SPEARFISH, S.D. – The No. 14 Black Hills State University men's basketball team won their second outright and third title overall of the RMAC era, battling back from a double-digit halftime deficit to defeat Colorado Mesa 74-65 in A2 Arena on Saturday afternoon. It was a tale of two halves for the Yellow Jackets as it was Jackson Seale who sparked the offense early in the game, scoring 11 of the team's first 18 points, and then in the second half it was Cam Lowe who made the big plays when it mattered most as he scored 19 of his 21 points in the final 20 minutes. BHSU shot just 9-of-32 (28.1%) from the field and 2-of-10 (20.0%) from 3-point range in the opening half and then found their shooting rhythm in the second half as they went 19-of-35 (54.3%) and 8-of-16 (50.0%) from beyond the arc in the final frame.
 
QUICK DETAILS
Score: No. 14 Black Hills State 74, Colorado Mesa 65
Team Records: No. 14 Black Hills State 24-4 (17-3 RMAC), Colorado Mesa 19-9 (15-5 RMAC)
Attendance: 2,274
 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• The first basket of the game came from a right-wing 3-pointer by Jackson Seale as Myles Johnson found him for the assist after collecting a steal on the opening possession of the game for Colorado Mesa. Seale would score the first seven points of the game for the Yellow Jackets, helping power the offense to a 9-4 lead as Johnson collected a pass mid-air for a layup off a Jaeton Hackley assist on the fast break to give BHSU their largest lead of the first half with 15:46 on the clock.
• As the teams continued to battle back-and-forth, it was the redshirt sophomore transfer in Seale that poured in 11 of the first 18 points for Black Hills State, giving the team an 18-17 advantage with 8:54 to play in the opening half as Hackley found him for a straightaway mid-range jumper for the sixth lead change.
• After Blake Volmer capped an 8-2 scoring run with a pull up jumper just off the left-block for a second chance bucket to make to make it 22-19 with 7:16 remaining in the first half, the Mavericks responded with 13 unanswered points and a 15-1 scoring run to close the half. Colorado Mesa held Black Hills State scoreless for 5:21 of game time during the scoring run, and without a made field goal the final 7:16 of the first half. Cohen Gonzales gave CMU a 34-23 advantage entering the break as he hit a mid-range jumper from the right-wing with 1:26 on the clock.
• The Yellow Jackets scored the first four points of the second half, beginning with a free throw by Jack Haggett just nine seconds out of the halftime break, and then Seale continued to lead the offense as he connected on the team's first made field goal in nearly eight minutes of game time as he sank a left-wing 3-pointer off a cross court pass and assist from Cam Lowe to cut the deficit to 34-27 with 19:18 remaining in the game.
• The Green & Gold held the Mavericks without a made field goal until the 15:44 mark of the second half as Wes Ball made a left-handed layup off an assist from Harvey White after he drove the ball back to the hoop following a long offensive rebound. That bucket, however, wouldn't slow down the momentum that was quickly building for the Yellow Jackets as BHSU went on a 21-6 scoring run to begin the second half. The scoring run was capped by Lowe's third triple of the first seven minutes of action as Seale found him on the right-wing on an inbounds pass to make it 44-40 with 13:16 remaining in the contest.
• The teams traded the lead four more times in the next three and a half minutes, then Lowe continued to take over the game in the second half as he recorded his fourth 3-pointer after the halftime break to give the Green & Gold the lead for good at 51-49 as Haggett tossed a no-look pass to the top of the key for the assist with 9:33 remaining. The 3-pointer was his fifth straight point and sparked a 19-2 scoring run for the Yellow Jackets as they extended the lead to a game-high 14 points at 65-51 as Lowe pushed the ball in transition after securing the rebound, and then Speckman got the ball right back to him on the left-wing for his fifth 3-pointer of the second half with 5:29 to play.
• Despite the raucous crowd and momentum swinging the way of Black Hills State, Colorado Mesa continued to fight and responded with an 8-0 scoring run of their own as Ball sank a pair of free throws with 2:48 remaining to make it a 65-59 game. The Yellow Jackets would not allow the Mavericks to get any closer than six points down the stretch as Tristan Hurdle ended the scoring run with his first bucket of the game, a right-wing 3-pointer off an assist from Lowe, and then the ensuing possession he broke the press and found a straight path to the basket for a right-handed layup to make it 70-61 with 55.2 seconds to play.
• Hackley and Haggett then combined to go 4-of-5 from the charity stripe in the final minute of play while White concluded the scoring in the match-up with a driving left-handed layup with 21.9 seconds remaining to bring the final score to 74-65.

BLACK HILLS STATE STATISTICAL LEADERS
Cam Lowe: 21 points, 7-of-15 field goals, 5-of-10 3-pointers, 2-of-2 free throws, 5 rebounds, 4 assists
Jackson Seale: 16 points, 7-of-11 field goals, 2-of-6 3-pointers, 4 rebounds, 1 assist
Jaeton Hackley: 9 points, 3-of-9 field goals, 1-of-3 3-pointers, 2-of-3 free throws, 10 rebounds, 6 assists
 
UP NEXT
With the win No. 14 Black Hills State secured the No. 1 seed in next week's RMAC Men's Basketball Tournament, clinching home court advantage throughout the tournament. The Yellow Jackets begin postseason action with a 7 p.m. tip-off against UCCS on Tuesday, March 3, in A2 Arena. The game will stream live on the RMAC Network and on KDSJ Radio.
  Read Full Article