Grand Junction, Colo. – After a four-game home stand, the Colorado Mesa men's basketball team will switch roles playing the visitor at their next three games, starting this weekend as they head to UCCS to close out 2021, then opening the 2022 portion of the schedule at New Mexico Highlands. Both games are scheduled to tip-off at 5 p.m.

Maverick fans can stream the game and follow live stats at the cmumavericks.com

Run It Back
Before taking a break for the Christmas holiday, the Mavericks tacked on two more wins to put them at 10-5 overall, and 4-2 against RMAC opponents.

The Mavs held the visiting Grizzlies to just 19-points in the second half, on their way to a 90-45 win. The 45-point difference is their second largest margin of victory this season.

They then extended the win streak to three, producing 51 points in the second half for the 85-75 come from behind victory over CSU Pueblo.  

Multiple Mavs contributed double-figures in each of the wins, collectively the team hit over 50-percent of their shots in both outings, dishing out season highs in assists (26) and steals (15) against Adams State.

Wealth of Weapons
It has been a true team effort as multiple Maverick players have contributed double-figures. Against CSU Pueblo six of the eight players who logged minutes finished in double-digits.

Mac Rinker has been a consistent starter, averaging 11.9 points and 5.1 rebounds to go along with 16 blocks. Trevor Baskin is close behind at 11.7 points and 5.3 rebounds, and leads the team with 19 blocks and 21 steals.

Newcomer, Owen Koonce is settling in nicely averaging 10.0 points. Reece Johnson, Jared Small and Georgie Dancer have been steady scorers for the Mavs as well, putting up 8.3, 8.2 and 7.6 points respectively.

No Easy Points
While the offensive presence has been clear thus far for the Mavericks, their defense has kept opponents to a 39.8 shot percentage, outscoring the opposition by a 12.4 margin.  
The team also averages 34.9 rebounds, adding to their defensive prowess an average  of 4.8 blocks per game, three quarters of a way to 100 for the season, with multiple blocks in each of the 15 outings with a season high nine on two occasions.

Scouting the Opponents
UCCS (8-3, 3-2 RMAC)
The UCCS Mountain Lions dropped a 92-77 decision to Black Hills State just before the break, splitting the weekend after a 66-60 win over Chadron State the night prior. As a team they are averaging 84.7 points, holding opponents to 68.2. They are shooting at a 50.1 clip, and is the conference's leading rebounders averaging 43.3, 13.4 of which are offensive.

Alijah Comithier is the Mountain Lions go-to with 22.0 ppg, with six games in the 20-point range and two 30-point games. In their last go-around he was held under his average, scoring 12-points against Black Hills, the only other time being against Cameron where he was held to just nine points.

New Mexico Highlands (5-6, 0-5 RMAC)
The Cowboys went on a four-game streak during the non-conference portion, but have since hit a five-game drought – having yet to grab a win in conference play.

Four players are averaging double-figures, led by Desmond Carpenter with 16.5 points and 4.3 rebounds. The others are Marcus Brown (15.5), Ja'Vary Christmas (12.5) and Sammy Barnes-Thompkins (10.6).

Though their record doesn't reflect it, the Cowboys are one of the top offenses in the conference averaging 85.5 points.

NABC Preseason Poll
Reaching the pinnacle of the program, claiming a No. 1 ranking in the final National Association of Basketball Coaches poll last season, the Mavericks continue to garner national recognition heading into this season, coming in at No. 4 in the preseason poll, and picking up a first-place vote.

Reigning national champions Northwest Missouri State garnered 15 out of the possible 16 first-place votes to take the top-spot. Flagler came in at No. 2, followed by West Texas A&M, Colorado Mesa, and fellow RMAC member Colorado School of Mines at No.5.

RMAC Favorites
The Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference released their preseason poll, Wednesday as the Mavericks were favored to repeat.

CMU snagged 12 of the 15 first-place votes for 192-points. Colorado School of Mines, Black Hills and Fort Lewis each picked up one of the other three votes, projected to finish 2^nd, 3^rd and 5^th respectively. UCCS garnered 134-points to take the No. 4 spot, completing the top-5.

The Mavericks finished the condensed 2020-21 season with a 21-2 mark, 18-1 in conference play. The team went on an 11-game win streak from the get-go, going on another 10-game streak following their only loss in the loop, which included claiming back-to-back RMAC Tournament titles in a 75-74 overtime thriller over Colorado School of Mines, completing the season with a perfect 6-0 record when pushed into extra time.

With the automatic bid, the team returned to the NCAA Tournament for the second consecutive year, this time as the No. 1 seed in the West Regional.