Jan. 25, 2008

Box Score

DENVER, COLO. - Metro State led UC-Colorado Springs by as many as 21 points, then held off a furious second half rally by the Mountain Lions and posted a 71-58 victory in a Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference men's basketball game, Friday evening at the Auraria Events Center.

Metro State is now 30-0 all-time vs. UC-Colorado Springs, including 15-0 in Denver. The Mountain Lions have lost six straight and nine of their past 10 games overall.

Metro State led by 21 points, 45-24, with 15:52 to play but UC-Colorado Springs whittled the lead down to eight, 58-50, with just over six minutes to go. The Mountain Lions had a shot to get it to five but a Nic Fuller trey went in and out. After the Roadrunners responded with four straight points to boost the lead back to 12, 62-50, UCCS again fought back and cut it to only six points, 63-57, with 1:35 remaining. Metro State then went 6-for-8 from the charity stripe the rest of the way to stave off the comeback.

Four players scored in double figures for Metro State, led by Jesse Wagstaff's 19 points and nine rebounds, while Daniel Bass posted his second career double-double with 14 points and a career-high 14 rebounds. He also had four assists, another career high. Kyle Perkins posted 15 points and four rebounds, while Abram Ziemer added 14 points for the Mountain Lions.

Metro State never trailed in the contest and held a 47-23 rebounding advantage, with 22 second-chance points. UCCS forced 17 Metro State turnovers but scored only seven points off those miscues.

The Roadrunners led just 13-10 with 10:46 to play in the first half but went on a 27-9 run over the remainder of the period to take a 40-19 halftime lead. UCCS shot only 29 percent from the floor in the half, including 1-for-7 from three-point land. Metro State held a 25-9 rebounding advantage and had a 15-0 edge in second-half points. Lawrence Billings had 10 of his 12 points in the opening stanza for Metro State.

With the win, Metro State improves to 12-9 overall, 5-5 in the RMAC, while UC-Colorado Springs falls to 6-12 overall, 2-8 in the RMAC. The Roadrunners host Regis, Saturday evening at 7 p.m.