Colorado Mesa will open Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference play on the road this weekend in the Front Range. They will take on the Colorado Christian Cougars on Saturday before a Sunday matchup with MSU Denver.
 
RMAC OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Colorado Mesa's Mariah Martin was named the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference offensive player of the week after her performance in the Holiday Inn Thanksgiving Classic. It is the first honor of the season for the Mavericks.
 
Martin, a transfer from Westminster, averaged 17.5 points, 7.5 assists and shot over 46 percent from the field in the Mavericks two wins during the tournament. She scored a season-high 23 points in the win over Montana Western and nearly recorded a triple double against SAGU American Indian College in just 21 minutes. She had 12 points, eight rebounds and nine assists.
 
SOARING TO NEW HIGHS
Senior Daniella Turner may be struggling making her threes early this season but that doesn't mean she hasn't been making up for it in other areas of the court this season. She has two double doubles this season which are the first two of her career, including a big 15 point and 12 rebound effort in the win over Montana Western.
 
She had a 10 rebound night against West Texas A&M in the opening weekend which was a career-high only to be topped by her effort against Montana Western.
 
DEFENSE WINS CHAMPIONSHIPS
Head coach Taylor Wagner demands defense every season and this year has started out to be a strong defensive team. Currently, the Mavericks are the top scoring defense team in the RMAC and rank No. 3 nationally allowing an average of 45.6 points per game. That figure includes limiting West Texas A&M to their lowest point total of the season at 43.
 
Their three-point defense ranks No. 2 in the RMAC, behind New Mexico Highlands, and No. 7 nationally as they have limited opponents to just an 18.7 percentage from beyond the arc.
 
Another piece of that defense is rebounding. The Mavericks hold a 17.4 edge in rebounding margin over their opponents which is tops in the RMAC and ranks No. 3 nationally. Turner is the leader in rebounding average at 7.2 board per game.
 
IN THE POLLS
The Mavericks are currently receiving votes in the Women's Basketball Coaches of America (WBCA) poll that is voted on by a select group of Division II coaches around the country. Fort Hays State is currently the No. 1 ranked team in that poll with South Central Region foe Lubbock Christian ranked No. 2.
 
Colorado Mesa checks in at No. 13 in the D2SIDA poll that is voted on by select athletic communications professionals in the region and across the country. In that same poll, the Mavericks are the No. 3 ranked team in the South Central Region.
 
SCOUTING THE COUGARS
The Mavericks enter the matchup with a 26-9 all-time record against Colorado Christian and have won seven of the last eight matchups. They won both matchups last season against the Cougars with both matchups coming as double-digit wins.
 
First-year head coach Diane Thompson has the Cougars at 3-3 through the non-conference portion of the schedule. All three of the losses are to teams within the top-13 teams in the country.
 
Delaware transfer Agnes Paul leads a balanced Cougar offensive attack with 9.5 points and 7.3 rebounds per game. Paul had season-high 12 points against Lubbock Christian and Texas A&M Commerce in the opening weekend of the season.
 
SCOUTING THE ROADRUNNERS
Colorado Mesa enters the matchup with a 22-23 all-time record against MSU Denver. Since head coach Taylor Wagner has been in charge, he has an 11-5 mark against the Roadrunners including a 2-1 mark last season with one of those coming in the opening round of the RMAC Tournament, 59-53 in Grand Junction.
 
MSU Denver enters the weekend with a 4-1 record on the season with strong wins over Angelo State, Texas A&M-Kingsville, and Seattle Pacific.
 
Reigning RMAC Player of the Year Allie Navarette still leads the Roadrunners at 12.6 points and 8.4 rebounds per game. She had 13 points and 14 rebounds in their lone loss of the season which came against Texas Women's.
 
The Roadrunners also welcome back Jaela Richardson who suffered a season-ending injury against Colorado Mesa a year ago. Richardson is averaging 12.4 points per game after having 23 points in the win over Central Washington.
 
THE COACH
Head coach Taylor Wagner enters his tenth season as the man in charge of the Mavericks. He has amassed a 211-54 overall record (20+ wins per season average) and an astonishing 157-39 (15+ wins per season average) mark inside the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference during his tenure.
 
He has guided the Mavericks to five NCAA Tournament and made a trip to the NCAA Elite Eight during his first season with the program. He has been named the RMAC Coach of the Year five times in that span.
 
ON THE HORIZON
Colorado Mesa will return home for a pair of RMAC matchups. On Friday, they will take on the Black Hills State Yellow Jackets who enter the opening weekend with a 2-4 record but currently lead the conference in three-point field goals made.
 
On Saturday, they will play host to the Chadron State Eagles who enter the opening weekend with a 1-4 mark.