A tough game against a regional rival before the holiday break eventually favored the structure of the Fort Lewis College men’s basketball team Saturday night in Durango.
The Skyhawks trailed 46-45 at halftime despite a 12-point lead with five minutes to play in the first half. But FLC quickly claimed a 55-50 advantage in the second half behind the scoring of junior forward Riley Farris, and the lead stretched behind strong play from sophomore forward Brenden Boatwright and monster 3-point shots from freshman guard Junior Garbrah.
After Garbrah’s last of three 3s in the game, FLC held a 86-70 lead. FLC closed out the final few minutes for a 90-76 victory.
“It’s a good victory for us,” FLC head coach Bob Pietrack said. “All these RMAC home games, you gotta get ’em because the league is so difficult. It doesn’t matter how you get ’em; you get a home game, you gotta win it. We took care of business tonight.
“Really, credit Adams State. They always play us hard. This is a good rivalry, good clean rivalry game, and the games are always hard fought.”
The Skyhawks will enter the 2020 portion of the schedule with a 9-2 overall record and 3-2 mark in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference.
“This league, it is so competitive, and there’s so much parity,” Pietrack said. “Any time you’re over .500, you’re doing pretty good. There’s some teams in our league that are under .500 that are really good teams. Every time you can get a league win, it’s critical. We only got seven of them last year, and we already got three.
“This team is gonna be fun in the second half. ... It should be a really fun winter.”
Farris scored 28 points with 18 in the first half. He also had seven rebounds. He has scored at least 21 points in all 11 of FLC’s games so far this season, but he said he has taken more joy in watching the young players on the team have a strong start to their careers.
“Everybody has a role on a team,” Pietrack said. “Farris needs to be our leading scorer most nights, and he has been pretty much every time. ... He’s been special good the first half of the season, and I still feel he is just beginning to be as good as he can be. That’s how special talented he is.”
It was the 15 points from Garbrah and especially his 11 in the second half that Pietrack credited for his team eventually building a good lead Saturday.
“I just enjoy the fact I can propel the team and give them that boost of energy,” Garbrah said. “I feel like that’s my role on the team. Any chance I get to step up in that moment, I’m definitely gonna seize it.”
Freshman guard Akuel Kot scored nine in each half to finish with 18 points. Junior point guard Logan Hokanson added nine points, five rebounds and three assists.
Boatwright finished with seven points and two rebounds, but he had two key steals and played a strong part in the win despite only 9:16 of playing time.
Juwan Green was a problem for FLC. The Adams State guard sliced to the basket at will and scored 25 points. Kaelin Crane added 15 points, as did Rickey Norris.
“He’s a very good player,” Garbrah said of Green. “In transition, he’s extremely quick. He’s very shifty, so it was kind of tough to stay in front of him at times because he slithers right past you.”
FLC won despite 16 turnovers thanks largely to a 37-26 advantage in rebounding and a huge advantage scoring in the paint. The Skyhawks shot 70.4% from the field in the second half and 61.7% for the game as well as 7-of-15 from 3-point range. Adams State was only 4-of-18 from 3 and 40.6% from the field, including only 34.5% in the second half.
The game was still only 59-58 in favor of FLC with 12:50 to play. But back-to-back baskets for Kot followed by back-to-back Boatwright layups, one a dunk, made it 69-63.
“We just came off a loss last week, and I feel like I played horrible,” Kot said. “I feel like I didn’t help my team. This whole week, I just focused on how I could help my team win, and that’s what we did.”
A Garbrah 3 off a Boatwright screen made it 74-65, and Hokanson followed with a 3 of his own to make it a double-digit lead. Two more 3s from Garbrah around a Farris 3-pointer put the game away.
FLC has had a busy 2019. Pietrack and associate head coach Daniel Steffensen rebuilt the roster after a losing 2018-19 season, and only one player, Will Wittman, who got regular starts a year ago returned to the lineup this season. Through a couple of tough injuries early in the regular season, FLC is in good standing going into the winter.
“I really feel as though we have a good team collectively,” Pietrack said. “We have great people. We really focused on this recruiting class making sure we have the right individuals, and I think it’s shown in some games. The league is a heavyweight fight. You get hit back and then you gotta hit back. It’s the teams that stay together that have the right human beings on the roster that tend to propel themselves into the league standings as it goes.
“I’m very proud of our team. To be 9-2, it’s the fourth time in five years we’ve had nine wins at the break. This league is just going to get harder and more difficult, but that’s for everybody. Our young kids have grown up, our older guys have carried us at times. Now, we’ll be older, more experienced and ready for the second semester.”
Metro State University-Denver will visit Jan. 3 followed by Chadron State. The Skyhawks know the next two home games will be important to establish a tone for the rest of the season.
“We’ve always enjoyed playing them and know they enjoy playing us,” Pietrack said of Metro State. “It’s a big game, and it’s a big game for Durango. This break will be good for our team as we heal. ... I think we will come back stronger than ever.”
jlivingston@durangoherald.com
