Westminster (UT) WC-UT 4-7,0-5 RMAC

Fort Lewis FLC 9-1,5-0 RMAC

Westminster (UT) WC-UT

4-7,0-5 RMAC

Final

Dec. 16, 2023

Fort Lewis FLC

9-1,5-0 RMAC

Score By Periods
Team	1	2	F
Westminster (UT) WC-UT	34	28	62
Fort Lewis FLC	42	48	90

Summary
Box Score

JoJo Lutz, Fort Lewis Athletic Communications

Obi Agbim (5) has led the Skyhawks in scoring on five occasions this season including tonight with 18 points, three assists, and two rebounds.

Game Recap: Men's Basketball | 12/16/2023 6:49:00 PM | Hayden Mangan, Assistant Director of Athletic Communications

Agbim, Kinsler shine as No. 17/24 rolls over Westminster 90-62 to close out 2023

DURANGO, Colo. – Stifling defense and persistent turnovers were the tales once again as the 17^th-ranked Fort Lewis men's basketball team (9-1, 5-0 RMAC) cruised past Westminster (4-7, 0-5 RMAC) by a 90-62 margin en route to the program's ninth-straight win, fifth-straight Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference win, and to send the Skyhawks into the holiday break on top of the league standings.

"Very pleased with our focus, intensity, effort in playing… attention to detail, attention to preparation… during finals week, it's always a bit of a nervous time for a coach," Bob Pietrack commented. "Credit to them, they made a lot of threes, but I thought we were very disruptive and set the tone of the game with the pace we wanted to be at."

Fort Lewis had control from the get-go when Obi Agbim and Junior Garbrah knocked down back-to-back jumpers from beyond the arc. Although out-rebounded in the opening half, the Skyhawks continued to set the tone forcing 13 of Westminster's 21 total turnovers and running out to a 17-point lead on a fast-break triple from Samier Kinsler.

Exiting the locker room with an eight-point advantage, the Skyhawks found themselves exchanging shots with a stubborn Griffins team. Westminster cut the deficit to just eight points at the 12:09 minute mark thanks to a pair of free throws from Rylan O'Brien. However, Fort Lewis exploded and scored 22 unanswered points across six minutes to go up by 30 and all but put away WU before the Griffins could make its next basket.

Agbim paved the way with three assists, two rebounds, and 18 points on 7-for-13 shooting including 4-for-9 from downtown while Kinsler provided another 14 and two steals and matched Agbim with four treys. At the same time, Garbrah added another 11 points, five rebounds, and a steal. Isaiah Thompson led FLC with seven rebounds and Malik Whitaker added a team-leading four steals.

Trey Wood finished with 18 points while O'Brien was the only addition Griffin to finish in double figures with 14 points.

Fort Lewis edged Westminster in shooting 46.5 percent to 42.9, out-rebounded the Griffins 39-30, and made 10 steals while knocking down 11 treys. In addition and by 41 points to 14 tonight, the Skyhawks bench has out-scored its opponent for the ninth time this season.

Notables
-Tonight marks the first time since Nov. 18 that less than four Skyhawks finished in double figures.
-Fort Lewis enters the holiday break with only one loss for the second straight season.
-Thompson's seven rebounds tonight mark a season-high.
-The Skyhawks have forced 20+ turnovers for the fifth game this season.
-Fort Lewis is dominating conference opponents by an average score margin of +25.0 points per game while forcing 20.0 turnovers per game and leading the turnover margin of +10.4.

See You Next Year
The Skyhawks return to the hardwood inside Whalen Gymnasium on Tuesday, Jan. 2, for a non-conference battle of the birds against the Skyhawks from Navajo Technical University. Tip-off is scheduled for 5:00 p.m.

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