SPEARFISH, S.D. – The Black Hills State University men's basketball team (17-12, 14-8 RMAC) makes their fourth-straight appearance in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference (RMAC) semifinals and heads to Grand Junction, Colorado to battle the top-seeded Mavericks of Colorado Mesa University (26-3, 21-1 RMAC) Friday night, March 8, at 5:00 p.m. from Brownson Arena.
 
GAME INFORMATION
(4) Black Hills State (17-12, 14-8 RMAC) at (1) Colorado Mesa (26-3, 21-1 RMAC)
Date: Friday, March 8 // Time: 5:00 p.m.
Location: Grand Junction, Colo. (Brownson Arena)
Watch: rmacnetwork.com ($) // Listen: KDSJ Radio (103.5 FM & 980 AM)
 
JACKET FACTS

• BH has won four-straight games entering the Semifinals; including winning 10 of their last 13.
• The Yellow Jackets sit second in the RMAC in blocked shots (98).
• Matthew Ragsdale led the conference with his 22.6ppg mark, the only RMAC men's basketball player to average 20+ points per game (at the end of the regular season).
• He also leads the RMAC in made 3-pointers (87).
• John Shanklin enters the tournament sitting sixth in the RMAC in total blocks (31).

BHSU IN THE RMAC TOURNAMENT

• Black Hills State is 8-5 (.615) all-time in the RMAC Tournament.
• Under HC Ryan Thompson, BH is 8-4 in the tournament and have made two appearances in the championship game (winning it in 2022).

RMAC ALL-CONFERENCE ACCOALDES

• The BH guard duo of Matthew Ragsdale (First Team) and Caelin Hearne (Honorable Mention) earned postseason accolades from the RMAC.
• Ragsdale was the RMAC's scoring champion (22.6ppg) and also lead the league with 86 made 3-pointers.
• He sits top-10 in NCAA Division II in scoring, while also leading the team in free throw percentage (.849).
• He's the first-ever RMAC MBB player to notched 1,000 points at two different RMAC institutions.
• Hearne sat second on the team in scoring at 13.1 points per game.
• He averaged 20.0ppg in the month of February as the Yellow Jackets got hot.
• The Norman, Oklahoma native sat second on the team in steals (27) and blocks (17). 

RMAC QUARTERFINALS RECAP

• BHSU picked up their second win of the season over MSU Denver with a 75-72 win inside A2 Arena Tuesday night.
• Black Hills State shot 54.4% (31-for-57) from the floor to down the Roadrunners for the second time inside A2 Arena this season.
• John Shanklin records three of the team's five blocks in the Quarterfinals victory.
• BH's two leading scorers in Matthew Ragsdale and Caelin Hearne both drop 18 points on the night as the duo combines to shoot 50.0% (15-for-30) from the floor.
• Hoku Fisher also adds 14 points in the effort, shooting 6-for-7 from the floor to go along with a team-best four assists.
• Hearne and Fisher both bring down six rebounds to lead the team in the category.
• BHSU shot 11-for-15 (73.3%) from the free throw line on the night.
• The Jackets improve to 8-5 all-time in the RMAC tournament and 8-4 under head coach Ryan Thompson.
• MSU Denver continues to lead the all-time series, 16-10, but BH won two of the three meetings this season with both wins coming inside A2 Arena.

SERIES HISTORY – COLORADO MESA

• The Mavericks lead the all-time series, 12-9.
• CMU won the long regular season meeting in Grand Junction back on January 19 (80-57).
• BH is 3-6 all-time in Grand Junction.
• In the last 10 meetings, the two teams are knotted up at five wins apiece.

RMAC TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE
QUARTERFINALS – TUESDAY, MARCH 5
(8) Chadron State (74) @ (1) Colorado Mesa (84)
 
(5) MSU Denver (72) @ (4) Black Hills State (75)
 
(7) CSU Pueblo (96) @ (2) Fort Lewis (102)
 
(6) Regis (71) @ (3) Colorado Mines (90)
 
SEMIFINALS – FRIDAY, MARCH 8
(4) Black Hills State @ (1) Colorado Mesa
Grand Junction, Colo. | 5:00 PM
 
(3) Colorado Mines v. (2) Fort Lewis
Grand Junction, Colo. | 7:30 PM
 
CHAMPIONSHIP – SATURDAY, MARCH 9
Black Hills State/Colorado Mesa v. Colorado Mines/Fort Lewis
Grand Junction, Colo. | 6:00 p.m.
 
Up Next: The winner will advance to the RMAC Tournament Championship game on Saturday, March 9 on the campus of Colorado Mesa University. The winner will face the winner of (2) Fort Lewis and (3) Colorado Mines at 6:00 p.m.