Grand Junction, Colo. – Colorado Mesa men's basketball hits the road to wrap up Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference action this week, heading to rivals Western Colorado and Fort Lewis. The game in Gunnison is scheduled for Thursday at 7:30 p.m., with a day break before heading to Durango on Saturday at 7 p.m.  

Run It Back
The Mavericks (21-8, 15-5 RMAC) finished their final home stand with a clean 2-0 record, taking down Regis for the second time this season, topping off the weekend with a big win over Colorado School of Mines on senior night.

Fueled by an efficient 64.0 percent from the field, the Mavs took down the Rangers for the second time this season by a 91-79 score. Five players finished in double-digits, leading the way was Trevor Baskin with 21. Blaise Threatt and Mac Riniker were close behind with 19. Jared Small and Georgie Dancer following up with 13 and 11, respectively.

Turning their attention to the Oregdiggers of Mines the next night, the Mavs planned to avenged their earlier season loss in Golden – doing just that by a 72-62 score. Threatt erupted for a career best 27-points going 8-16 from the field, and 10-11 from the line. Senior, Small added 17 points behind 4, 3-pointers, classmate Small handling defensive efforts with a team high six rebounds.

Lucky #21
With the win over Mines, Colorado Mesa men's basketball has now made it three consecutive seasons with 21 wins. In just his second season at the helm, head coach Mike DeGeorge led the team to a 21-10 record and the first RMAC Tournament championship in the Division II era.

Despite the COVID restrictions last season, the team gathered another 21 wins capturing the RMAC regular season title before capturing back-to-back tournament titles.  They finished with a flawless 11-0 record at home, and conceded just two losses throughout the season.

Sharp Shooters
Hitting shots at a 48.7 clip, the Mavericks rank amongst the top offenses in the conference, and top-25 in Division II. On 13 occasions they have knocked down over 50-percent of their shots, being held under 40-percent just seven times.

As the team rotates through lineups, it is a balanced offense that has allowed multiple players to contribute on any given night. After missing out on a couple games, Threatt has returned and without missing a beat. Last weekend he averaged 23.0 points, on top of dishing out 10 assists. On the defensive side of the ball he averaged 5.0 rebounds, snagging 6 steals in the process.

All three of the team's leading scorers are hitting over 50-percent of their shots.

Defending the Basket
The Mavericks average 4.9 blocks per game, for an 11^th best mark, their 123 total blocks ranking second in all of Division II.
Baskin has racked up 38 thus far, etching his name into the top-10 season record books. That number ties Colorado Mesa great Ryan Stephen who denied 38 shots in 2014.

Mac Riniker usually draws the duty of defending a team's go-to. Defensively, he's held strong leading the team in steals with 50, and racking up 28 blocks. Those steals often times lead to statement dunks and roaring cheers from the crowd.

Scouting the Mountaineers
Crosstown rival, Western Colorado (5-21, 4-16 RMAC) are looking to end their season on a high note. On an 8-game skid, their most recent losses came at the hands of CSU Pueblo and Adams State.

Still the Mountaineers boast one of the top scorers in the conference in Matthew Ragsdale. The sophomore averages 22.1 points per game, the second-best output in the RMAC.

Against CSU Pueblo he put in 30-points after a big offensive second half.
Other notable players for the Mountaineers are Avery Rembao who averages 12 points, Elijah Davidson handling the glass averaging 8.2 rebounds, and 22 blocks.

Scouting the Skyhawks
Entering the weekend at 18-7 and 14-5 in the conference standings, the Skyhawks have made a push as of late, winning their last seven outings. As the conference's top offense, they average 84.8 points, going 49.4 from the field.

Redshirt senior Riley Farris is a large contributor to that offensive success, averaging 19.9 points. He and Brendan Boatwright use all of their 6'9 frames lead the team in rebounds, each also in double-figure blocks.