GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. — The first time Colorado Mesa played Black Hills State this season, the Mavericks won with defense.
In the rematch, they won with offense.
How the third game between the two shakes out is anyone's guess — CMU coach Taylor Wagner just wants it to end with a W for the home team.
"I am expecting a battle," Wagner said Thursday. "Both of us field goal percentage-wise offensively, we shoot it pretty good, so you know it could go either way. I just know every play is going to be a battle, and they're good team and a good coach, and they'll be ready for us."
The top-seeded Mavericks (24-4) put their 17-game winning streak on the line Friday in the RMAC Tournament semifinals against the No. 4-seeded Yellow Jackets (18-10), with a trip to the title game at stake. Tipoff at Brownson Arena is at 5:30 p.m., followed by the second semifinal between second-seeded Western Colorado (21-1) and sixth-seeded CU-Colorado Springs (17-11) at 7:30 p.m.
Saturday's championship game is at 6 p.m., with the winner receiving an automatic bid to the Division II South Central Regional playoffs.
Colorado Mesa is currently ranked No. 4 in the region, so the Mavs are all but assured a spot in the eight-team regional. Black Hills State is ninth, so a win over CMU could vault the Yellow Jackets into the top eight when bids are extended Sunday night. The Mountaineers and Mountain Lions need to win the tournament to assure themselves a spot since neither team is among the top 10 regional teams.
"Everyone's deserving to be here. I think you've got the four best defensive teams in the league, and anything can happen in a tournament," Wagner said. "That's why it's so fun and March is so fun. We've got to be ready for everything. We were talking today, every play will be a battle, and that's the mindset we have to have going in for tomorrow's game, and hopefully even on Saturday."
Adams State was No. 7 in the region and CSU Pueblo No. 10, but that was before both teams lost in the conference quarterfinals.
Wagner expects all three games this weekend to be hard-fought, and the Mavs are happy to be on their home court, where they're 1-11 this season.
"It was one of our goals at the beginning of season, we talked about winning the regular season and being able to host," senior point guard Kylie Kravig said. "So I think that's pretty cool that we came together and made that a reality."
"It's pretty awesome," Olivia Reed Thyne added. "I mean, I think coming out here in itself can be kind of a rough road trip for some teams, and you just take our crowd and our community into all of that. I think we're pretty tough at home, so I think it's pretty awesome that we were able to accomplish that goal."
THIS SEASON'S SERIES
Colorado Mesa pulled into a tie with Black Hills atop the conference standings in late January, holding the Yellow Jackets to only 15 first-half points in a 57-41 win in Spearfish, S.D.
Black Hills State shot only 25.9 percent from the field, made only four 3-pointers and seven of 21 free throws in the defensive battle. CMU didn't shoot the lights out at 37.9 percent, with four 3-pointers and nine of 10 free throws, and overcame an eight-point third quarter to hold off the Yellow Jackets' attempt to rally.
Olivia Reed Thyne scored all 18 of her points in the first half, sparking CMU to a 34-15 halftime advantage.
In the rematch at Brownson Arena, Black Hills switched its defensive plan from guarding Reed Thyne one-on-one to double-teaming her in the post and often bringing help when she had the ball, but the junior had six assists to go along with her 21 points.
There were 12 ties, 12 lead changes and neither team led by more than seven points. Brooklyn Palmer finished with 16 points, Mykaela Moore 13 and Macy Larsen 13 for the Mavs, who clinched a tie for the conference title that game.
SCOUTING THE YELLOW JACKETS
With four players averaging 10 or more points a game, the Yellow Jackets have been one of the best teams in the conference all season.
They're also one of the most seasoned, with the same starting five in every game.
Kalla Bertram leads the way at 14.4 points and 6.8 rebounds per game and shoots 43 percent from the field. Haylee Weathersby adds 13.4 points and 6.8 boards, shooting 55 percent from the field, and Bradie Schlabs (12.4 ppg, 5.6 rpg), Morgan Hammerbeck (11.5 ppg, 4.8 rpg, 52 made 3-pointers) and Gracie Haneborg (6.8 ppg, 5.7 rpg) make for a formidable lineup.
Like the Mavericks, Black Hills State doesn't dip deep into the bench, with only two players, Emily Cooper and Audrey Norville, playing extended minutes. In fact, when the teams played earlier at Brownson, both coaches played only seven players.
Defensively, the Yellow Jackets hold teams to just under 60 points a game and 39 percent shooting, one reason Wagner expects yet another tough game.
THE SECOND SEMI
Western Colorado has played outstanding defense all season, giving up only 56.2 points per game, the best in the RMAC, and CU-Colorado Springs allows 63.8 points, which is fourth in the league. The 2-3 teams? Colorado Mesa (56.4) and Black Hills State (59.6).
The Mountaineers can put up points, as evidenced from six of their past eight games in the high 70s and 80s. Western Colorado saw its seven-game winning streak end at Brownson Arena in the final regular-season loss to CMU, but bounced back for a gritty win over Regis in the tournament quarterfinals.
Ivey Schmidt (13.3 ppg) and Rachel Cockman (12.7 ppg) lead the offense for Western, which has reversed course from last season, when it went 7-20, to a 21-7 season so far.
The Mountain Lions pulled off the 6-3 upset in the quarterfinals by defeating Adams State in Alamosa.
Amyah Moore Allen is one of the top scoring threats in the conference at 19 points per game, and Maison White is one of the best rebounders, grabbing 10.7 a game, and also scores 12.4 points a night.
CU-Colorado Springs is the only team to defeat the Mavericks in Brownson Arena this season, claiming a 9-point win in the conference opener, so the Mountain Lions are comfortable in Grand Junction.
One of four teams to share the conference title last season, CU-Colorado Springs knows how to win close games, with a 1.6-point margin of victory.
AWARDS SZN
Earlier Thursday, Olivia Reed Thyne was announced as the RMAC Player of the Year for the second consecutive season and made the All-RMAC First Team for the third time in her career.
The junior forward is second in the conference in scoring and rebounding, first in field goal percentage and helped deliver the RMAC Championship for the second straight season.
Senior point guard Kylie Kravig, the conference leader in assists, assists per game and assist-to-turnover ratio, made the first team. Senior shooting guard Riley Hayes, who is second in the conference in 3-point field goal percentage and 3-point field goals made, was selected to the second team.
Taylor Wagner was voted the coach of the year for the second straight season and seventh time in his tenure.
THE STREAK
Although they don't talk about it, the Mavericks know they're one of the hottest teams in the nation, with the fourth-longest current winning streak — 17 — in Division II women's basketball.
And as impressive as it's been (CMU has not lost in 2025) it's not the longest streak in program history. It's tied for the third-longest, one back of the 18 straight won by Taylor Wagner's first team at Colorado Mesa, in 2012-13, when the Mavericks won the South Central Region championship and reached the Division II Elite Eight for the first time in program history.
The next season, the Mavericks won their first 25 games, then lost in the regular-season finale. Their second loss came in the regional championship game — the two losses in their 30-2 season were by a total of nine points.
DYK?
Colorado Mesa has won or shared in 12 RMAC Championships, more than any other conference team. Nebraska-Kearney is second with seven. Among current members, Fort Lewis has the second-most with six. Seven championships have been in Taylor Wagner's tenure. The Mavericks have won six conference tournament titles, the most recent in 2020.
Per conference bylaws, the tournament champion receives the conference's automatic bid to the regional playoffs, but the regular-season winner is considered the RMAC Champion.
