SPEARFISH, S.D. – Black Hills State University men's basketball seniors Caelin Hearne and John Shanklin will leave their final collegiate game in A2 Arena with an 81-66 victory over New Mexico Highlands, having now won their final six games in the arena to end the regular season. After battling in a close game with the Cowboys midway through the first half, the Yellow Jackets took the lead for good midway through the opening half with a 16-7 run, and they eventually had to fend off a late NMHU rally with a 10-0 scoring run in the closing minutes of the contest to lead by as many as 17 in the match-up.
 
QUICK DETAILS
Score: Black Hills State 81, New Mexico Highlands 66
Team Records: Black Hills State 17-11 (13-7 RMAC), New Mexico Highlands 12-16 (5-15 RMAC)
Attendance: 1,361
 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• After a pair of empty possessions to start the game for both teams, it was John Shanklin who got the start on senior night to get things going for the Black Hills State offense as he scored the opening basket of the contest with a turnaround jumper in the paint after backing down his opponent 1:40 into the game. The basket sparked a 6-0 run to begin the game for BHSU as Joel Speckman found Jaeton Hackley cutting to the basket for a layup after grabbing his own offensive rebound with 16:39 to play in the first half.
• In response to the opening run, New Mexico Highlands answered with a 10-3 scoring run of their own, taking a 10-9 lead with 13:19 remaining in the half after KJ Lamonte hit a left-corner 3-pointer off a kick-out pass from Blessin Kimble.
• The back-and-forth battle remained close with no one leading by more than four points and the lead exchanging hands five times over the next 6:14 of game time, however, it was the first of back-to-back 3-pointers by Jack Haggett that gave the Yellow Jackets the lead for good (23-21) with 7:05 to play in the first half off an assist from Cam Lowe that capitalized on an offensive rebound from Tristan Hurdle. In addition to giving BHSU the advantage on the scoreboard, it also sparked a 16-7 run for the Green & Gold that saw a free throw line jumper from Lowe cap the run and give them their largest lead of the first half at eight points (36-28) with 1:36 left on the clock. A jumper from just inside the right-wing 3-point arc by Kenard Richardson the ensuing possession would make it a 36-30 contest entering the halftime break.
• New Mexico Highlands was able to trim the Black Hills State lead to just five points on two occasions with a free throw by Nathan Hasberry (40-35) and then a right-handed layup once again by Hasberry the ensuing possession to make it 42-37 with 16:08 remaining in the game. Five points would be the closest the Cowboys would get as the Yellow Jackets answered with five consecutive points with a fastbreak 3-pointer from BJ Woodruff in the right-corner off an assist from Hackley and a right-handed floater by Hackley to push the lead to double digits (47-37) just a minute later.
• A mini 6-2 run by NMHU briefly cut the lead back down to six points, however, a right-wing 3-pointer by Lowe off a handoff and screen by Haggett would spark a 13-3 response for BHSU with 13:10 remaining in the game. Capping the run was a mid-range jumper from the right side of the court by Woodruff to make it a 61-46 contest with 10:25 to play.
• New Mexico Highlands had just one final push, using a 16-8 run to claw back within single digits once again as a right-went 3-pointer from Kyrie Thomas cut the lead down to seven points (69-62) with just 3:37 left on the clock.
• Black Hills State would put a stop the Cowboys comeback hopes as Caelin Hearne made a running layup from the top of the key, sparking a 10-0 run for the Yellow Jackets to grab their largest lead of the game at 79-62 as Lowe cashed in on three free throws with 1:08 to play after being fouled on a shot from beyond the arc.
• NMHU scored four of the final six points in the final minute to bring the final score to 81-66 in favor of BHSU in the final game of the regular season.

BLACK HILLS STATE STATISTICAL LEADERS
Cam Lowe: 21 points, 4-of-8 3-pointers, 12 rebounds, 1 assist
BJ Woodruff: 13 points, 3-of-6 3-pointers, 9 rebounds, 2 assists
Jack Haggett: 12 points, 2-of-3 3-pointers, 4 rebounds, 1 assist
Jaeton Hackley: 11 points, 5-of-15 field goals 5 rebounds, 2 assists
 
UP NEXT
Black Hills State will await the announcement of their first round opponent of next week's RMAC Tournament as the league will announce the bracket later on this evening. Those games are set to be played Tuesday, March 4, with the higher seed hosting the match-up.
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