COLORADO SPRINGS, COLO. – The University of Colorado Colorado Springs men's basketball team dropped a heartbreaker Tuesday night to New Mexico Highlands University in a high scoring affair with the visiting Cowboys coming out on top 100-96.
INSIDE THE MATCHUP:
Final: UCCS 96, NMHU 100
Records: UCCS (19-8, 14-7 RMAC), NMHU (15-12, 10-11 RMAC)
Facility: Gallogly Events Center | Colorado Springs, Colo.
All-Time Series: UCCS drops a game in the history of this matchup, but still leads the series 26-22 over the Cowboys.
HOW IT HAPPENED:
- A rather pedestrian start to tonight's matchup saw only six combined points scored for the first three minutes of the game. A three-pointer from Bobby Martin at 16:27 followed by an opposing three-pointer and a downtown swish from Jon'il Fugett opened the floodgates for what would be an offense dominated contest.
- The first half scoring favored the Cowboys as they jumped to an early eight-point lead in the following minutes, but UCCS was able to chip away at the deficit as Devin Smith blocked a shot and turned it into two points on the other end to make it a one possession game with eight minutes remaining in the half.
- The Cowboys would not be threatened however, as they quickly extended the lead to as much as 14 in their favor and went into the half leading the Mountain Lions by nine at a score of 44-35.
- As they have shown time and again this season, the Mountain Lions refuse to back down regardless of the deficit. They were aggressive in the paint and kept within striking distance the rest of the way. Alijah Comithier found his way down low, making a shot off a feed from Geoff Kelly, drawing the foul and then converting the and-one chance.
- After a Wyatt Dolberry three captured the Mountain Lion lead for the first time in the second half, the Cowboys would go down on the other end and quickly retake it. With 12:45 remaining in the half, Martin took the lead right back on the next possession with a three of his own.
- Fugett was excellent in shooting from distance as he knocked down a three-point bucket to give the Mountain Lions a 74-70 lead with just under eight minutes still on the clock.
- With time winding down and both teams hitting shots left and right, the Mountain Lions found themselves down four with a minute and a half remaining. To add to an already incredible night, Fugett threw up another shot from downtown that found the bottom of the net and brought the score to a 92-91 NMHU lead.
- The Cowboys stayed hot and made things difficult for UCCS as they led by five with 0:21 left. Martin was able to draw a foul and sink both of his free throws. Following the inbound pass, Fugett intercepted a pass from a heavily defended Cowboy that he then turned into another two points that brought them within one point of the NMHU lead.
- The Mountain Lions could not keep up with the Cowboys free throw shooting in the final seconds of the game, as NMHU hit the century mark and held on to capture a 100-96 victory.
STATS FROM THE GAME:
- After a sluggish first half, the Mountain Lions came roaring back with a 51.4 percent shooting percentage from the floor, an improvement from their first half mark of 39.4 percent.
- Tonight's match was a true back-and-forth game. After the Mountain Lions clawed back from as much as 14 points down in the first half, they saw the score tied 12 times with the lead changing 15 times in the game.
- The majority of the scoring came from three Mountain Lions, as Jon'il Fugett recorded 25 points, Jezza McKenzie scoring 23 and Alijah Comithier adding another 19. The three combined for 67 of the team's total 96 points. Each of them made at least two three-pointers in the game, and all of them making at least 50 percent of their shots from beyond the arc.
- The Mountain Lions pushed the opposing starters to their limits, as only three points came off the NMHU bench.
- Of the 37 total rebounds in the game, the Mountain Lions grabbed 14 on the offensive side of the ball, which led to 28 second chance points.
BEYOND THE BOX SCORE:
- Jezza McKenzie had an excellent night and found himself breaking season highs in minutes (33), points (25), field goals made (8), and steals (3).
- Jon'il Fugett recorded a season high in points with 25 tonight. This is the third time this year he has eclipsed the 20-point mark in a game. He also set season highs in field goals (9) and rebounds (9).
- Coming into the game, the Mountain Lions were a perfect 13-0 this season when they score at least 80 points in a game. Tonight's loss marks the first defeat this year when eclipsing the 80-point mark, thus making it the most points scored in a loss for UCCS.
- The Mountain Lions were strong at the free throw line tonight shooting 80.8 percent from the charity stripe, the third highest percentage from the line they have had in a game this season.
UP NEXT:
- UCCS returns home for the regular season finale as they take on the South Dakota Mines Hardrockers at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, February 24th.
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.
