If Thursday night’s matchup between Fort Lewis College men’s basketball and Western Colorado was a drag race, the Skyhawks rocketed off the line and left the Mountaineers in the dust to the finish line.
The Skyhawks looked sharp, refocused and refreshed in their first game in over three weeks. FLC used a 15-2 start to the game, had a double-digit lead for nearly the entire first half and built that lead into an 89-63 home win to start 2026.
Despite losing starting point guard for the season, Yorgio Golesis, due to an ACL tear before the Christmas break, the Skyhawks looked sharp on offense, constantly finishing in the paint. FLC moved the ball well and nearly had a 2-1 assist-to-turnover ratio.
FLC’s defense also helped fuel its offense. The Skyhawks had the tall task of stopping Division II’s top scorer, Aidan McDowell, who was averaging 27.9 points per game before the game. McDowell still hit some impressive shots and got to the free-throw line, but no other Mountaineers could get anything going offensively and looked out of sorts. The Skyhawks forced 21 turnovers, leading to some highlight plays for the fans.
“We have some really talented individuals, but we’re always better as a collective group,” FLC head coach Jordan Mast. “We’ve been preaching that it doesn’t matter who scores, who gets the shots, it matters if we make the right read and that we bring an unbelievable effort on defense. We did both of those today.”
FLC improved to 7-5 overall and 5-0 in the RMAC after it shot 49% from the field, 26% from 3-point range and 63% from the free-throw line. FLC has won six of its last seven games.
Redshirt sophomore guards Stewart Erhart and Jaxon Smith each had 17 points to lead the Skyhawks. Erhart finished 8-16 from the field, 1-2 from 3-point range, with seven steals and six assists. Smith finished 5-13 from the field, 2-9 from 3-point range and 5-5 from the free-throw line.
Western Colorado dropped to 5-8 overall and 3-2 in the RMAC after it shot 34% from the field, 21% from 3-point range and 68% from the free-throw line. McDowell finished with 21 points on 5-11 shooting from the field, 3-8 from 3-point range and 8-10 from the free-throw line.
The Skyhawks got off to a fantastic start, forcing turnovers early and tough shots. Western Colorado didn’t look like it knew what to do on offense against FLC’s pressure and length.
Jaxon Smith showed his ability to drive. Senior forward Massal Diouf cleared the way with a Gortat screen and Smith had an old-fashioned 3-point play. Erhart hit a mid-range jump shot off a turnover and Smith had two technical free throws to make it a 15-2 lead with 15:35 left. Smith had seven points in the first five minutes.
“We were very intentional about who their best players are and what they were trying to do,” Mast said about FLC’s strong start. “So they weren't getting easy baskets. We weren't playing accidental basketball, where we just hope they miss. We were creating misses and creating turnovers, which then led to easy baskets.”
Freshman guard Trey Curry made his debut for the Skyhawks on the day he was cleared by the NCAA. The mid-season transfer from the JUCO level showed an ability to get in the paint and create shots for himself and others in a backup point guard role early in the game.
Western Colorado continued to struggle to score in the first 10 minutes. FLC did a great job of face guarding McDowell and forcing other players to make plays. On offense, fifth-year forward Chuol Deng and Erhart both made corner 3-pointers to give FLC a 23-8 lead with 9:40 left.
After leading by 18, Western Colorado cut the lead to 10 after some impressive shot-making from McDowell and him getting to the free-throw line.
“We were great for the most part,” Mast said about FLC’s defense on McDowell. “He's phenomenal; he's a great player. It's not just impressive that he's scoring the way he is, it’s his efficiency in how he's doing it.”
The Skyhawks responded. Erhart was everywhere in the first half with six first-half steal, and he got to the basket in the half-court. FLC scored inside and got to the free-throw line. An aggressive drive and floater by Curry gave FLC a 46-33 lead at the half.
“We need him to be everything ... the best way I can describe Stu is you look at him, and you think he looks like an okay player,” Mast said about Erhart. “There's no substitute for heart, and he's got one of the biggest hearts with how he plays of any player I've ever coached.”
FLC started the second half doing what it does best: forcing turnovers. Junior guard Donald Bangham Jr. and senior forward Cassius Carmichael both had steals, leading to slams by Diouf and Carmichael for a 52-33 lead with 16:30 left. The Skyhawks didn’t allow anything inside early on, forcing perimeter jump shots.
The lead continued to increase for the Skyhawks, with senior forward Keither Florence, Deng and Curry finishing well inside. A Diouf free throw gave FLC a 67-46 lead with 11:45 left.
Carmichael had one of the plays of the year. It was a great back screen to give Carmichael an open lane. Curry threw the lob and Carmichael finished with a nasty reverse slam to put FLC up 77-55 with seven minutes left and put an exclamation point on the game.
FLC returns home to play Westminster on Saturday at 3 p.m.
bkelly@durangoherald.com
