DENVER, Colo. – A 10-game win streak overall and a 7-game regular season RMAC win streak dating back to last season, came to an end on Saturday afternoon as the No. 11 Black Hills State University men's basketball team fell on the road at MSU Denver by a score of 77-73. The Yellow Jackets, who were held to below 50.0 percent shooting for just the third time this season and the first time in RMAC play, took a four point lead into the halftime break but were unable to fend off the hot 3-point shooting of the Roadrunners in the second half. MSUD went 6-of-8 from beyond the arc in the second half, helping them go on a 26-6 scoring run to build a 13 point lead. The back-and-forth affair that saw 16 total lead change would not end without a fight by the Yellow Jackets, who went on a 16-2 scoring run of their own to take the lead with 3:27 remaining. The late scoring run for BHSU, however, would not be enough to fend off the upset hungry Roadrunners, who ended the game on a 9-3 run to earn the four point win.
QUICK DETAILS
Score: No. 11 Black Hills State 73, MSU Denver 77
Team Records: No. 11 Black Hills State 12-2 (5-1 RMAC), MSU Denver 5-9 (3-3 RMAC)
Attendance: 457
HOW IT HAPPENED
- The Roadrunners struck first in a back-and-forth opening half as Logan Threatt scoring on a driving floater from the right-wing just 47 seconds into the game, and then Cam Lowe answered on the opposite end of the court with a 2-handed dunk off a back cut and an assist from Tristan Hurdle to make it 2-2 with 18:57 on the clock.
- The teams traded baskets throughout the early stages of the first half, and neither grabbed a lead more than a single possession until Myles Johnson gave the Yellow Jackets a four point advantage (20-16) with a tip in and second chance basket with 9:47 remaining in the opening half. MSUD responded to BHSU jumping out to a four point lead by going on an 8-2 scoring run, forcing the eighth lead change of the game with a left-wing 3-pointer by Adam Hackett to make it a 24-22 game with 8:06 to play till the break.
- Six consecutive points by the Green & Gold swung the lead back to a first half high of four points for the Yellow Jackets as Jack Haggett scored back-to-back baskets in the paint off assists from Jaeton Hackley to make it a 28-24 game with 5:33 to play in the opening half.
- Rounding out a first half that featured a total of 13 lead changes, Black Hills State sank three 3-pointers in the final five minutes, including a right-wing triple from Hurdle for his 100th career basket from beyond the arc as a Yellow Jacket to give the Green & Gold the lead at 37-35 with 1:24 on the clock. Joel Speckman pushed the lead back to four points (39-35) at the half with a right-handed layup off a pass inside from Hackley with just 31 seconds to play.
- After ending the first half on an 8-2 scoring run, Black Hills State extended their run to 13-4 in the opening minute of the second half as Johnson took a defensive rebound coast to coast, finishing with a right-handed layup to make it a 44-37 game with 19:07 remaining.
- The Yellow Jackets largest lead of the game (7 points) was short lived as MSU Denver responded with three consecutive made 3-pointers as the 9-0 scoring run was aided by three Yellow Jacket turnovers. After grabbing the 46-44 lead by a left-wing 3-pointer by Threatt, the Roadrunners extended the scoring run to 26-6 over a nearly eight minute stretch, building a 13 point lead on a left-elbow jumper by Amare Bethel to make it 63-50 with 11:40 left on the clock.
- Jackson Seale ended the scoring run for MSUD and a nearly two and a half minute scoring drought for BHSU with a top of the key mid-range jumper with 10:54 left in the contest. The basket sparked life back into the Yellow Jacket offense as a few minutes later an old-fashioned 3-point play by Lowe cut the deficit back to single digits, making both the driving layup from the left-baseline and the free throw to make it 66-59 with 8:23 remaining in the game. The 3-point play by Lowe came in the midst of a 16-2 scoring run, that was capped once again by the redshirt sophomore as he knocked down his fourth 3-pointer of the game on a shot from the top of the key to give the Green & Gold the lead back at 70-68 with just 3:27 left on the clock.
- The Roadrunners, however, had one last run left as they closed the game on a 9-3 scoring run to secure the upset. With a shot from the left-wing, Hurdle sank his second 3-pointer of the game with 1:05 to play to even the game at 73 apiece. Threatt then scored the final four points of the game for MSUD as he made the go ahead turnaround jumper from the right-block with 36.3 seconds remaining and iced the game away with a pair of free throws with 13.1 seconds left.
BLACK HILLS STATE STATISTICAL LEADERS
Cam Lowe: 23 points, 8-of-12 field goals, 4-of-6 3-pointers, 3-of-3 free throws, 4 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 blocks
Myles Johnson: 10 points, 4-of-11 field goals, 2-of-2 free throws, 4 rebounds, 2 assists, 3 steals
Tristan Hurdle: 10 points, 4-of-8 field goals, 2-of-5 3-pointers, 2 assists, 1 steal
Jaeton Hackley: 9 points, 2-of-7 field goals, 2-of-5 3-pointers, 3-of-4 free throws, 2 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal
UP NEXT
No. 11 Black Hills State will return home to Spearfish next weekend, taking on New Mexico Highlands at 7 p.m. in A2 Arena on Thursday, January 15. Along with streaming live on the RMAC Network, all home games will also continue to air live on linear tv on KNBN-2 (Rapid City) and KSFL (Sioux Falls).
