Grand Junction, Colo. --- The Colorado Mesa men's basketball team will open their 2020-2021 Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference campaign with a pair of home matches against Colorado Christian on Friday before matching up with the Roadrunners of MSU Denver on Saturday. Both games are slated for 7:30 pm in Brownson Arena.

PICKING UP WHERE THEY LEFT OFF
It has been nearly nine months since the Mavericks had their season cut short due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The team was on their way to the NCAA South Central Regional tournament and set to play the No. 1 seed and host West Texas A&M in Amarillo, Texas – solidifying their spot in the tournament with the RMAC's automatic bid.
 
Coming off a 69-61 win over Colorado School of Mines, the victory marked the first tournament championship for the men's basketball program in the Division II era. The win was number 21 for the season, as the team finished with a 21-10 overall record for the season. The last time that feet was accomplished was in 2015-16 when Ryan Stephan was on the team.
 
LOOKING AHEAD
Picked to finish fourth in the preseason coaches poll released a few weeks ago, the Mavericks gathered 159 points. Colorado School of Mines were favored to win, with Black Hills State picked second, followed by UCCS.
 
Returning from last season's championship squad are Jared Small, Ethan Richardson and Georgie Dancer, all were chosen as "Players to Watch" for this season.
 
HOME COURT ADVANTAGE
Last season the Maverick men dropped just one contest in Brownson Arena all season. The team was on a 10-game winning streak at home before a ranked Dixie State squad came through and spoiled that run. Despite that loss, the Mavs bounced back and tacked on three more wins on their home court, including a first-round RMAC tournament win over UCCS.
 
The team has turned around their record at home every season under head coach Mike DeGeorge.
 
NOT ALL IS LOST
Although their season was cut short, the three seniors from last year's squad, Michael Skinner, Jess Spivey and Tommy Nuno were not awarded an additional season of eligibility.
 
Despite the loss of those three, the Mavs will return a number of players – all hungry to get back to the NCAA tournament.
 
Ethan Richardson started his time with the Mavs midway through last season, but instantly became an offensive force for the team. Averaging 13.0 points per game, he shot a .610 from the field and was 33-of-45 at the charity stripe.
 
Jared Small saw time in all 31 contests, contributing 11.8 points per game while shooting above .500 in every offensive category. His 57 three-pointers ranked second most on the team. Defensively, he pulled down 106 rebounds and his 32 blocked shots ranked the ninth-best single season mark for a Maverick.
 
Georgie Dancer started all but a single game last season. His 11.4 points per game ranked fifth on the team, and he was one of three players to dish out more than a hundred assists on the season. He also grabbed 36 steals, and posted 21-point games three times last season.
 
SERIES VS. COLORADO CHRISTIAN
The Cougars enter the weekend, picked to finish 15th in the coaches preseason poll. Leading the overall series 21-10, the Mavs most recent win came on Feb. 14, 2020 where CMU dominated on the hardwood, with a 90-64 victory. Four players finished in double-figures, led by Ethan Richardson with 20-points, and followed by Jared Small with 15. The Mavs have won the last five meetings against the Cougars, and holds a 12-4 advantage when playing in Brownson Arena. Three out of five of those contests were won by 20-points or more, with the largest being a 31-point difference in a 94-63 victory on Feb. 2, 2019. Friday will mark the first contest for the Cougars this season.
 
SERIES VS. MSU DENVER
Trailing two spots behind the Mavericks in the coaches preseason poll were the Roadrunners of MSU Denver. Saturday's matchup with the Roadrunners, comes nearly a year since the two teams last met on Dec. 13, 2019. Trailing after the first half, the Mavericks were awarded 21 shots at the foul line in the second, boosting them to 60-58 win, breaking a three-game losing streak against the Roadrunners. Georgie Dancer led all scorers with 20-points. MSUD opened up their season this past Saturday against Colorado School of Mines. Mines came out on top, 82-48, establishing the lead early on and maintaining through until the final buzzer. Reggie Gibson led the scoring efforts for MSUD with 11-points, to go along with a pair of steals.
 
AN EXTRA YEAR TO COMPETE
The NCAA granted winter sport student-athletes an extra year of eligibility due to the uncertainty and constant changes surrounding the basketball season. Should they choose to do so, the six seniors listed could return for a fifth year.
 
PER THE RMAC
With the season being abbreviated this year, and team schedules varying the NCAA Ratings Percentage Index (RPI) or Performance Indicator (PI) will be used by the conference office to determine the standings.
 
HOW IT WORKS:

• Teams will earn points based on their opponent and whether they win or lose each week. The better the opponent the more points you earn whether you win or lose.
• The breaks for opponents occur at .250, .500 and .750 winning percentages and can change all year long.
• Once a team has their points, they will be divided by the number of games that have been played this year to get their RPI or PI number.
• The highest RPI or PI will be the conference champion.
• An RMAC Champion shall be declared if at least five teams complete 50% of their originally approve schedule – 11 games. The Regular Season Champion and RMAC Tournament qualifiers shall be determined by the use of the NCAA Division II RPI system. Teams must compete in at least 11 regularly scheduled contests to be eligible for the RMAC Tournament.

 
 
NEXT WEEK:
The Mavericks will hit the road for the next four contests, before taking a mandated break for the Christmas holiday. Headed up north to Chadron State and Black Hills State, Friday Dec. 11 and Dec. 12 respectively, both games are scheduled to tip-off at 7:30 pm.
 
**This weekend's contest will not permit fans inside per policies put in place from the NCAA, CDPHE, and Mesa County Public Health. This is not set in stone, and the hope is to allow fans back into Brownson Arena in the new year for the January 4-5 matches. Live stream is free of charge, and available through the link located at the top of this page.