Box Score
DURANGO, Colo. — Matt Morris scored 18 points and grabbed 10 rebounds to lead Fort Lewis (6-4 overall, 4-2 in the
Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference) to a 56-43 win over Chadron State (2-9, 2-5) tonight in Whalen Gymnasium.
“Matt's the MVP of the league right now,” said 16th-year FLC head coach
Bob Hofman. “There's no player in the league that means more to their team than Matt does to us. We wouldn't have a win this year without him.”
Morris, who went 7-of-11 from the field and 4-of-5 from the line, was the lone Skyhawk to score in double figures. He added a pair of steals and two assists in the win. Five of his 10 rebounds came on the offensive end.
Aside from their senior center, Fort Lewis struggled offensively. The Skyhawks shot just 36.4 percent from the field (20-of-55) and failed to make a three-point field goal, going 0-for-13.
“I can't remember not making a three-pointer in my 16 years at Fort Lewis,” said Hofman. In fact, it likely dates back to the 1985-86 season, prior to college basketball's adoption of the three-point field goal. Hofman coached FLC for four seasons from 1983-87 prior to returning to Durango for the 2000-01 campaign. The Skyhawk record book doesn't track the last time FLC failed to make a three-pointer.
“I guarantee we haven't had a game where we didn't hit a three in the latest Hofman era,” said FLC associate head coach
Bob Pietrack, who has been part of all of Hofman's teams at Fort Lewis as either a player or assistant coach since 2000-01.
While FLC experienced offensive woes, the Skyhawks were solid on the defensive end.
“We played pretty good defensively,” said Hofman in an understatement. The Fort Lewis zone limited the Eagles to just 25 percent shooting from the floor (14-of-56) and 20.8 percent from behind the arc (5-of-24). Fort Lewis also forced 20 turnovers and recorded 13 steals.
One area in which the Eagles saw some success was offensive rebounding. CSC grabbed 19 offensive caroms, but failed to take advantage of their second and third chances.
Fort Lewis ripped down 17 offensive caroms of their own and outscored CSC 34-18 in the paint and 17-12 in second chance points.
The first half proved especially sloppy, as the teams headed into the locker rooms tied 18-18 at intermission. Fort Lewis had just one field goal in the first nine minutes, trailing 11-4 before
Alex Herrera had a put-back 9:09 into the opening frame.
Defense kept FLC in the game early, as they held the Eagles scoreless for nearly eight minutes. Chadron State led 11-2 after a Kendrick Holliman free throw with 6:57 into the game and didn't score again until Sammy Hines' layup with 6:15 left in the half, ending a 12-0 Skyhawk run.
Hines, who went 3-of-6 from long range, was one of two Eagles to finish in double figures with 11 points. Chris Curtis also had 11.
Fort Lewis won the rebounding battle 46-43, with Herrera pulling down eight rebounds in just 14 minutes of action. Moala Tautuaa led CSC with seven boards.
The Skyhawk men deviate from their usual 7:30 p.m. tipoff tomorrow when they host Nebraska-Kearney (6-3, 4-2) at 6 p.m. in Whalen Gymnasium. Saturday's New Year's Eve matinee doubleheader kicks off with a 4 p.m. tilt between the No. 6-ranked Fort Lewis women's team (9-1, 6-0) and Nebraska-Kearney (2-10, 2-5).
