericks as well. The Skyhawks had one of their better shooting nights but could not stop Colorado Mesa’s offense and lost 87-71.
The Fort Lewis men’s team improved to 16-2 overall and 11-1 in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference with the win after it shot 53% from the field and 55% from 3-point range. Colorado Mesa fell to 15-3 overall and 11-1 in the RMAC with the loss after it shot 48% from the field and 31% from 3-point range.
“It was an incredible college basketball game with two heated RMAC rivals,” Fort Lewis head coach Bob Pietrack said. “There were a lot of lead changes throughout the game. We know just like any big game, the team that makes more winning plays wins and we made more winning plays. We hit some tough shots and had some big rebounds and that was the difference.”
Senior guard Malik Whitaker led Fort Lewis in scoring with 17 points on 6-11 shooting from the field and 5-7 shooting from 3-point range along with six rebounds. Junior guard Obi Agbim had a fantastic all-around game with 14 points on 6-13 shooting from the field, 2-5 from 3-point range, seven rebounds and six assists in 39 minutes.
“He's the engine of the offense,” Pietrack said about Agbim. “He didn't sit much. We don't do it much but every once in a while when the game calls for it, you got to put all your chips in the middle, with Obi playing that much. There was just no other scenario, even though it's a Friday night game, it's a back-to-back league game and you got to be ready for tomorrow. There was no other scenario but to leave him on the floor so we did.”
Colorado Mesa was led by Mac Riniker, who finished with 28 points on 11-12 shooting from the field and 4-5 from downtown and Trevor Baskin who finished with 13 points on 5-5 shooting from the field, including a 3-pointer as well as nine rebounds and seven assists.
Pietrack said the Mavericks are such a matchup nightmare because they don’t play a center so he used junior forward Isaiah Thompson in the center spot most of the night to combat that.
The Mavericks led by as much as seven points in the first half in front of their sellout crowd but the Skyhawks were able to trail 40-37 at half. Then in the second half, Fort Lewis led by six then Colorado Mesa came back and led by seven before the game was tied at 69 with six minutes left. The Skyhawks then took the lead and never gave it up.
On the women’s side, the Skyhawks fell to 10-8 overall and 7-5 in the RMAC after they shot 44% from the field and 24% from 3-point range in the loss. Colorado Mesa improved to 15-4 overall and 9-3 in the RMAC after it shot 46% from the field and 58% from 3-point range in the win.
“Looking at the score, it's one of those games that you really have to watch,” Fort Lewis associate head coach Kylie Lorenzen said. “I'm really proud of how we played and how hard we played. We played together for so long. Colorado Mesa is a talented, strong team. It's hard to play at Mesa. The stands are packed. It’s tough for us to play a full 40-minute game. We played amazing and awesome for about 33 minutes.”
Sophomore guard Lanae Billy led the Skyhawks with 21 points on 5-9 shooting from the field, 3-5 shooting from 3-point range and 8-9 from the free-throw line. Junior guard Avery Evans and junior forward Samantha Wattawa each had 11 points as well.
Colorado Mesa was led by former Durango star Mason Rowland. The freshman guard had 19 points off the bench after she shot 5-9 from the field. 1-2 from beyond the arc and 8-8 from the charity stripe. Laura Gutierrez had 17 points and Josee Steadman had 15 points for the Mavericks as well.
“She’s a really great driver, she makes kind of crazy pullup jump shots and crazy takes to the basket,” Lorenzen said about Rowland. “She makes every one of her free throws which is key in basketball games, especially close games. It’s bittersweet but you love to see a Durango local shine out in a packed gym like that.”
Colorado Mesa started the game strong with a 25-19 lead after the first quarter but the Skyhawks responded with a 28-point second quarter and trailed the Mavericks 50-47 at halftime. Lorenzen said she liked how aggressive Fort Lewis was getting to the basket.
But the Skyhawks offense stalled in the second half and Colorado Mesa’s did not. Lorenzen said the team lost some of its defensive focus and that affected its offense. The Mavericks outscored Fort Lewis 22-13 in the final quarter to pull away for the win.
Both Fort Lewis hoops teams play at Westminster tomorrow. The women play at 5 p.m. and the men play at 7 p.m.
bkelly@durangoherald.com
