COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. -
Alex Welsh scored a team-high 23 points with 16 points while
Dalton Patten added 19 points and 12 rebounds as the University of Colorado Colorado Springs earned an 81-73 victory against Colorado Christian tonight in the Gallogly Events Center. The Mountain Lions (9-9, 6-5 RMAC) scored 29 second chance points off of 18 offensive rebounds, and the 56 total rebounds tied for second in single-game records.
The Mountain Lions scored the first 12 points of the game and led for the entire first half. The Cougars were able to make it a one-point game at 36-35 with 75 seconds left in the half but
Kendall Godley pushed it back to a three-point lead with a pair of free throws before halftime for a 38-35 UCCS lead. The Mountain Lions made 15 of their 17 shots at the free throw line and committed only five turnovers in the first 20 minutes.
Colorado Christian tied the game at 42-42 with 17:13 to play and took the lead at 44-43 on a jumper with 16:24 remaining. Patten scored on the next possession to push the lead back in favor of the Mountain Lions. The Cougars tied it again at 46-46, but UCCS scored the next nine points during a four-minute span to provide a 55-46 advantage. Colorado Christian cut the Mountain Lion down to two points twice in the final 10 minutes but couldn't get closer in the 81-73 UCCS win.
Welsh surpassed the 20-point mark for the 11th time this season and the 10-rebound mark for the seventh time. He pushed his career rebounding total to 758 and needs 42 to tie the UCCS record of 800 set by Jack Bain. Welsh matched his season-high with three blocked shots.
Patten finished with his third double-double of the month, with all three coming in the Saturday games. His 12 rebounds were the most since his career-high of 15 at Black Hills State on Feb. 22, 2014. He shot better than 50 percent from the field for the fourth straight game and the 10th time in the last 11 games.
Godley scored 13 points and Malone added 10 as four of the five starters finished with double-digit points.
UCCS will be back on the road to the north edge of the conference with a Friday game at South Dakota Mines and a Saturday game at Black Hills State.
