GOLDEN, Colo. – The No. 3 seeded Regis University men's basketball team (20-10, 16-6 RMAC) was eliminated from the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference (RMAC) Tournament on Friday night. The No. 7 seeded New Mexico Highlands University Cowboys (21-9, 14-8 RMAC) never let off the accelerator on their way to upsetting Regis 77-87 inside Lockridge Arena in Golden, Colorado.
How It Happened:The Cowboys forced 11 Regis turnovers and shot 55.2 percent from the field in the first half to take a 15-point halftime lead, 29-44. Senior
Jarrett Brodbeck and junior
Christian Little combined for 22 of the Rangers' 29 first half points.
After a pair of Brodbeck free-throws, senior
Ryan Beisty connected on a three-pointer to give RU a 5-2 edge. However, their lead held for just one minute before
New Mexico Highlands took control of the game.
The Cowboys scored 10 unanswered points over the next three minutes to extend their lead to 7-17 with 12:29 left in the first half. Brodbeck and Little scored seven-straight points to pull Regis within four, 18-22, but that is as close as the Rangers would get. New Mexico Highlands outscored RU 15-6 over the last five minutes of the half, lead to a commanding 29-44 halftime lead.
The narrative continued in the first ten minutes of the second half as the Cowboys stretched their advantage to 43-66, their largest of the game. Regis, however, battled back with tenacity, using full court pressure to create a 10-2 offensive run and cut their deficit to 13, 55-68.
Sophomore
Brian Dawson downed four-straight free-throws to pull the Rangers within 10, 66-76, for the first time in the half. Despite the resilient effort by RU, they were never able to cut their deficit to single digits as they fell 77-87 in the semifinals of the RMAC Tournament.
Game Notes:Five Regis scorers tallied double-digits, but it was Brodbeck (8-19, 2-11 3-PT) that led the team with 21 points. Beisty (5-7, 2-3 3-PT) followed with 14 points while Little (5-11) added 13. Dawson (3-4, 0-1 3-PT) and sophomore Tomas Aurusckevicius (4-6, 2-3 3-PT) each had 11.
Beisty added a team high eight rebounds as the Rangers were out-worked on the glass, 35-34.
Up Next for the Rangers:The loss likely ends the Rangers' season as they remain an outside shot to make an appearance in the NCAA Tournament for a second-straight season.
