GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. – The Colorado Mesa men's basketball team will look to move their winning streak to three and four games this weekend when they host Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference rivals Adams State (5-10, 3-6 RMAC) and Fort Lewis (10-5, 4-5 RMAC) in Brownson Arena.
 
SHOOTING THE LIGHTS OUT
The Mavericks set program records for three-pointers in a game and three-point percentage in a game in the win over Fort Lewis. Colorado Mesa made 18 three-point field goals and shot 78.3 percent from beyond the arc in the win against Fort Lewis.
 
Colorado Mesa is the No. 1 three-point percentage team in the RMAC making them at a 41.8 percent clip which is sixth best nationally behind Northwest Missouri State who shoots it at a 43.6 percent mark.
 
Oddly enough, they rank 12^th in the RMAC and 212^th nationally (out of 303 ranked schools) in three-point field goal attempts, nearly 100 attempts fewer than RMAC leader New Mexico Highlands.
 
DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Senior Michael Skinner was named the RMAC Defensive Player of the Week after averaging a double-double in the two games against Adams State and Fort Lewis. In Friday's matchup with the Grizzlies, he scored 20 points and pulled down a career-high 16 rebounds in the 88-76 win.
 
He also averaged a block and two steals in the two games.
 
STANDINGS WATCH
After the results from last weekend, Colorado Mesa sits all by themselves in third place at 8-3 in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference standings at the exact midway point of the conference slate.
 
Dixie State and Black Hills State continue to sit in a tie for first place with matching 9-2 records. The Yellow Jackets are currently on a nine-game winning streak.
 
New Mexico Highlands and Colorado School of Mines are tied for fourth place at 7-4.
 
SCOUTING DIXIE STATE
Dixie State is among the top schools in the South Central Region but is just 3-2 in their last five games. They dropped back-to-back games to Colorado School of Mines at home on January 4 followed by a loss to MSU Denver on January 10 in Denver.
 
The Trailblazers were ranked as high as No. 6 nationally in the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) poll but started to fall after a 91-75 loss to Western Oregon on the road.
 
Hunter Schofield and Jack Pagenkopf lead the Trailblazers. Schofield averages 16.5 points per game and had a season-high 28 points in a win over CSU-Pueblo while Pagenkopf recorded a triple double in Dixie's win over UT Tyler in the second game of the season. He finished with 17 points, 13 rebounds, and 10 assists.
 
Last Five Matchups
February 9, 2019 – @ Dixie State 80, Colorado Mesa 73
January 25, 2019 – Dixie State 86, @ Colorado Mesa 61
November 8, 2013 – @ Dixie State 85, Colorado Mesa 81
November 24, 2012 – @ Colorado Mesa 80, Dixie State 61
November 10, 2012 – @ Dixie State 77, Colorado Mesa 65
 
FUN FACT: Dixie State has had a number of professional athletes roam their campus over the years from when they were a junior college to now as a four-year school getting ready to make the jump to NCAA Division I. Lionel Hollins was the head coach of the NBA's Memphis Grizzlies from 2009-13 and with the Brooklyn Nets from 2014-16. Brandon Kintzler was an all-star from the MLB's Washington Nationals two years ago and is currently with the Minnesota Twins.
 
SCOUTING WESTMINSTER
The Griffins are coming off back-to-back weekend splits with one coming at home and the other on the road. They split with MSU Denver and Chadron State on the road, defeating the Eagles in Nebraska before dropping a six-point decision to the Roadrunners. Last weekend, they fell to Regis by four at home before defeating Colorado Christian on Saturday.
 
Westminster went 5-1 in their non-conference matchups falling to Lake Superior State at home by four in their final RMAC tuneup. The defeated a pair of Lone Star Conference foes in UT Tyler and Texas A&M Commerce in their first two games of the season.
 
Junior Brandon Warr leads the Griffins in nearly every major category. Warr averages 16.1 points and 8.4 rebounds while shooting 44 percent from the field and 41 percent from three. He has had six double doubles on the season including a 15 point, 16 rebound effort in the loss to Lake State.
 
Last Five Matchups
February 22, 2019 – Fort Lewis 85, @ Colorado Mesa 68
January 19, 2019 – @ Fort Lewis 79, Colorado Mesa 76
February 10, 2018 – Fort Lewis 94, @ Colorado Mesa 89
December 8, 2017 – @ Fort Lewis 96, Colorado Mesa 80
February 11, 2017 – @ Fort Lewis 90, Colorado Mesa 71
 
FUN FACT: Westminster had a pretty recognizable name play for them from 2007-2011. Guard Michael Stockton, son of former Utah Jazz Hall of Famer John Stockton, played for the Griffins for four years. Stockton averaged 8.1 points, 2.7 rebounds, and 2.5 assists during his time in Salt Lake City.
 
COACHING STAFF
Head coach Mike DeGeorge enters his second season at the helm of the Mavericks. DeGeorge led the Mavericks to a 19-10 record in his first season, an eight-win improvement from the previous season, and included a win over nationally-ranked DBU.
 
Kyle Bossier and Dutch Johnson both return to the bench as a part of the coaching staff. Bossier is in his second season while Johnson is in his sixth season as an assistant coach.
 
New to the staff this year is former Maverick Russ Gregory and graduate assistant Sean Lynch.
 
WHAT'S NEXT
Colorado Mesa will continue its road swing with a pair of games next weekend in Denver. The Mavericks will take on Regis on Friday January 31 before a early evening tilt the next night at Colorado Christian over in Lakewood.