GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. – After a 1-1 week, Colorado Mesa men's basketball will look to finish nonconference play on a high note as they host the Holiday Inn – Airport Thanksgiving Classic at Brownson Arena this Friday and Saturday.

The Mavericks improved to 3-0 with a wire-to-wire win over Texas A&M-Kingsville, in which Trevor Baskin, Christopher Speller and Blaise Threatt all scored 15 points or more. The following day, CMU suffered its first loss of the season at the hands of Texas A&M International, who went on a 15-0 run late in the first half to pull away from the Mavs.

RECAPS: Texas A&M-Kingsville| Texas A&M International

Coming up, the Mavs will welcome Northern New Mexico on Friday at 3 p.m. and Simon Fraser on Saturday at 3 p.m. On both days, the men's game will be bookended by women's games at 1 p.m. and 5 p.m. Northern New Mexico and Simon Fraser will also both be making a trip to Gunnison to play Western Colorado this weekend instead of having all four games played at one site.

Double-Double-Trouble
Trevor Baskin recorded 16 points and 12 rebounds to lead the way in the win over Texas A&M-Kingsville, recording the Mavs' first double-double of the season. Baskin had three offensive rebounds and nine defensive rebounds which allowed the Mavs to get out in transition and score 15 points on the fast break.

Baskin is shooting 69.2 percent from the field through four games this season. Although there's a long way to go, that would be the second-highest percentage for a season in CMU history with a minimum of 350 field goals made. Baskin currently ranks second in the RMAC in that category behind UCCS's William Becker.

Defensive Effort
The Mavericks held Texas A&M-Kingsville to just 20 points in the first half Saturday. CMU has the second-best scoring defense in the RMAC, holding opponents to 64.5 points per game.

The Mavericks also rank second in the conference in steals (37) and blocks (15). Opponents are shooting just 40.8 percent against the Mavs, the fifth-best mark in the RMAC. Colorado Mesa pulls down the sixth-most rebounds in the conference (35.0 per game) and allows the third-fewest (27.8 opposing rebounds per game).

Blaise the Workhorse
Blaise Threatt is leading the team and ranking sixth in the conference with 33.5 minutes played per game. That time out on the court allows him to rank sixth in the conference in scoring at 17.5 points per game, just ahead of his teammate Trevor Baskin at 17.3. Threatt is 11^th in the RMAC in both rebounds (7.3) and assists (3.5) per game.

Apple Turnovers
The main thing plaguing CMU so far on the season is turnovers. The Mavericks have turned the ball over more than their opponents in three consecutive games, including 25 times against Texas A&M-Kingsville and 21 times against Texas A&M International. The Mavs are averaging 18 turnovers per game, the third-highest total in the RMAC.

Saving the Mavericks, however, is the fact that they force plenty of turnovers as well. Mac Riniker leads the conference with 11 steals while Blaise Threatt and Christopher Speller have seven apiece to rank in the top 10.

Home Court Advantage
The Herd showed out in numbers when CMU hosted the D2 Conference Challenge. So far, Colorado Mesa is averaging over 1,100 fans per game and is one of two RMAC teams to even crack the 500 per game mark.

Make sure you don't miss out on a chance to see the Mavericks on a holiday weekend. Tickets can be purchased here: https://coloradomesa.universitytickets.com/?cid=169

About Northern New Mexico
The Northern New Mexico College Eagles compete in the NAIA Continental Athletic Conference. The Eagles have been busy, already playing eight games and playing in two more between the release of this preview and their Friday showdown with CMU.

NNMC currently sits at 3-5, playing competition at a variety of levels. The Eagles have faced three RMAC teams thus far, losing to New Mexico Highlands 89-60 and Fort Lewis 67-59 but beating Adams State 82-77 on Saturday, November 19.

Sophomore guard Conner Kelley has been the Eagles' top scorer, averaging above 15 points per game and contributing 20 points in the win over Adams State. Six-foot-ten senior Damione Thomas leads the team with 6.1 rebounds per game and 11 blocks. Keane "Jamal" Harris is the only other NNMC player averaging in double figures, averaging 12.7 points per game in three contests.

Head Coach Jesus Aragon is in his first year with NNMC but has plenty of international and semi-pro experience. Aragon is FIBA certified and serves as the head coach of the collegiate Mexican national team. Aragon has also coached at the high school level in both New Mexico and Texas, as well as the El Paso Desert Cats of the ABA/PBA.

