After a week on the road, both men’s and women’s basketball went 1-1 and Coach Jeff Culver earned his 200th win with the Mountain Lions.
Between Feb. 6 and Feb. 8, both Mountain Lion teams won their games against South Dakota Mines but lost against Black Hills State University. Both teams’ RMAC records stand at 8-6.
Men’s Basketball
On Feb. 6, UCCS went head-to-head with South Dakota Mines Hardrockers. UCCS won 65-54, marking Culver’s 200th win as head coach for the Mountain Lions.
Redshirt sophomore forward Derik Pranger opened the game with a good 3-pointer. South Dakota Mines followed up quickly after with a good layup from Abel Hutchison, but UCCS gained momentum with a 17-2 run. The first half ended with UCCS ahead, 27-17.
The gap in scoring was too much for South Dakota Mines, as UCCS took the win, 65-54.
Three Mountain Lions broke into the double digit points this game: graduate student forward William Becker with 18, senior guard Hannes Saar with 16 and sophomore point guard Xavier Martinez with 10.
On Feb. 8, the Mountain Lions traveled to Black Hills State University, losing 75-66.
Both teams started off strong in the first. As the halfway mark hit, the teams were tied with 20 points each. Martinez took over in the final minutes for the Mountain Lions, as he scored the final 7 points of the half for his squad, giving UCCS a 42-38 lead going into the second.
UCCS came back in the second half with heavy momentum, as they built up their lead to 13 points. With 12:17 on the clock in the second half, Black Hills came back on a 12-0 run, to bring them within 1 point of UCCS, 51-50. The Mountain Lions’ defense began to fall apart, as Black Hills gained a 21-8 run in the last 9 minutes. This resulted in Black Hills winning the game, 75-66.
Once again, Martinez reached double digits with 21 points, and Becker with 17.
This loss put the men’s team at a 14-8 overall record, and an 8-6 record in the RMAC.
The men’s basketball team plays next on Feb. 13, at 7:30 p.m. at the Massari Arena against CSU Pueblo. Their next home game is on Feb. 15 at 3 p.m.
Women’s Basketball
On Feb. 6, the women’s team beat South Dakota Mines Hardrockers, 64-49.
In the first quarter, both teams went head-to-head, as there were 7 ties in scoring. Senior forward Amaya Snowden came off the bench and clinched two layups to give the Mountain Lions their first lead of the game, 15-13. The first quarter ended with a tie, 17-17.
Back and forth scoring began the second quarter until the Hardrockers went on a 6-0 run, obtaining a 4-point lead, 25-21. The Mountain Lions responded quickly, as they went on an 11-0 run. The Hardrockers struggled to score for 6 minutes straight until forward Sevea Mansfield stole the ball and scored an easy bucket, making the final score of the half 32-27.
With 7:35 left on the clock in the third, the Hardrockers ramped up with speed and put up 10 points to UCCS’ 1. It wasn’t enough, as the Mountain Lions ended the quarter with a 1-point lead, 42-41.
In the fourth quarter, with 6 minutes left in regulation, UCCS had a 10-point lead, 55-45. As the Hardrockers struggled to make a bucket, the Mountain Lions ended the game with a win against South Dakota Mines, 64-49.
Redshirt junior guard Amyah Moore Allen reached double digits with 18 points alongside senior forward Maison White who put up a double-double game with 16 points and 13 rebounds.
On Feb. 8, The Mountain Lions lost a nail-biter against the Black Hills Yellow Jackets, 72-68.
The first quarter was back and forth until the Mountain Lions in the final minute subbed in Snowden, who put up 4 points to give them the lead going into the second quarter 20-19.
The second quarter highlighted the defense of each squad, as UCCS only scored 10 points to Black Hills’ 9 with 2:05 left on the clock. UCCS fouled Black Hills, and two drained free throws put the Yellow Jackets up 35-31 at halftime.
Black Hills kept up the momentum in the second half to gain a 5-point lead, 47-42. With 3:37 left in the third, White drained a three to put a 2-point deficit between the score, but the Yellow Jackets ran a 7-0 run to end the third with a 9-point lead, 54-45.
In the fourth, UCCS surged all the way until the final minute where they trailed the Yellow Jackets by 1, 69-68. But after 4 lead changes and 8 ties in the scoring throughout the match, the Mountain Lions couldn’t pull off one more lead change. Black Hills won 72-68.
Moore Allen had another high scoring game with 21 points.
This puts the women’s record at 12-9 overall and an 8-6 record in the RMAC.
The women’s basketball team plays next on Feb. 13, at 5:30 p.m. at the Massari Arena against CSU Pueblo. Their next home game is on Feb. 15 at 1 p.m.
Guard #5 Rylie Ottman playing against Colorado Mesa on Feb. 1. Photo by Lillian Davis.