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Fort Lewis College Athletics

Scoreboard

Akuel Kot 12.7
Maureen Pasley, FLC Athletics
Freshman guard Akuel Kot scored 26 points and had five rebounds and five assists in Saturday's win over CSU-Pueblo.
95
Colorado St.-Pueblo CSU-P 3-5,0-1 RMAC
98
Winner Fort Lewis FLC 7-1,1-1 RMAC
Colorado St.-Pueblo CSU-P
3-5,0-1 RMAC
95
Final
98
Fort Lewis FLC
7-1,1-1 RMAC
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 OT 1 F
Colorado St.-Pueblo CSU-P 41 45 9 95
Fort Lewis FLC 40 46 12 98

Game Recap: Men's Basketball | | David Wilson, Assistant AD-Communications

Fort Lewis fends off CSU-Pueblo for a 98-95 overtime victory

DURANGO, Colorado — Saturday's 98-95 victory for the Fort Lewis College men's basketball team over Colorado State University-Pueblo crossed off more than just the team's first RMAC victory of the season.

It was another stepping stone for this year's revamped Skyhawks' team, which bounced back from a tough loss Friday night to New Mexico Highlands University to wrap up its eight-game home stand with a 7-1 record and 1-1 mark inside the RMAC.

"These were the games we lost last year," said Fort Lewis head men's basketball coach, Bob Pietrack. "These types of games we lost three or four of them and this year we weren't going to be denied. I felt like we had multiple times where we could have put it away and we didn't, but we kept fighting and for that our staff is really proud of our team."

After leading by as many as 16 points at 64-50 with 12:07 remaining in regulation, the Skyhawks had to survive a furious rally by the visiting Thunderwolves (3-5 overall, 1-1 RMAC). CSU-Pueblo, on the back of a 42-point performance from shooting guard David Simental, pulled even at 76-76 with 3:12 remaining.

The Thunderwolves would have an opportunity to take the lead with 21 second remaining when Donovan Oldham went to the free throw line, but missed his second shot in the double-bonus to send the game to overtime.

"These back-end games are hard. That is physically taxing both nights and our guys showed toughness. I know we coughed up the lead, but we also fought back multiple times when we could have folded," Pietrack said. "The young men showed some toughness, our program showed some toughness, and we got a win we desperately need."

In the extra frame, the Skyhawks received key 3-pointers from freshman guard Akuel Kot and redshirt junior forward Riley Farris, each of whom topped the 20-point mark.

Kot led all FLC players with a career-high 26 points on 7-of-15 shooting. The true freshman also logged a career-high 44 minutes of playing time, grabbing five rebounds and dishing out five assists versus one turnover.

Farris was close behind with 25 points, marking the eighth straight game with 21 or more points for the Skyhawks' steady power forward out of Hutto, Texas.

But it was another true freshman who stepped up in the final seconds as backup point guard Junior Garbrah nailed down the victory by going 5-of-6 from the free-throw over the final 15 seconds of overtime.

Garbrah was the third Skyhawk in double-figures with 15 points, shaking off a tough 3-for-9 shooting night from the floor by cashing in 8-of-10 free throws.

"At first, I wanted to get my 3-point going, but that wasn't working so I just tried to be aggressive and get to the rim," Garbrah said. "I know Akuel draws so much attention that I need to be mentally prepared to step up in times like those."

It was a moment Pietrack said Garbrah has already proven he can handle during his short time in the Skyhawks' uniform.

"All Junior has done since he's been here has been clutch. It's no surprise to us," Pietrack said. "Junior is a great option (for in-bounds) and he's been clutch from the free-throw line. Even in a game in Costa Rica, he made two big ones. It's just something he's done the whole time and we're very comfortable with him."

Senior forward Danny Garrick and junior guard Will Wittman each added nine points, while redshirt sophomore forward Brenden Boatwright was efficient in his 12 minutes, scoring eight points and grabbing three rebounds.

Fort Lewis will now prepare for its first road trip of the season with matchups up north against South Dakota School of Mines and Technology (7:30 p.m. Friday) and Black Hills State University (5:30 p.m. Saturday).

"We talked about it after the game that we're extremely excited to go on the road. There's a lot of pressure when you play at home because those games are so valuable," Pietrack said. "We've been the home team eight straight times in some big games, now let's go on the road where the other teams have all the pressure and see if we can relax and play some really good Fort Lewis basketball."
 
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