Regis handed the Fort Lewis College men’s basketball team its first conference loss in 22 games in Denver on New Year’s Eve. Protecting another streak of 26 consecutive home wins, the Skyhawks will look for a bit of revenge Friday night.
The Rangers (12-4, 6-4 Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference) had the night off before the matchup two weeks ago, while FLC was busy playing Chadron State in Nebraska. This time, the playing field will be a bit more even, with both teams rested and ready to roll into the heart of the RMAC schedule.
The No. 21 Skyhawks (15-3, 10-2 RMAC) sit in a three-way tie for first place in the conference with Colorado Mines and CSU-Pueblo, who play each other this weekend. FLC knows what’s at stake in the final 10 games of the regular season.
“It’s easy to look at the conference standings and see where everyone is at and what we’re fighting for,” said FLC head coach Bob Pietrack, who earlier in the week was named the HoopDirt.com Division II National Coach of the Week for the second time in as many years. “It’s that time of year to ramp it up as players and coaches.”
In the loss to Regis, the Skyhawks turned the ball over an uncharacteristic 18 times. Pietrack also said his team didn’t rebound to its capability, giving the Rangers too many chances to stick in the game early when FLC was playing well.
“When you turn it over 18 times, you can’t expect to win in this conference,” he said.
FLC will look for an answer defensively against Regis center Dexter Sienko, who had 20 points and six rebounds in the last matchup. Pietrack called him an unorthodox center who is a bull inside but can also step out and make jump shots.
Freshman guard Jarrett Brodbeck also caused FLC problems with 15 points. He ranks 13th in the RMAC in scoring at 15 points per game.
Meanwhile, FLC boasts two of the top-three scorers in the conference. Joshua Blaylock has taken the lead at 19.5 points per game, while Rasmus Bach sits at 19.3 points per game, which is tied with Colorado Mines’ Gokul Natesan.
But the Skyhawks are much more than a two-man show.
“We’re lucky to have both of them, but we have a lot of guys blossoming before us,” Pietrack said. “Alex Semadeni, Daniel Hernandez, Brandon Wilson and Kane Martinez are really helping us. Then we have Ross Buchman coming off the bench. We have to be careful we don’t focus too much on those two guys. When we move the ball and play good team basketball, that’s when we’re at our best.”
Semadeni started earlier in the season but has come off the bench in recent weeks. It’s given the Skyhawks a nice scoring boost off the bench along with Hernandez. Martinez has stepped into the lineup and provided quality defensive minutes, and the new look has FLC playing at a higher level.
“We start the games OK offensively with Willie Morse, Josh and Ras and Brandon,” Pietrack said. “So it’s nice to have extra guys off the bench that can score. (Semadeni) has taken that role, and Martinez is able to guard multiple positions, one through four. So that’s helping us a lot, and Semi is still playing starter minutes, just at different times.”
The Skyhawks found a flow last week, and they’ll look to keep it going at 7:30 p.m. Friday on Bob Hofman Court inside Whalen Gymnasium. Saturday, FLC will turn its attention to the last game of a four-game homestand against Chadron State at 7:30 p.m.
Regis head coach Brady Bergeson did not respond to a request for comment.
jlivingston@durangoherald.com
