Well rested and well prepared. That’s how the Fort Lewis College men’s basketball team will enter 2020.
Eager to get back to action after a 12-day break, the Skyhawks will welcome a mighty foe at 7:30 p.m. Friday when Metro State University of Denver visits Whalen Gymnasium on the FLC campus in Durango.
Though Metro State hasn’t won a Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference championship since it won its third in a row during the 2014-15 season, the two-time national title-winning program still brings a talented team to support its marquee name.
“When you’ve got a team as good as Metro coming in, the attention of both teams will be high,” FLC head coach Bob Pietrack said.
The Roadrunners will enter 6-5 overall and 2-3 in the RMAC, while FLC will look to add to its 9-2 record and 3-2 mark in conference. After a tough non-conference schedule, the Roadrunners have lost three conference games by a combined four points to Regis, Colorado Mesa and Western Colorado, and have an overtime win against Colorado Christian as well as a nine-point win before the break against travel partner Chadron State.
Metro State boasts the second-best scoring defense in the conference at 68.2 points per game, while FLC has the second-best scoring offense at 88.3 points per game. FLC has allowed opponents to score 79.3 points per game, while Metro State has scored only 72.6 points.
Defense is the one area Pietrack wants to see his team improve upon in 2020. Though he knows some of the points allowed can be attributed to how much his own team is scoring, he would like the Skyhawks to be better collectively when it comes to defense.
“We have to guard better. Teams shoot 46% against us, and we give up 80 points a game,” Pietrack said.
“If we do a better job and clamp down defensively and keep teams to the low 70s, we will have a successful winter.”
Pietrack believes the key to beating the Roadrunners is transition defense.
“We can’t let it be a track meet,” he said. “They have wonderful athletes, and we have to limit their transition offense and the 3s they get from it. It’s a tall task. We want to play our way with structured basketball, get good shots through moving the ball and get back on defense.”
Metro State has allowed teams to shoot only 41% from the field this season. Pietrack called them one of the better defensive teams in the league. The Roadrunners will try to stop the elite scoring threat presented by FLC junior forward Riley Farris, who has averaged 23.8 points per game and scored 21 or more in all 11 games this season. Farris’ third-highest scoring mark in the conference has come on an RMAC-leading 60.8% shooting performance from the field.
FLC freshman guard Akuel Kot has also averaged 15.5 points per game to give FLC two players in the top 15 in RMAC scoring.
The Skyhawks were eager for the break to get more players healthy, including starting point guard Logan Hokanson, who has averaged four assists per game. FLC will also hope to see senior wing player Danny Garrick rediscover his shooting rhythm after he went cold before the break. He has still shot 3-pointers at a 41% rate and has made 2.9 per game to average 12.3 points.
“Division II does a great job giving us the break,” Pietrack said. “We have been going longer than most D-II teams because of our foreign tour we went on. We feel, as a program, we needed a break more than anybody. We’re looking forward to playing really good basketball, being better coming out of this healthier than we’ve been all season. We’re a young team and think we’ve got a chance to get better and better each week that passes in the RMAC.”
FLC’s defense will look to slow Druce Asah, the Roadrunners’ leading scorer at 14.6 points per game. Inside, Metro boasts Kendall McIntosh, who has scored 9.4 points per game to go with a team-leading 5.8 rebounds per contest. Point guard Mitch Lombard is also a threat, as he has averaged 10 points and more than four assists per game.
“Druce is excellent in transition and a very good 3-point shooter when his feet are set,” Pietrack said. “He doesn’t tire and doesn’t miss free throws. They’ve got multiple seniors on their roster who are very good. We will have to play our best.”
FLC will look to get the second half of the season started on the right foot before it will host Chadron State at 7:30 p.m. Saturday. With students on winter break for another week, Pietrack and the Skyhawks hope the home crowd of Durango shows up in force to provide a championship atmosphere in two pivotal games.
“Anything we can get from the town is so greatly appreciated,” Pietrack said. “Every RMAC game is so tough, and you have to protect your home court.”
jlivingston@durangoherald.com
RMAC
Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference
Men’s Basketball
Note: NABC ranking in parentheses
TEAM OVERALL RMAC
Dixie State (13) 10-1 5-0
Colorado Mesa 8-3 4-1
Colorado Mines 8-4 4-1
Fort Lewis 9-2 3-2
N.M. Highlands 8-2 3-2
Regis 8-3 3-2
UCCS 7-3 3-2
Black Hills State 6-5 3-2
Westminster 7-4 2-3
Metro State-Denver 6-5 2-3
Western Colorado 5-6 2-3
CSU-Pueblo 4-7 2-3
S.D. Mines 4-7 1-4
Adams State 3-8 1-4
Chadron State 2-9 1-4
Colorado Christian 1-10 1-4
