SPEARFISH, S.D. – After seeing their own 3-game win streak snap at the hands of No. 8/10 Colorado School of Mines on Thursday night, the Black Hills State University men's basketball team looks to bounce back and put an end to the RMAC's longest active win streak of ten for Regis. The Rangers enter the contest having not lost since they fell by 17 to the Yellow Jackets in early January as BHSU looks to complete their second conference sweep of 2024-25 on Saturday, February 15, as the team's tip-off at 3 p.m. in Regis Field House in Denver.
 
GAME DETAILS
Date & Time: Friday, February 15 at 3 p.m.
Location: Denver, Colo. – Regis Field House
 
BLACK HILLS STATE STORYLINES

• Black Hills State enters the final game of this weekend's road trip to the Denver metro area with a record of 13-10 (9-6 RMAC) following an 87-77 loss at No. 8/10 Colorado School of Mines. The Yellow Jackets held a lead of as many as seven points late in the first half, however, a 10-2 scoring run to end the half carried over into the second half for the Orediggers as they created just enough separation to keep the Yellow Jackets at bay while shooting 55.4 percent from the field in the contest.
• During the current 4-game home winning streak, the Yellow Jackets have taken over in the second half with their defense, outscoring Western Colorado, South Dakota Mines, CSU Pueblo, and UCCS by a combined 149-101 in the final 20 minutes of the contests. The stifling defense held those opponents to just 29-of-108 (26.9%) from the field and 2-of-29 (0.1%) from 3-point range. The 44 points by Hardrockers were a season-low for the Green & Gold last Saturday.
• After a pair of tough non-conference losses in the final seconds early in the season, the Yellow Jackets are now 6-2 in A2 Arena in RMAC action. Additionally, BHSU is 73-18 (80.2%) against RMAC opponents at home since 2017-18.
• Black Hills State was picked to finish fourth in the RMAC Preseason Coaches' Poll, receiving 157 points in the vote by the head coaches. They are currently tied with UCCS and Fort Lewis for fourth place in the conference standings with a 9-6 record. The Yellow Jackets are searching for their eighth consecutive 10-win season in conference play, dating back to the 2017-18 season.
• The Yellow Jackets are receiving votes in this week's South Central Regional D2CSC Media Poll, the first time they are receiving votes or ranked since they were tied for No. 10 on November 18, 2024.
• Through 23 games in the 2024-25 season BHSU is averaging 76.9 points, 35.7 rebounds, 13.1 assists, 5.3 steals, and 3.9 blocks per game, while shooting the ball 48.6 percent from the field, 37.6 percent from 3-point range, and 72.4 percent from the free throw line. Their opponents have averaged 70.0 points, 33.1 rebounds, 9.3 assists, 7.2 steals, and 1.7 blocks per game, while shooting the ball 41.3 percent from the field, 34.1 percent from 3-point range, and 76.7 percent from the free throw line.
• BHSU has knocked down at least six or more 3-pointers in each RMAC contest this season and on nine occasions, including Thursday's match-up at No. 8/10 Colorado School of Mines, have connected on ten or more made shots from beyond the arc in a league game this year. As a team the Yellow Jackets are 140-of-365 (38.4%) and are averaging 9.3 made 3-pointers in the 15 league match-ups. Prior to the winter break BHSU hit a season-high of 16 3-pointers in a victory at Colorado Christian, going 16-of-34 for a 47.1 percent clip.
• The Yellow Jackets currently rank 24^th in NCAA Division II in field goal percentage defense, 28^th in effective field goal percentage (55.9%), 30^th in field goal percentage, 35^th in defensive rebounds per game (27.65), and 40^th in 3-point percentage. They lead the RMAC in field goal percentage defense and are second in both blocks per game and defensive rebounds per game.
• Cam Lowe is now the Yellow Jackets leading scorer (14.7) and is the top rebounder (7.7) while he adds 1.9 assists, 0.8 steals, and 0.5 blocks per game while shooting the ball 50.2 percent from the field, 35.7 percent from 3-point range, and 78.3 percent from the free throw line. Among RMAC leaders he currently ranks second in the conference in defensive rebounds per game (6.70), is third in total rebounds (176) and rebounds per game, fourth in field goal percentage, seventh in field goals made (122), and ninth in both points (339) and points per game. He's scored in double figures 17 times on the year, including in 12 of the last 14 outings. He poured in a career-high of 28 points in a thrilling overtime win at UCCS, shooting 7-of-9 from the field, 6-of-7 from 3-point range, and 8-of-8 from the charity stripe, one of six 20-point performances this year. Additionally, as one of the conference's most active rebounders, he's secured eight or more rebounds in 14 contests this season, including ten or more in seven games which includes a career-high of 14 against Augustana. He's posted a team-high six double-doubles this season, most recently posting five within the last nine games.
