The Division I men’s basketball tournament is underway but the Division II men’s basketball tournament has been going on for weeks. All Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference teams have been eliminated, so it’s a good time to look at where the Fort Lewis College men’s basketball team finished in key team stats in the conference.
These statistics are from RMAC teams’ entire season.
Points scored:
The Skyhawks finished third out of 15 schools in the RMAC with 79.1 points per game. Adams State led the league with 89 PPG and Colorado School of Mines was second with 81.4 PPG.
FLC struggled to score early in the season and failed to score 80 points in its first six games. The Skyhawks were still adjusting to first-year FLC head coach Jordan Mast’s offensive system. The team hadn’t played together before with no returning players from the previous season.
As the season went along, the Skyhawks really found a groove offensively. The Skyhawks scored 80+ points 14 times, including 100+ twice.
FLC’s defense turned into offense throughout the season but the Skyhawks found better shots and had better ball movement as the season progressed. Younger guards like freshman AJ Riggs and redshirt freshman Stewart Erhart found their footing on the offensive end and really stepped up.
Who will and won’t be on next season’s roster is still a mystery with the transfer portal. Regardless, Mast set the foundation for future offensive success this season.
Points allowed:
FLC finished ninth in the RMAC in points allowed with 73.7 PPG. South Dakota Mines led the conference with 67.6 PPG allowed and Adams State was last with 89.8 PPG allowed.
The Skyhawks had a strong defense with their full-court press and ability to force turnovers.
Ninth in the RMAC in points allowed isn’t 100% indicative of FLC’s defensive success because it doesn’t measure the pace teams played at. More pace equals more possessions and likely more points allowed.
FLC liked to play at a good pace. However, there were some games where if the Skyhawks weren’t forcing turnovers, they were giving up open looks. That was true when FLC lost to CSU Pueblo 102-98 on Feb. 20 and only forced 10 turnovers.
Another problem for the Skyhawks was their size; FLC was one of the smaller teams at the forward position. Teams like Colorado Mesa took advantage with offensive rebounds and multiple possessions.
Field goal percentage:
The Skyhawks finished 14th in the conference with a 42.7% field goal percentage. Colorado School of Mines was first at 49.9% and South Dakota Mines was last at 39.9%.
It might be surprising for some to see FLC that far down in the conference rankings in field goal percentage with a 19-12 record.
But anyone who saw the Skyhawks play knew they were a scrappy bunch that excelled with their turnovers. FLC didn’t shoot the ball well but created enough possessions with their steals that they did enough to win most nights. The Skyhawks also got to the free-throw line a ton, led by senior guard Biko Johnson.
The Skyhawks only shot above 50% four times in the season. FLC’s second-worst shooting game was its season-ending loss to Regis in the RMAC tournament at 33%.
Mast and Skyhawks fans will hope enough players stick around to continue to build camaraderie on offense to increase offensive efficiency.
Three-point percentage:
FLC finished ninth in the RMAC in 3-point percentage at 33.2%. Black Hills State finished first in the conference at 38.5% while UCCS was last at 29.2%.
The Skyhawks struggled to shoot early on in the season as the team gelled and learned Mast’s offense. FLC only shot over 35% from downtown once in their first 10 games.
But FLC picked up its outside shooting as the season progressed. The offense got crisper and players found their teammates for open looks. FLC’s four best 3-point shooting games were in 2025.
Riggs’ emergence certainly helped. Out of the rotation early in the year, Riggs found his spot with his stroke and shot a team-best 45% from downtown.
Free throw percentage:
The Skyhawks finished 14th in the conference in free-throw shooting at 69.3%. Adams State led the conference at 78.1% and Western Colorado was last at 65.5%.
FLC left a lot of points at the free-throw line this season and it wasn’t just the big men. Fifth-year guard Tru Allen really struggled at the line and had the second-most attempts. He finished the season 58% from the charity stripe.
The main problem for FLC was its best foul shooters didn’t get to the line enough. Riggs led the team at 91% but only took 22 the entire year. Erhart was second at 88% but only took 50. It also doesn’t help the team percentage when freshman forward Jude Brideba shoots 35%, even in limited attempts.
Rebounding margin:
The Skyhawks finished 12th in the conference in rebounding margin at -2.4 rebounds per game. Colorado Mesa led the conference at +6.1 RPG and South Dakota Mines was last at -5.7 RPG.
Rebounding was a potential problem in the preseason by looking at the roster and it played out that way. Freshman forward Jude Brideba is 6-foot-10-inches and was the tallest guy on the team but didn’t play much. Deng and junior forward Keither Florence were the tallest regular rotation guys at 6-foot-7-inches. Florence is 208 pounds and Deng is 205 pounds.
The Skyhawks’ guards did their best to crash the boards, but there were still some games where FLC’s lack of size really hurt them. The main example of this was on Feb. 13 at home against Colorado Mesa. FLC lost 93-83 and was outrebounded 59-23.
It wouldn’t be the worst idea for Mast to get some more size for next year’s squad to be better prepared to play against the conference’s bigger teams.
Turnover margin:
FLC excelled in creating turnovers and took care of the ball well so it’s no surprise that the Skyhawks dominated this category. FLC finished first in the conference at +6.94 and second was New Mexico Highlands at +2.43. Colorado Christian finished last and -2.29.
The majority of the turnover margin for FLC was because it forced a conference-best 19.4 turnovers per game. FLC had four of the top five steals leaders in the conference with its high-intensity defense and full-court press.
It’ll be fascinating to see if Mast sticks with the full-court press next year or changes up the defense depending on personnel.
bkelly@durangoherald.com
