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Fort Lewis College Athletics

Scoreboard

Levy Miguel 2.21
Bob Bonnar, FLC Athletics
FLC sophomore Levy Miguel scored seven points off the bench in Friday's loss to Colorado Mesa.
89
Winner Colorado Mesa CMU 17-9,13-7 RMAC
82
Fort Lewis FLC 13-13,7-13 RMAC
Winner
Colorado Mesa CMU
17-9,13-7 RMAC
89
Final
82
Fort Lewis FLC
13-13,7-13 RMAC
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
Colorado Mesa CMU 34 55 89
Fort Lewis FLC 26 56 82

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

Second-half comeback falls shy for FLC in 89-82 loss to Colorado Mesa

DURANGO, Colorado — The Fort Lewis College men's basketball team scratched and clawed its way out of an early hole, but fell shy it its attempt to upend rival Colorado Mesa as the Skyhawks fell by an 89-82 final Friday evening inside a packed Whalen Gymnasium for Whiteout Night.

It was the fourth straight game for the Skyhawks (13-13 overall, 7-13 RMAC) against teams currently in the playoff mix inside the RMAC, all games FLC had chances to snag but were unable to come away with the victory.

"I was proud of our guys. I do think we're playing hard. We didn't quit by any means," said Fort Lewis head coach, Bob Pietrack. "We will do everything we can to continue to just fight. We lose the last three games against three regional-caliber teams, and we've been right there with them. We're just a little young and a little short right now."

FLC battled back from a tough first half that saw the team enter the locker rooms just 8-of-35 from the field in the first half (23%), heading into the break trailing 34-26 to Colorado Mesa (17-9 overall, 13-7 RMAC).

The offense woke up in the second-half as redshirt junior forward Riley Farris poured in a team-high 21 points, 17 of which came over the final 20 minutes, while junior point guard Logan Hokanson added 16 points and seven assists.

Junior forward Will Wittman was the third Skyhawk in double-figures with 12 points, none more impressive than a put-back slam with 9:37 remaining that put FLC on top 58-56 after erasing multiple 10-point deficits.

"He's had a nice junior season and just collectively, he's really grown," Pietrack said of Wittman. "He's a borderline All-League player at this point in his career and shows a lot of heart when he plays. Every coach would like to have a guy like him. Thankful to have him and I think he'll continue to blossom going into next year."

Unfortunately for the Skyhawks, Colorado Mesa answered back with a quick 12-0 burst to retake a 68-58 lead at the 7:17 marked, fueled by a four-point play cashed in by Mavericks guard Jared Small.

Small and CMU post player Ethan Richardson carried the Mavericks with 23 points and 25 points, respectively.

The Skyhawks made one final push back, cutting the deficit back down to two at 78-76 after junior Corey Seng canned a long try for three of his nine points, sophomore Levy Miguel made a driving layup, and Farris drilled a 3-pointer from the wing in succession with 3:00 remaining.

That was as close as FLC would inch, though, as CMU grinded out the clock to hold on for the 89-82 final.

Miguel scored seven points in his season-high 11 minutes and freshman guard Akuel Kot chipped in six to help pace the Skyhawks' offense.

Up next for FLC will be another rivalry game Saturday on Senior Night, scheduled for 7:30 p.m. inside Whalen Gymnasium against Western Colorado University.

"Western is a good basketball team. We played them (in Gunnison) and it probably was one of our best games of the year," said Pietrack, referring the Skyhawks' 88-74 road win back on Jan. 17. "They've won five of their last six and playing really well. We're going to have to play great."
 
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