GUNNISON, Colo. – The Fort Lewis College men's basketball team suffered its fourth straight loss on Saturday, falling 85-77 to Western Colorado University in Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference (RMAC) action.
The loss moved the Skyhawks to 14-9 overall and 11-4 in conference play, while the Mountaineers improved to 8-16 overall and 6-10 in the RMAC.
Fort Lewis shot 37.3 percent from the field and 31.6 percent from three while converting 21-of-30 free throws. The Skyhawks totaled 39 rebounds and 10 steals while committing 13 turnovers. Western Colorado shot 50 percent from the field, 40 percent from three, and 23-of-31 from the free throw line. The Mountaineers finished with 41 rebounds and five blocks.
Jaxon Smith led the Skyhawks with 17 points, followed by Keither Florence with 12 points and eight rebounds. Chuol Deng added 11 points to round out Fort Lewis' double-digit scorers. Western Colorado was led by Aiden McDowell with 27 points, along with three additional players scoring in double figures.
The opening two minutes featured traded shots, with Deng scoring five early points as the teams remained tied. Erhart gave Fort Lewis its first lead with a jumper. A scoring burst at the 16-minute mark began with another Erhart layup and ended with a Western Colorado field goal, giving Fort Lewis a narrow 11-10 lead. The Skyhawks' pressure defense forced three straight Mountaineer turnovers, helping Fort Lewis build an eight-point lead with 13:31 remaining in the half.
Western Colorado responded with five straight points to cut the deficit to two heading into a timeout with 11 minutes left. The Mountaineers tied the game out of the break, but Fort Lewis answered with a Smith free throw and three-pointer to regain a four-point lead. Western Colorado then used an 8-0 run to take a 26-22 advantage. Florence sparked a Fort Lewis response at the free throw line, followed by an Erhart jumper and two free throws from Ziemkiewicz to give the Skyhawks a 30-26 lead. Western Colorado countered with a nine-point run before Deng stopped the surge with a layup.
Carmichael added a layup at the 5:10 mark to pull Fort Lewis within three. After a brief scoreless stretch, McDowell ended the drought with a three-pointer, but Bangham Jr. answered with a three of his own to make it 40-37. Western Colorado carried a narrow 43-42 lead into halftime after another Smith three cut the deficit to one.
The Mountaineers opened the second half with five quick points to lead 48-42 through two minutes. Florence ended the Skyhawks' scoring drought with a strong drive to make it 48-44. Western Colorado later broke the press for two layups, extending the lead to 52-44 with 14:38 remaining.
The Mountaineers pushed the lead to 10 after back-to-back fouls led to a deep three, making it 55-45 at the 13:39 mark. McDowell added points at the free throw line and another three to extend the lead to 14 with 12 minutes to play. Fort Lewis trimmed the deficit to 10 points twice over the next two minutes and trailed by 11 with 10 minutes remaining.
That margin held for the next 90 seconds before a Carmichael layup made it 69-58 heading into a Western Colorado timeout. After more than two minutes without a score, Smith hit his third three-pointer of the game to cut the deficit to eight with under six minutes left. Smith later added two free throws, but Western Colorado answered with four points to push the lead to 73-63. The Mountaineers continued to draw fouls and convert free throws, building a 77-66 lead with 2:32 remaining.
Smith kept the Skyhawks within striking distance with three free throws and a quick three off a Deng steal, cutting the deficit to 79-74 with 90 seconds left. Fort Lewis capitalized on two missed Western Colorado free throws, with Bangham Jr. hitting a jumper to make it a three-point game. Despite the late push, Western Colorado made five of six free throws in the final minute to secure the 85-77 win.
Fort Lewis returns to Whalen Gymnasium next week for its final home games of the regular season. The Skyhawks host Chadron State College on Thursday before facing South Dakota Mines on Saturday for Senior Day.
