THIS WEEK'S GAMES
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – The University of Colorado Colorado Springs women's basketball team will head up North tonight to take on Regis University at 5 p.m. The game was originally scheduled for Saturday, Jan. 8 but was postponed due to COVID testing and protocols. UCCS will then return home to play host to MSU Denver on Friday, Jan. 21, followed by Saturday's matchup against Colorado Christian University. Both games this weekend will tip-off inside Gallogly Events Center at 5:30 p.m.
GAME COVERAGE
LAST TIME OUT
- The Mountain Lions completed the season sweep over Adams State University Friday night, taking down the Grizzlies, 68-55. The win marked the Mountain Lions first home win of the season and their second win in conference as they move to 4-10 overall (2-6 RMAC). The following night at home against Colorado State University Pueblo, the Mountain Lions lost a 53-34 decision to the Pack.
- Ellie Moore led the Mountains on the weekend, netting 22 points to go with nine rebounds, three blocks and a steal. Bo Shaffer pulled in a team high 14 rebounds on the weekend as the Mountain Lions dominated the boards, out-rebounding ASU and CSUP by 16 rebounds per game.
RMAC RECORD/STANDINGS
- Colorado School of Mines continues to sit on top of the RMAC standings with a perfect 8-0 record (13-1 overall).
- Tuesday's opponent, Regis University, is tied for fifth place in the league standings with Western Colorado University and Black Hills State University as all three teams are 5-3 in league games.
- MSU Denver is sitting in the eighth slot with a 4-3 RMAC record (8-4 overall), while the Cougars' 2-4 league mark is 11th best in the RMAC. UCCS is one spot behind CCU, owning a 2-6 record (4-10 overall).
THE SERIES
- Vs. RU: Regis leads the all-time series with UCCS, owning a 34-20 record. The Mountain Lions last win over the Rangers was in the RMAC Tournament Championship game on March 4, 2017 in Pueblo, Colo. (W, 54-37).
- Vs. MSUD: The Roadrunners own an all-time series lead over the Mountain Lions, 41-11, since the two teams first met in 1989. UCCS' last win over MSU Denver came at home on Feb. 8, 2019 (W, 84-69).
- Vs. CCU: In 50 games against Colorado Christian, the Mountain Lions have won 30, including eight of the last 10 games.
SCOUTING THE RANGERS
- Regis University enters Tuesday's game on a two-game winning streak. After a 13-day hiatus from competition, the Rangers posted a 79-61 win on Friday at South Dakota School of Mines.
- The Rangers are one of the top shooting teams in the league, ranking third in field goal percentage (41.4 percent, 371-of-896), and in three-point field goal percentage (31.9 percent, 98-of-307). The Rangers are netting 66.8 points per game while holding their opponents to 61.9 percent, the fourth best scoring margin in the RMAC (4.9 points per game).
- Junior guard Josey Ryan leads the Rangers offensively with 12.2 points per game, the sixth highest scoring average in the league. She is shooting the ball at a solid 43.4 percent clip (63-of-145) and is second on the team in made three-pointers (22-of-62). Graduate student Tashika Burrell has dished out a team high 39 assists and is second on the team in scoring with 9.9 points per game behind a team high 23 treys. Ryan and Burrell are the two Rangers that have started all 15 games while six other Rangers have started at least one game.
SCOUTING THE ROADRUNNERS
- MSU Denver is coming off a 76-62 win at Colorado Mesa University Friday night, handing the Mavericks just their second loss of the season and completing the series sweep over the Mavericks. The Roadrunners are 8-4 this season, 4-3 in league games, and 2-3 when playing on the road, but they enter Gallogly Events Center on a three-game winning streak.
- MSU Denver leads the RMAC in three-point field goal defense (.255), and are second in made field goals (298) and field goal defense (249). The Roadrunners are fifth in the conference in points per game (67.0), scoring defense (61.1 points per game) and scoring margin (5.9 point per game), while sitting fourth in the league in rebound margin (7.4, 40.8 – 33.4) and blocks (46, 3.8 blocks per game).
- Leading the Roadrunners is senior forward Allie Navarette with 13.8 points per game. The reigning RMAC Player of the Year is sixth in the RMAC in scoring, second in rebounding (8.1 per game), and eighth in free throw percentage (75.0 percent). She has added 19 assists, 12 blocks and eight steals in 12 games. Junior forward Jaela Richardson is coming off the bench averaging 9.8 points and 6.6 rebounds per game, while junior Morgan Griego is second on the team in scoring with 10.3 points per game.
