DENVER, Colo. – The Regis University men's basketball team (6-1, 1-0 RMAC) opened up Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference (RMAC) play with a 66-65 win against their cross-town rival Metropolitan State University of Denver Roadrunners (4-3, 0-1 RMAC) on Friday evening.

How It Happened: The opening half of play was fairly evenly matched as MSU Denver owned a 26-25 lead. Both teams shot below 35 percent from the field with the Rangers besting the home team 34.4 percent to 31 percent. Neither team could get a shot to drop from the outside as they each only had one three-point make. The Roadrunners also attempted 14 free throws to only four for the Rangers.

More of the same tightly contested basketball was played in the second half. Both teams shared runs of their own, leads changed hands a total of seven times just in the second half alone. It all came down to free throws in the final minute. RU trailed by three points with less than one-minute left in regulation. Junior Brian Dawson drew a foul on the next possession, and his two free-throws brought it within one point, 64-65. After a missed three-point attempt from the home team, Dawson once again drew a shooting foul and headed to the line again. He knocked down both shots to give Regis a 66-65 lead.

The defense then held MSU Denver to a difficult shot and sophomore Toni Rocak came down with the rebound. That sealed the deal for the Rangers as they won the game 66-65 as the buzzer went off.

Game Notes: Senior Christian Little (7-14, 2-2 3-PT) was the high-point man for the game with 18 points grabbing five rebounds with three assists, five steals and a block. Freshman Will Cranston-Lown shot 6-for-13 from the field for 15 points, grabbing a team-high eight rebounds. Dawson was the final player in double-figures with 10 points (3-6 FG, 4-4 FT).  

Up Next for the Rangers: The Regis University men's basketball team will now travel to Chadron, Nebraska to play against the Chadron State College Eagles tomorrow night at 7:30 p.m.