COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – The University of Colorado Colorado Springs men's basketball team pulled out a close 81-76 victory against Westminster University Friday night assisted by their ability to draw fouls and go 25-of-31 (80.6 percent) from the free throw line.
INSIDE THE MATCHUP
- Final: UCCS 81, WU 76
- Records: UCCS (11-11, 7-9 RMAC) | WU (6-16, 2-14 RMAC)
- Facility | Location: Gallogly Events Center | Colorado Springs, Colo.
- All-Time Series: The Mountain Lions are now 7-1 against the Griffins dating back to January 27, 2018. UCCS holds an 8-4 advantage in the all-time series.
HOW IT HAPPENED
- The Mountain Lions began Friday night's contest lethargically as Westminster opened the first 11 minutes of the game on a 20-12 run. UCCS got themselves going after Xavier Martinez found Jesse Iweze on the pick and roll for a forceful two-handed slam.
- From this moment on, the Mountain Lions caught absolute fire from beyond the arc as they hit seven three-pointers on eight attempts in the remainder of the first half. This effort was shared as Martinez splashed three of the seven while Noah Baca, Jayden Washington, Mac Stodart, and Hannes Saar each nailed one as well. This 23-11 run made up for the slow start and would position UCCS up 37-33 going into halftime.
- The Mountain Lions opened the second half in complete control as they grew their lead to 10 (50-40) with 13:58 to go in the game. The pesky Griffins wouldn't go out quietly though as they responded with a 9-2 run of their own, pulling themselves to only down three at the 11:37 mark.
- A pair of Iweze free throws, a James Ellis and Stodart three-ball, and a crafty layup from Martinez would give UCCS some breathing room as they grew their lead to seven (62-55) with 7:36 to go. These baskets gave the Mountain Lions the space they needed as they would increase their lead up to 10 (72-62) in the next three and a half minutes of play.
- UCCS would get cold in the last minutes of the game from the field but would make their free throws as they went 10-for-13 in the last four minutes. A three-pointer from Westminster's Rylan O'Brien with 30 seconds pulled the game within five (78-73) but Saar and Baca would sink more clutch free throws to aid UCCS to their 81-76 victory.
GAME STATISTICS
- Saar made great contributions for the Mountain Lions tonight despite only attempting two shots from the field as he was 12-of-14 from the charity stripe with many of them coming in the final minutes of the game.
- Stodart had his A-game going tonight as he put up 18 points on 6-of-10 shooting including two three-pointers and 4-of-5 shooting from the charity stripe.
- Martinez added 15 points in the win to go along with a game high seven assists while shooting 3-of-6 from deep.
- The Mountain Lions lost the battle in points in the paint (42-24), and second chance points (12-6), but succeeded in fast break points (14-9) and points from the bench (33-18).
- UCCS did a great job of reaching the foul line tonight as they earned 31 attempts while making 25 of them for a percentage of 80.6 percent. The Mountain Lions also did a good job in playing clean defense as the Griffin's only attempted seven shots from the charity stripe.
- Despite their unconscious shooting to close the first half, UCCS would only shoot 10-of-30 (33.3 percent) from beyond the arc in the game.
BEYOND THE BOX SCORE
- Saar's 14 free throws attempted, and 12 free throws made tonight are both career high marks.
- UCCS only fouled the Griffins 11 times tonight which is the least number of fouls they've committed this season.
- The Mountain Lions are 7-1 against Westminster since January 27, 2018.
UP NEXT
- The Mountain Lions will face Colorado Mesa University tomorrow night for a 7 p.m. contest. The action will take place at the Gallogly Events Center in Colorado Springs, Colo.
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 14 varsity sports in NCAA Division II intercollegiate athletics.
