GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. – The Regis University men's basketball team kept within striking distance of its competition on Saturday but in the end suffered a narrow 72-69 loss to Colorado Mesa at Brownson Arena.
 
How It Happened: With 1:27 left in the game and the Rangers trailing by a score of 68-66, Mavericks senior guard Tommy Nuno made a layup to extend Colorado Mesa's lead to 70-66. Nuno's basket gave CMU all the points it needed to prevent Regis from winning it.  
 
RU junior guard Brian Dawson cut the deficit to one, 70-69, on a trey with just 39 seconds left in the game. However, junior guard Jared Small sank both of his free throws to put the game at its final score with only fractions of a second remaining in regulation.
 
The opening 6-minute span of the first half was a wild one that consisted of five lead changes. The Rangers acquired the game's first lead on sophomore forward Toni Rocak's trey for a quick 3-0 lead just 22 seconds into the contest.
 
The first lead change occurred when Mavericks junior center Ethan Richardson dunked for the go-ahead 4-3 lead at the 17:36 mark of the opening half.
 
With Regis holding a slim 11-10 lead, Colorado Mesa answered by going on a 9-0 run. The run started on Small's go-ahead jumper with 14:32 remaining and ended on freshman forward Ethan Menzies's layup with 11:56 on the clock. The Menzies layup put CMU at a 19-11 advantage. 
 
RU proceeded to chip away at its deficit through the next several minutes, and this was highlighted by a 6-0 run. Senior guard Christian Little commenced the run on his layup with 4:08 left, while freshman guard Aaron Bokol's layup closed the book on the run at the 2:43 mark of the first to bring the Rangers within a point of CMU, 35-34.
 
Regis trailed the Mavericks by only a possession going into the intermission, 38-36. Nuno was credited with the first half's final point on his free throw with less than a second on the clock.
 
RU broke out of halftime with back-to-back layups from Little which tied and caused a lead change, respectively. The latter layup gave the Rangers a 40-38 advantage only 47 seconds into the closing half.
 
Not long after that with the game knotted up at 42-42, Regis went on a 7-0 run. Rocak bookended the run with layups, with the second one occurring with 16:09 to go in regulation to give RU a seven-point, 49-42 lead.
 
Further down the closing frame, Colorado Mesa scored five straight unanswered points consisting of three free throws and a layup. Junior guard Georgie Dancer hit the first free throw and the layup. The layup gave CMU a 54-52 lead with 10:27 to go in the game and ended up being the contest's final lead change.
 
The Mavericks maintained a slim lead for the rest of the game and led by as many as six, 61-55, when junior guard Kolton Peterson nailed a 3-pointer at the 8:09 mark of the second half.
 
Game Notes: Little turned in a team-high 14 points, three rebounds, a share of the game-high four assists, and a game-high five steals. Bokol had 12 points, one rebound, a share of the game-high four assists, and a steal. Freshman guard/forward Will Cranston-Lown also had 12 points to go along with one rebound, one assist, one block and one steal. Dawson concluded with 12 points, two rebounds, and two assists. Rocak had a double-double of 10 points and a game-high 10 rebounds in addition to a share of the team-high two blocks, and one steal. Senior forward Roberto Vercellino matched Rocak in blocks and also had four rebounds, one assist and one steal. 
 
The Rangers were outscored significantly by Colorado Mesa in two categories. Regis suffered a 40-32 deficit in points in the paint. Additionally, RU was at the wrong end of a 13-8 margin in second-chance points.
 
Up Next for the Rangers: The Rangers fall to a 14-11 record overall and a 9-10 record in Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference (RMAC) play. Regis comes home to Regis Field House for its last homestand of the 2019-20 campaign when it plays host to No. 15 Dixie State (21-4, 16-3 RMAC) on Friday at 7 p.m.