GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. – The Colorado Mesa men's basketball team survived and advanced int the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference tournament on Tuesday and will move on to play top-seeded No. 23 Dixie State (23-6, 17-5 RMAC) on Friday evening in St. George, Utah at Burns Arena.
 
KEYS TO THE GAME

1. FEED ETHAN – In their last matchup in St. George, Ethan Richardson finished with 21 points while Ethan Menzies had 10 points and six rebounds in the matchup in Grand Junction. If Colorado Mesa, can get their bigs touches and run their offense through them, the offensive efficiency should still be in Colorado Mesa's favor.
2. FORCE TURNOVERS – In Dixie State's six losses on the season, one thing has been in common in all six of those games, turnovers. the Trailblazers turned the ball over 11 times or more in all six losses including 18 times in their most recent loss, a 105-97 setback to Colorado Christian. The Mavericks must find a way to force some turnovers in their matchup. In the previous two meetings they were able to accomplish that, can they make it three times?
3. FREE THROW SHOOTING – Keep making your free throws! Colorado Mesa was 17-for-17 from the free-throw line in the quarterfinal win over UCCS. It is unrealistic to think they will make 100 percent of their attempts but to keep making their average of 76 percent should keep them in the game.

 
RMAC TOURNAMENT FINAL FOUR
Colorado Mesa is in the RMAC Tournament Final Four for the first time since 2016 when they traveled to Durango for the tournament semifinals. The last time the Mavericks reached the tournament final was in 2005 when they played MSU Denver at World Arena in Colorado Springs.
 
The Mavericks will play top-seeded Dixie State in the semifinals following a matchup between South Dakota Mines and Colorado School of Mines, a No. 3 versus No. 7 matchup.
 
SCOUTING TRAILBLAZERS
Dixie State has kind of limped into the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference tournament going 2-2 in their final four games of the season. They dropped back-to-back road games to Colorado Christian and Regis before a regular season finale win over Westminster in Salt Lake City.
 
The Trailblazers defeated No. 8 seed Regis 84-71 in the RMAC Quarterfinals and earned the right to host the final four.
 
Hunter Schofield and Jack Pagenkopf continue to lead the Trailblazers in their final year of Division II. Schofield averages 16.6 points and 6.2 rebounds per game while Pagenkopf averages 14.5 points and 6.1 rebounds per game. Schofield has recorded 23 or more points in three straight games while Pagenkopf is one of three players in Division II with a triple-double and he has two on the year.
 
Last Five Matchups
February 8, 2020 – Dixie State 67, @ Colorado Mesa 62
January 24, 2020 – @ Dixie State 74, Colorado Mesa 68
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

FUN FACT: Saturday's visit to Grand Junction, could very well be Dixie State's last for some time.  The Trailblazers will be moving to the NCAA Division I ranks as members of the Western Athletic Conference next year. The move will come just two years after the Trailblazers joined the RMAC after being members of the PacWest Conference.
 
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
If the Mavericks win, they would move onto the RMAC Championship game on Saturday against either Colorado School of Mines or South Dakota Mines. A win would also make a stronger case for the Mavericks to earn an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2011.