SCOUTING THE COUGARS
- Colorado Christian (5-7, 2-4 RMAC), returned to the court Saturday at Colorado Mesa University (L, 58-78) after not competing for four weeks. The Cougars posted home wins against MSU Denver (70-63) and South Dakota Mines (77-75) in December before falling on the road to CMU.
- Senior forward Lourdes Gonzalez leads the RMAC in rebounding with 8.1 rebounds per game, and she leads the team in scoring with 9.5 points per game. She is the only Cougar to have started all 12 games this season, while Agnes Paul and Sydney Daniels have both started 11 games. Paul is second on the team in scoring, netting 9.3 points per game. Daniels leads CCU with 31 dimes and 17 steals while chipping in 4.9 points per game.
- As a team, CCU is averaging 62.8 points per game while allowing 66.1 points. They are shooting the ball at a 38.5 percent clip (274-of-712) and 26.9 percent from downtown (60-of-223).
HOT TAKES
- Head coach Lynn Plett is two wins away from reaching 300 career wins in his 24-year career.
- The Mountains Lions shot 42.3 percent from the floor Friday night against the Grizzlies (22-of-52), making it the eighth time this season they have shot .400 or better. Their 24-rebound advantage over ASU (47-23) is the biggest rebounding advantage this season and the 10th time UCCS has out-rebounded their opponent.
- UCCS' 21 made free throws Friday night are the second most made free throws this season, and their 13-point win over ASU (68-55) is their second highest winning margin in 2021-22.
- Jasmine Jeffcoat ranks third in the RMAC in offensive rebounds per game (2.7). She leads the team in scoring with 10.8 points per game and steals (18), and is second in blocks (eight). Her seven made free throws against ASU on Friday are the most by any Mountain Lion this season.
- Ellie Moore's team high 15 blocks (1.07 blocks per game) are the seventh most in the league.
- Sophie Abela ranks in the top 10 in the league in assists per game (seventh, 3.4) and assist turnover ratio (ninth, 1.09).
- As a team, the Mountain Lions are ranked in the top five in multiple categories, including rebounds (second, 603), blocked shots (fifth, 48), free throw attempts (second, 289), third in defensive rebounds per game (28.7), offensive rebounds per game (14.4), rebound margin (8.0), and rebounds per game (43.07), and turnovers forced (fourth, 18.00), and steals per game (9.4).
- Offensively, UCCS is scoring 60.2 points per game while allowing 64.1 points per game (-3.9 margin).
UCCS UNDER HEAD COACH LYNN PLETT
- Lynn Plett is in his sixth season as head coach of the Mountain Lions in 2021-22, and his 24th season overall. He owns a career record of 298-347 and a 67-80 record at UCCS.
- UCCS has been named to the WBCA Top 25 Team Academic Honor Roll for four straight years. Plett guided the Mountain Lions to their first RMAC championship title in program history in his first season in 2016-17, and their third NCAA Tournament appearance.
- Plett has coached at St. Joseph's (1994-95 to 2001-02), Lewis (2002-03 to 2006-07), and Missouri Western State (2007-08 to 2011-12) prior to joining the Mountain Lions.
ADMISSION AT UCCS HOME MATCHES
- General admission tickets will be available one hour before game time (cash only).
- Ticket Prices:
- Adults: $10
- Non-UCCS students (with student ID), children ages 13-17: $5
- Military members, seniors (age 55+): $3
- UCCS faculty, staff, students (with ID), children ages 0-12, UCCS Alumni Association members: Free
- Masks are required at all times indoors.
FACE COVERINGS
- Per campus policy, all students, faculty, staff and visitors on the UCCS campus are REQUIRED to wear a face covering while indoors, regardless of vaccination status.
UPCOMING GAMES
- After three games this week, the Mountain Lions will begin a four-game road trip starting Jan. 25 at New Mexico Highlands University, and Jan. 29 at South Dakota School of Mines.
SOCIAL
Twitter - @GoMountainLions
Instagram - @gomountainlions
Facebook – Go Mountain Lions
As a member of the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference, the University of Colorado Colorado Springs competes in 16 varsity sports in NCAA Division II intercollegiate athletics.
