After expending the energy reserves in Friday’s record-setting overtime win against CSU-Pueblo, the 20th-ranked Fort Lewis College men’s basketball team had to recover in a hurry to beat New Mexico Highlands on Saturday – and they did just that.
The Skyhawks (7-1, 2-0 Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference) played catch-up all night Friday, but they learned their lesson. FLC never trailed after the first 2 minutes of play Saturday and, surprisingly, only got stronger as the game went on. Fort Lewis shot a sparkling 71 percent from the floor in the second half and added on to the school-record home winning streak with a 96-71 win against the Cowboys. The win is the team’s 23rd consecutive win at Whalen Gymnasium, 17th consecutive win against a conference opponent and seventh in a row since losing the first game of the season to West Texas A&M.
“In this league, with the back-to-backs the way they are, you just can’t have any excuses,” Fort Lewis head coach Bob Pietrack said. “I was really proud of our guys (Saturday) being able to reset themselves after an emotional win last night in which a lot of energy was used.”
Rasmus Bach led the way with 24 points, as five Skyhawks finished in double figures. Joshua Blaylock had 16 points and tied for the team-high with six rebounds. Brandon Wilson also had 16 points and six rebounds in the win.
Though the bench was outscored 22-5 and the team trailed 13-1 in second-chance points in the first half, Fort Lewis led by as much as 16 points in the opening 20 minutes while holding the Cowboys (2-4, 0-2 RMAC) to just 34 percent from the field.
Fort Lewis blew the game open in the second half and widened the lead behind a scorching 71-percent performance from the field in the second half.
“We’re pretty tough to guard when we’re moving the ball like we did in the second half,” senior guard Will Morse said. “A lot of teams are anxious to get out in transition against us, so when we miss they are able to get some easy baskets. When we take some time to move the ball and make them guard us longer until we get a good look, we’re tough to beat.”
With FLC working to get good shots, the outlet passes and transition buckets the Cowboys like to get weren’t available. At the end of the night, the Skyhawks had allowed just two points off the fast break, which was mostly affected by efficiency at the offensive end.
“It’s nice because none of us feel like we’re the first or second option,” Bach said. “The other guys draw so much attention, and if someone gets going and they want to key in on stopping one of us, the others get more space. It’s always a team effort.”
Morse added 15 points and a team-high seven assists in Saturday’s win. Jalen Terry had 11 points off the bench for the second consecutive night for Fort Lewis.
Fort Lewis will take all of its streaks on the road for a 7:30 p.m. Friday game at Colorado Mesa. The Mavericks were the last RMAC team to beat Fort Lewis, winning 75-72 on Jan. 15, 2016.
“We don’t feel very good about the way we failed to finish that game last year,” Pietrack said. “They’re our rival. I’m sure we circled the game on the schedule, and they probably did too.”
jfries@durangoherald.com
By the numbers
Note: Best win-loss record for a NCAA Men’s basketball head coach through their first 42 games.
1. Bob Pietrack, Fort Lewis, 37-5.
2. Adolph Rupp, Kentucky, 36-6.
3. Jim Boeheim, Syracuse, 36-6.
4. Nelson Haggerty, Midwestern State, 36-6.
