GOLDEN, Colo. – For the third time this season, Colorado Mesa went on the road to face a top-15 opponent in their home gym. For the third time this season, CMU left the gym with a convincing history.

The Mavericks started fast in both halves to overwhelm No. 13 Colorado School of Mines, finishing with an 87-66 victory. CMU shot 55 percent from the field, 61 percent from three and 73 percent from the line.

Once again, Blaise Threatt was CMU's leading scorer. The redshirt sophomore guard finished with 24 points, the fifth time this season he has finished with that exact number and the eighth time he's matched or exceeded it. Threatt was 8 of 16 from the field and didn't miss from behind the arc or from the line, making all three three-pointer attempts and all five of his free throws.

Elijah Knudsen went a perfect 4-for-4 from deep in only seven minutes of game time. Knudsen finished with 12 points, the second-highest total in the freshman's career. Owen Koonce added 11 points and Christopher Speller chipped in 10 for the Mavs. Mac Riniker was everywhere as usual, finishing with a block and three steals.

Ultimately, the Orediggers were unable to keep up, making 43 percent of their shots and turning it over 16 times. While Riniker was the only Maverick with multiple steals, nine different CMU players recorded a steal during Friday's game. Only two CMU players who checked into the game didn't get a steal, and one of the two was only on the court for the final two minutes with the game well in hand.

Three-pointers from Isaac Jessup and Threatt staked CMU to an early 7-1 lead. When Mines came back to tie the score at 16-16, the Mavericks ripped off a 10-0 run in which half the points came from Koonce. After hitting a three-pointer to make it a 7-0 run, Koonce watched Speller make one of two from the line before Riniker came up with a steal and fed Koonce for the dunk to make it 26-16 Mavs.

After heading to the locker rooms at halftime with an eight-point advantage, CMU went on a10-2 run in the first 90 seconds of the second half, this one with Riniker's fingerprints all over it. Riniker found Reece Johnson in the corner for free on the Mavs' first possession, then scored a layup on CMU's second possession. Isaac Jessup hit a three before Riniker collected a steal and hit the jumper at the other end of the floor, giving the Mavs a 16-point lead at 45-29 and forcing the Orediggers to call a timeout.

The Mavericks led by no less than 14 points for the rest of the game. The lead reached a high of 25 points at 80-55 after a Speller jumper went through with 3:57 left, prompting the under-four media timeout.

Facing the same team that the Mavs posted season lows in field goal and three point percentage against in the first meeting, CMU posted its fourth-best field goal percentage in 22 games (.554) and its second-best three-point percentage (.609). It is the second-highest field goal percentage and highest three-point percentage allowed this season by the Mines defense.

The Mavericks have a second crack at another team that beat them the first time around in MSU Denver. Tipoff for that game will be at 6 p.m. on the RMAC Network and The Team 101.1 FM/1340 AM radio. It will also be broadcast on KWGN Channel 2 television for those in the Denver area.