GRAND JUNCTION, Colo.- The Colorado Mesa University men's basketball team saw their comeback attempt fall short against the number five ranked Dallas Baptist Patriots 94-87.
The Mavericks fall to 1-1 while the Patriots improve to 2-0 and head home on a two-game win streak to open the season.
JD Bradford led the team with 27 points and six assists, shooting 7-10 from the field and 3 for 5 from beyond the arc.
Four other Mavs finished in double figures with Aidan Triplet scoring 18 points, and both Drew Larson and Cole Johnson scored ten.
The Patriots opened the scoring with a three pointer from Braeden Pitts; they immediately went into a full court press, which caused a turnover.
However, the Mavs went on a 12-4 run before a tip-in layup ended.
Both teams traded baskets, but the Patriots always managed to stay one basket ahead.
But the game started to get away from the Mavs in the last few seconds of the first half as they turned the ball over twice in the 20 seconds, which led to points on both.
The second half started off poorly for the Mavs as the turnovers and missed shots piled up; they were down as many as 21 with less than ten minutes remaining.
However, the Mavs caught a big break when the Patriots hit a cold stretch both from the field and the line.
They took full advantage of it, getting the game within five points with less than three minutes to play.
Nevertheless, the Patriots made free throws to extend the lead to ten. Johnson buried a long-three pointer at the buzzer, but it was all for nought.
While the Mavs shot better than the Patriots (51% to 47.1%), turnovers proved to be costly. The Mavs had 33 turnovers, which led to 33 points on the other end.
Josh Weems led the charge for Dallas Baptist with 20 points off the bench while Cody Stevens, Bishop Jones and Jackson McCabe all end the game in double figures as well.
The Mavs head out to the Lone Star State for their longest road of the season, with their first game being against Texas A&M-Kingsville on Nov. 20. Tipoff is set for 4 p.m. inside Steinke Physical Education Center.
