Basketball fever was in the air Friday night when the Skyhawks opened their home season to a crowd of a thousand or more energetic Skyhawk fans looking to get a first look at their 2008-09 Skyhawks.  And the Skyhawks did not disappoint earning a hard fought, 83-73, victory of the season to push their record to 5-2 on the season. 

Every fan in attendance got a show tonight with new faces, Kirk Archibeque and Jordan Brooks making lasting first impressions on the Skyhawk faithful.  A turning point of the first half came on a high flying put back dunk, threw down by Idaho transfer Jordan Brooks, who brought the crowd to their feet in awe.  Brooks filled up the stat column scoring 11 points, with 11 assists and six rebounds. 

Northern Colorado transfer and Cortez native Kirk Archibeque, made his Skyhawk home debut tonight scoring 17 points and grabbing four rebounds.  Archibeque added another dimension to the Skyhawk offense, showing touch around the basket most 6-9 players' lack.  His presence in the post is something Skyhawk basketball fans haven't seen since Steve Schutz in the early 90's.

DeAndre Landsdowne led all scorers notching 25 points, six rebounds and two assists.  Landsdowne shot 2-3 from the three point line and provided a consistent point output which in part kept the Skyhawks ahead the entire game.  Durango native Trent Bowman was the only other Skyhawk in double figures adding 13 points, four rebounds and two blocks. 

The Skyhawks will be back in action tomorrow night taking on Westminster College at 8 p.m.