• As the regular season begins to wind down, Caelin Hearne officially enters milestone watch status as he closes in on becoming the next 1,000 point scorer in Black Hills State history with 931 points and counting. Among the top scoring threats for the Green & Gold all season long he currently averages 14.6 points while adding 2.9 rebounds, 1.9 assists per game, 0.7 steals, and 0.5 blocks per game. He has scored in double figures in 18 of the 22 games he's played in this year for the Yellow Jackets, including three times in which he scored 20 or more points and a career-best 30 points in a win over Sioux Falls. While having made 120-of-262 field goal attempts this season, he is shooting 45.8 percent from the field which is tenth-best in the conference. Additionally, with 41 made 3-pointers, he is one of three BHSU sharpshooters to have made 40 or more shots from distance this season while shooting 35.0 percent or better as he is knocking down shots from beyond the arc at a 37.3 percent clip. On eight occasions he has knocked down three or more shots from distance, including a season-best performance of 5-of-6 shooting from deep against USF. He has also secured four or more rebounds eight times and dished out three or more assists six times.
• The facilitator and defensive leader for the Green & Gold is Jaeton Hackley, who leads the team in assists (3.5) and steals (1.4) while adding 12.0 points and 2.9 rebounds per game. The redshirt sophomore has scored in double figures in five of the last six games and 15 times this season, which includes a pair of 20-point outings in his last three games. He scored a career-high of 24 points on 7-of-13 shooting from the field, 3-of-3 from 3-point range, and 7-of-7 from the free throw line against No. 8/10 Colorado School of Mines on Thursday night. Among his six games this season with four or more rebounds, he secured a career-high of seven boards in the first match-up against South Dakota Mines. His active defense has resulted in ten multi-steal games, including a career-high of four steals in the victory over Chadron State in December, while he also shattered a career-high with ten assists in the same contest. His first career double-double with 13 points and ten assists against CSC marked the first time since February 10, 2023, that a Yellow Jacket tallied double digit assists when Adam Moussa notched a triple-double against UCCS. He is now up to 11 games of four or more assists this season after doing so in now six consecutive games as he averages 5.8 in the last six games. He currently ranks fifth in the RMAC in assist/turnover ratio (1.63), total assists (80), and assists per game.
• Tristan Hurdle has emerged as one of the top sharpshooters in the nation as he leads both the RMAC and NCAA Division II with a 3-point percentage of 48.6 on 54-of-111 shooting from beyond the arc on the year. Additionally, in the 14 league games alone he is shooting the ball at a 54.7 percent clip from deep as he has connected on 47-of-86 shot attempts. He also ranks second in the league in 3-pointers per game (2.84) and is third in total 3-pointers (54). He's connected on multiple 3-pointers in 14 games this year, including 12 of the last 14 games. Last week he hit five shots from beyond the arc in back-to-back wins over CSU Pueblo and UCCS as he reached five or more 3-pointers for the fifth time this year. On the season he is averaging 10.6 points and 2.3 rebounds. Hurdle has scored in double figures nine times and has twice reached the 20-point mark. His 27-point performance against Regis set a new career-high in points and made 3-pointers with 8-of-12 shooting from deep. On the glass he has secured a season-high of seven boards against the ThunderWolves last week.
• John Shanklin has been a defensive threat for opponents this season, ranking fourth in the RMAC in both total blocked shots (30) and blocked shots per game (1.30), while he also adds 5.7 points and 3.5 rebounds per game. He has posted a blocked shot in 11 of the last 12 games and in 19 games overall this year. On 11 occasions he has tallied multiple blocks, and he matched a season-high of three against No. 8/10 Colorado School of Mines on Thursday after previously reaching the mark against No. 4/3 MSU Moorhead. While he has scored in double figures three times this year, he is shooting the ball an efficient 58-of-81 from the field for a 71.6 percent clip which includes 38-of-51 (74.5%) shooting in conference play. Additionally, he has secured five or more rebounds on nine occasions.
• Ryan Thompson is in his seventh season as the head coach at Black Hills State, guiding the Yellow Jackets to a record of 134-64 during his career.

