South Dakota School of Mines used a second half scoring barrage to defeat CCU by a final score of 85-72. The Cougars took a three point lead 42-39 into the halftime break, but were unable to hold onto the lead as the loss marks the first one in conference play this year for Colorado Christian.
 
The Cougars played a strong first half for the Cougars offensively especially from beyond the arc as they hit 9-14 (64%) from three in the half, and hit all seven of their attempts from the charity stripe. With a little over 11 minutes left in the first half, a three pointer from Andre Lane gave Christian a nine point lead 21-12. The Hardrockers fought their way back into the game during the remainder of the first half, but the Cougs never relinquished their lead as they were able to maintain a slim three point advantage heading into halftime 42-39.
 
Ty McGee and Brett Brady led the Cougars in scoring at the break as they each scored 11 points in the first half. Both McGee (3-4) and Brady (3-5) did their damage from beyond the arc as they combined to hit 6-9 from downtown. Dimitri Saliba also finished the half in double figures as he had 10 points.
 
In the second half, the Cougars cooled off on the offensive end, while SDSMT amped things up. The first six minutes of the second half was a battle between the two teams, as they each fought hard to gain the momentum. The lead went back and forth between the two sides, but neither team could pull away. With just under 14 minutes left in the second half, Dimitri Saliba made a layup which gave the Cougars a one point lead 58-57. From that point on, South Dakota School of Mines took the game over as they managed to outscore CCU 28-14 in the rest of the second half which gave them the 85-72 victory over the Cougs.
 
Head coach Kevin Lubbers remarked, "They executed better and competed harder than we did, which earned them the win. Not much more to it than that. We take on Black Hills tomorrow, and need to focus one game at a time."
 
As a team, Christian shot 38% (12-31) in the second half, and 43% (28-58) in the game. Ty McGee led the Cougars in scoring on the night with 22 points on 8-13 shooting, and 4-7 from three. McGee also led the team in rebounds with six. Brett Brady finished with 16 points on 5-10 shooting. Dimitri Saliba added 15 points, and Stefan Hackethal rounds out the Cougars in double figures as he finished with 10 points.
 
With the loss, the Cougars record now sits at 5-4 overall, and 2-1 in conference play. They will be back in action tomorrow night as they travel to Spearfish, SD to take on Black Hills State University in another conference matchup. Tip is scheduled for 6PM MST.