GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. – Wrapping up their last road trip of the season, the Regis University men's basketball team (9-18, 7-14 RMAC) made one final stop at Colorado Mesa University to take on the Mavericks (18-8, 14-6 RMAC) and shared one of the most thrilling games of the season, with the home team outlasting the visitors 86-83.

The first three baskets from Regis came from beyond the arc with senior Billy Hansen, junior Noah King, and freshman Ryan Beisty each drilling a shot apiece. The Rangers and CMU traded baskets back and forth for a majority of the opening half, with the lead changing hands many times.

RU saw their deficit reach as much as 12 points at the six-minute mark of the first half, but they never gave up and continued to battle their way back into the game on multiple occasions. Behind a three-pointer and a couple free throws from freshman Jarrett Brodbeck, Regis cut the score to 37-45 in favor of the home team at halftime.

The Rangers started with an 11-2 run to open the second half, giving them a 48-47 lead three minutes into the half. As they did in the first half, the Mavericks pushed their lead out to 12 points, 69-57 a little over 11 minutes into the second half.

Once again, the perseverance of RU shined as they chipped away, and never allowed CMU to close them out. An 11-0 run put Regis down by one point with six minutes left in the game. A couple minutes later, Hansen gave the Rangers their first lead of the half with a shot from beyond the arc, 76-75 in favor of RU, forcing the Mavericks to call a timeout. 

With 19 seconds remaining in the game, Regis was clinging to a one-point lead, 83-82, when the leading scorer in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference (RMAC) Ryan Stephan converted on an old-fashioned three-point play that fouled Sienko out of the game. With only three seconds left, the Rangers had no choice but to throw up a desperation three-pointer, in which Beisty narrowly missed, that careened off the back of the rim, giving the home team the 86-83 victory. 

For the second night in a row, Brodbeck led the way with 24 points (8-19 FG, 5-11 3-PT), with Sienko (9-11 FG) chipping in with 21, and N. King (6-11 FG, 3-4 3-PT) adding 17 of his own. N. King was three rebounds (7) and two assists (8) shy of posting a triple-double, recording one of his best all-around performances of the year.

As a team, RU connected on 31-65 attempts (47.7 percent) and drilled 13 shots from beyond the arc (38.2 percent). Regis was outdone by CMU as the home team made 18-24 shots from the free throw line compared to 8-9 for the Rangers. There were a total of seven ties, and seven lead changes in the contest. Despite only turning the ball over 11 times, RU was unable to capture the victory.

The men's basketball team will return home for a game next weekend against Chadron State College (6-18, 4-16 RMAC) and will serve as the annual Senior Night game for Regis. All of the Rangers' seniors will be recognized for their hard work and dedication over their time spent at Regis. Come out and support RU in their final home game of the 2016 season.