REGIS STORYLINES

• Regis currently holds a record of 15-8 (13-2 RMAC) following a 70-57 win over South Dakota Mines on Thursday. They currently own the longest active win streak in the RMAC at ten games, having not lost since their 90-73 defeat to Black Hills State in Spearfish on January 9.
• RU was picked third in the RMAC Preseason Men's Basketball Coaches' Poll, receiving 160 points and one first place votes. They are currently looking to keep pace with No. 8/10 Colorado School of Mines for a share of the regular season title, sitting just one game out of first in second place in the conference standings.
• The Rangers have found their way into the D2CSC South Central Region media poll the last three weeks, appearing at No. 6 in Monday's rankings release.
• Through 23 games this season RU is averaging 76.4 points, 31.1 rebounds, 14.4 assists, 6.0 steals, and 3.0 blocks per game while shooting the ball 48.3 percent from the field, 38.6 percent from 3-point range, and 75.5 percent from the free throw line. Their opponents are averaging 76.0 points, 32.0 rebounds, 12.7 assists, 6.9 steals, and 3.3 blocks per game while shooting the ball 46.7 percent from the field, 35.6 percent from 3-point range, and 73.8 percent from the free throw line.
• Regis currently ranks 16^th in NCAA Division II in 3-point percentage, 17^th in effective field goal percentage (56.6%), and 38^th in field goal percentage.
• Chase Mayo Harmon leads the Rangers and ranks second in the RMAC with 16.3 points per game while adding averages of 3.0 rebounds and 2.3 assists per game. He's scored in double figures in 13 consecutive games and 20 of the 22 games he's played in this season. He reached the 20-point mark six times this year, including a season-high of 27 against MSU Denver as he shot the ball 6-of-11 from the field, 4-of-7 from 3-point range, and 11-of-13 from the free throw line. He ranks fifth in the RMAC in free throw percentage and 13^th in field goal percentage. Additionally, he ranks fifth in the league in 3-pointers per game (2.27) and sixth in total 3-pointers (50), having connected on multiple 3-pointers in 14 games, as well as having connected on a season-high of six against UCCS. Mayo Harmon has grabbed four or more rebounds in ten games and has dished out two or more assists in 11 games.
• Jalen Brown adds 12.7 points, 3.8 rebounds, and 1.6 assists per game while shooting the ball 48.2 percent from the field. He is coming off a 25-point outing against South Dakota Mines where he shot the ball 8-of-13 from the field, 3-of-4 from 3-point range, and 6-of-7 from the charity stripe while matching his season-high as he reached double digits for the 14^th time this year. His three made shots from beyond the arc was the sixth time he had made multiple 3-pointers in a contest this season and was just one shy of his season-high of four against Nebraska-Kearney. Also, in Thursday's match-up with the Hardrockers he added 12 rebounds for his first double-double of the year as he has grabbed four or more boards in ten contests. Brown has dished out multiple assists in ten games this year.
• Eddy Egun averages 12.6 points, 3.5 rebounds, 2.0 assists, and 1.3 steals per game while shooting the ball 57.4 percent from the field, 48.5 percent from 3-point range, and 79.8 percent from the free throw line. The graduate student has scored in double figures in four consecutive games and 16 total times this year. He has reached the 20-point mark three times this season, including a 20 point game against BHSU and earlier in the year posted a season-high of 25 against Texas-Dallas as he shot the ball 9-of-16 from the field, 2-of-6 from 3-point range, and 5-of-6 from the charity stripe. One of the more consistent shooters from beyond the arc for the Rangers, he has connected on multiple 3-pointers in ten games, which included a season-best 4-of-4 performance from deep against Westminster. He's reached double digit rebounds once in 2024-25, a ten rebound game against Adams State, which was one of ten games he secured four or more boards. He's dished out multiple assists in 14 games and collected multiple steals in nine games.
• Rounding out the double digit scorers for Regis is Kobe Sanders who averages 12.4 points, 1.8 rebounds, and a team-high 4.4 assists per game while he shoots the ball 45.8 percent from the field, 45.2 percent from 3-point range, and 72.2 percent from the charity stripe. He's scored in double figures in 13 games and posted 28 or more points four times, including a season-high of 36 points against Adams State as he shot the ball 12-of-20 from the field, 6-of-11 from 3-point range, and 6-of-6 from the free throw line. He gives the Rangers one of the top scoring threats from beyond the arc in the RMAC, ranking second in the RMAC in both 3-point percentage and total 3-pointers made (61), as well as third in 3-pointers per game (2.65). He ranks tenth nationally in 3-point percentage, having knocked down 61-of-135 from deep as he hit multiple 3-pointers in 16 games and has connected on six or more in four games. The RMAC leader in total assists (101) and assists per game, has dished out four or more assists in 16 games and posted a season-high of nine twice against CSU Pueblo and New Mexico Highlands. Additionally, he is second in the conference with a 2.15 assist/turnover ratio.
• Brady Bergeson is in his tenth season as the head coach at Regis, guiding the Rangers to a record of 161-115 during his time in Denver. Overall, this is his 14^th season as a collegiate head coach, boasting a career record of 230-160 with four prior seasons at Western Oregon.

SERIES HISTORY

• Since the 2012-13 season, Black Hills State holds a 15-8 advantage in the series and have won eight of the last nine meetings dating back to 2019-20.
• Led by a career-high 27 points and eight made 3-pointers by Tristan Hurdle, the Yellow Jackets took care of business in the most recent meeting with the Rangers in A2 Arena on January 9, 2025.