DENVER - The Regis University men's basketball team (3-9) played for the second night in row Saturday as the team took on the Westminster College (Utah) Griffins (8-9). Regis fell after strong shooting from the Griffins in the second half. The final score was 66-56, Westminster.
How it Happened: Scoring was slow to start the game for both teams, but RU was up 18-13 ten minutes into the first half. Freshman guard Kai Daniels and sophomore guard Will Cranston-Lown were shooting well and combined for 12 points. Senior guard Brian Dawson led the team in the first 20 minutes with nine points.
The half concluded with an 8-2 run by the Rangers in the final minute. The run was capped off by a big 3-pointer from Dawson with just eight seconds left in the half. Regis had a 32-26 lead heading into the final 20 minutes.
In the second half, RU kept the scoring coming and even had a 19 point lead with 12 minutes left in the game. But, Westminster's deep bench proved to be too much for the Rangers. The Griffins took off on a 32-4 run with ten minutes left. That run was what eventually sealed the deal for them.
Here's what head coach
Brady Bergeson had to say about tonight's loss,
"I give a lot of credit to Westminster. They turned it on right as we ran out of gas. Normally, I think we'd be able to recover from those negative runs, but tonight, we weren't able to do that. They had something like a 32-4 run to finish the game, I don't think I've ever been a part of something like that. I give them a lot of credit, they did a terrific job. I think we stopped being as detailed as we were on the offensive end, and we weren't able to sustain multiple efforts on the defensive side. Those two things sort of coincide and we were never able to recover".
Game Notes: The Griffins had 39 bench points compared to Regis' 19. However, RU played their signature scrappy defense and scored 20 points off turnovers compared to Westminster's 13.
Regis shot 43 percent from the field in the first half and only dipped to 40 percent in the second. But, Westminster boosted their shooting immensely by improving their field-goal percentage from 35 to 57 percent in the second half.
Sophomore guard Aaron Bokol took charge in the paint and earned himself a double-double with 12 rebounds and 11 points. His 12 boards is a career-high.
Dawson led the team with 12 points. He also had three assists and two rebounds.
Up Next For the Rangers: Regis will return to action Feb. 22 when the team will face off against the Colorado Christian Cougars. Tip will be at 8 p.m. and you can watch that game by clicking here.
