MSU Denver MSUD 11-16,8-13 RMAC

Fort Lewis FLC 25-2,19-2 RMAC

MSU Denver MSUD

11-16,8-13 RMAC

Final

Feb. 24, 2023

Fort Lewis FLC

25-2,19-2 RMAC

Score By Periods
Team	1	2	F
MSU Denver MSUD	24	37	61
Fort Lewis FLC	45	35	80

Summary
Box Score

JoJo Lutz, Fort Lewis Athletic Communications

Akuel Kot (22) hits a trey from the top of the key over the Roadrunners.

Game Recap: Men's Basketball | 2/24/2023 11:10:00 PM | Hayden Mangan, Athletic Communications Assistant

No. 5/6 Skyhawks handle Roadrunners 80-61, clinch a share of RMAC Regular Season Championship

DURANGO, Colo. – Akuel Kot led a quartet of Skyhawks to finish in double figures to build an offensive momentum the Roadrunners could not overcome as fifth-ranked Fort Lewis College completed the season sweep of Metropolitan State University of Denver following an 80-61 win Friday night in Whalen Gymnasium.

Tonight's win elevates Fort Lewis to 25-2 overall and 19-2 in Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference play, setting a new program record for wins in the regular season. MSU Denver falls to 11-16 overall and 8-13 in RMAC contests.

"Great focus from our guys from the start," head coach Bob Pietrack shared. "Credit to Metro, they have a bunch of young guys and a first-year coach. As the years go on, I believe they'll be a really great team. Tonight, we were just really focused on being able to guard well and let the offense come, but that title wave at the beginning was a real difference-maker."

Fort Lewis clinched at least a share of the RMAC Regular Season Championship and at least a two-seed in the RMAC Tournament alongside Colorado Mesa University (24-4, 19-3 RMAC) with tonight's win. The Skyhawks need to defeat No. 15/24 Colorado School of Mines (23-4, 17-4 RMAC) tomorrow night in order to clinch the championship outright.

The Skyhawks had Whalen Gymnasium shaking from the start, running off with 17 unanswered points capped off with a layup from Sekou Dembele down low. MSU Denver finally got on the board thanks to a layup from Jaden Kennis, but Fort Lewis answered with an 18-9 scoring run to stretch the lead out to 24 points: a mark FLC would reach twice more in the opening half.

Junior Garbrah brought in the final basket of the half for the Skyhawks, but MSU Denver's Yaw Reneer made a trey in the final seconds to desperately cut into the Roadrunners deficit. Holding the opposition to just 29.6% from the field and 12.5% from the three-point line while forcing 12 of MSUD's 19 total turnovers, Fort Lewis entered the half with a 45-24 lead.

The Roadrunners outscored FLC 37-35 in the second half, but the Skyhawks lead was too high for MSU Denver to climb. Kot made a trey from the top of the key to open the scoring, and Quave Propst-Allison responded in turn with a layup down low through heavy traffic.

MSU Denver finally brought the deficit to under 20 at 16:46 thanks to a layup from Tyrei Randall. Fort Lewis's lead dwindled around the 20-point mark for a few minutes thanks to timely defense from the Roadrunners, but the Skyhawks found momentum, and a pair of free throws handed to JaQuaylon Mays lifted FLC's lead to 29 points: the largest of the night with just under eight minutes to play.

MSU Denver out-rebounded Fort Lewis 41-36, but dominant defense from the Skyhawks held the Roadrunners to shooting just 34.4% from the field and 19.0% from the three-point line across the evening. Kot led Fort Lewis with 17 points while Garbrah added 15 more, Mays an additional 13, and Obi Agbim another 10. Just two Roadrunners finished in double figures tonight: Randall with 14 points and Propst-Allison 11 points.

NOTABLES
-Fort Lewis's 25 wins this season marks a new program record through the regular season.
-Akuel Kot and JaQuaylon Mays each tied their career-highs with two blocks tonight.
-Tonight marks the eighth game this season four or more Skyhawks finished in double figures.
-Head coach Bob Pietrack has now led Fort Lewis to three regular-season conference championships and six trips to the RMAC Tournament across his eight seasons as head coach.

FOR THE OUTRIGHT TITLE
Tomorrow night fifth-ranked Fort Lewis will host 15^th-ranked Mines for the final regular season, RMAC game in Whalen Gymnasium. Tabbed as Beach Night, fans are encouraged to wear their favorite beach-themed shirt as the Skyhawks send off four seniors, Brendan La Rose, Brenden Boatwright, Mays, and Dunnell Stafford, in a heavyweight matchup. Tip-off is slated for 7:00 p.m. following the women's basketball game.

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