About Simon Fraser
Simon Fraser, the only Canadian NCAA member school, was picked to finish ninth in the GNAC Preseason Poll. The recently christened Red Leafs finished seventh in that conference last season with a 12-13 overall record.

The team is off to a 3-1 start, losing its season-opener to Cal State Dominguez Hills before rattling off wins against Cal Poly Humboldt, Okanagan College and Douglas. The Red Leafs have a balanced scoring attack with five players averaging double figures entering the weekend.

Point guard David Penney is a top returner, averaging 8.8 points per game with a team-high 4.5 assists and 1.75 steals per contest. Georges Lefebvre, a transfer from Division I Vermont, is averaging 14 points per game and a team-high 7.3 rebounds per game and tallied a double-double against Cal Poly Humboldt. Freshman Immanuel Oludele is off to a good start in his collegiate career, leading SFU with 14.5 points per game and a season-high 20 against Cal Poly Humboldt.

Steve Hanson is in his seventh year in charge of Simon Fraser, although the school did not compete in 2020-21 due to the COVID-19 pandemic closing the U.S./Canada border. Hanson took what was a four-win team in 2016-17 up to 10 wins in 2017-18 and 15 wins and the first conference tournament berth in program history in 2018-19. Prior to SFU, Hanson was the head coach at Terry Fox Secondary School, a perennial power in British Columbia. He also worked for Gridiron Sports Development, leading strength and speed training for NFL, CFL and NHL players.

Series History
Colorado Mesa is 3-0 all-time against Northern New Mexico College, recording wins in 2012, 2014 and 2018. The most recent win was by a 96-75 score in which CMU shot 57 percent from the field, 40 percent from three and had 56 points in the paint.

Simon Fraser and CMU met for the first time last season with the Mavericks prevailing 80-56. Owen Koonce led the way with a career-high 20 points by shooting 8 of 9 from the field and 4 of 5 from three-point range. Blaise Threatt had 13 points and seven rebounds while Mac Riniker added four steals. Simon Fraser's top four scorers from that matchup do not return to this year's squad.

In the Polls
Colorado Mesa is ranked No. 24 in the D2CCA Media Poll. They are ranked No. 4 in the South Central regional poll behind Black Hills State, Colorado School of Mines and West Texas A&M. Black Hills State is ranked No. 5 nationally, with Mines at No. 13 and West Texas A&M behind CMU at No. 25 despite leading the Mavs in the regional rankings.

The media is evidently more bullish on the Mavs than the coaches, because CMU is neither ranked nor receiving votes in the NABC Coaches' Poll. The Mavericks were receiving votes in the preseason edition of the poll. Among RMAC schools, Black Hills State is ranked No. 6, Mines is once again ranked No. 13 and Fort Lewis comes in at No. 25.

Colorado Mesa finished second in the RMAC Preseason Coaches' Poll, trailing only Black Hills State, who received 14 of 15 first-place votes. Colorado School of Mines got the final first-place vote and came third, followed by Fort Lewis and UCCS.

Coach's Corner
Mike DeGeorge has taken the Colorado Mesa program to unprecedented heights since arriving ahead of the 2018-19 season.

He improved the Mavericks from 11 to 19 wins in his first season and crossed the 20-win barrier in 2019-20, leading CMU to an RMAC Tournament Championship from the No. 4 seed. That clinched what would have been the Mavs' first NCAA Tournament Appearance since 2011, but the NCAA Tournament was canceled in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The 2020-21 campaign saw the Mavericks start the season with 14 consecutive wins on way to the RMAC Regular Season and Tournament Championships and finishing the regular season ranked No. 1 in the nation.  DeGeorge was named RMAC and NCAA West Region Coach of the Year.

In 2021-22, DeGeorge led the Mavericks to within half a game of a regular-season conference championship before leading the team to the NCAA Tournament Sweet 16 for the first time in program history, a run that included a win over regional No. 1 seed Lubbock Christian.

Prior to CMU, DeGeorge was the head coach at Eureka College in Eureka, Ill. from 2000-04, Cornell College in Mount Vernon, Iowa from 2004-09 and Rhodes College in Memphis, Tenn. for eight seasons from 2010-2018.