LAKEWOOD, CO – It was a battle until the end. A battle the Cougars' intensity and execution led them to a win.

Colorado Christian was strong for 40 minutes as they grabbed an 89-77 win against Fort Lewis on Saturday evening.

HOW IT HAPPENED: An ebb-and-flow of momentum filled the first half as there were three ties and three lead changes. Colorado Christian had their best push just past the midway point of the half. With the score knotted at 26-26, the Cougars scored seven unanswered points to take a 33-26 edge with 5:44 remaining. However, the Skyhawks closed the half on a 12-6 scoring spurt as the team headed to the locker room with Colorado Christian in front 39-38.

Jeremiah Hanson and Stefan Hackethal were lethal in the second half. The duo combined for 31 of the Cougars 50 points in the last stanza. Even with their incredible efforts, the Cougars still found themselves in a tense contest.

During the second half it stayed mostly a one or two possession game until the final minutes. With scored 69-69 and 4:35 left in regulation, Colorado Christian scored 12 of the next 14 points to take control of the contest. There was no formula the Skyhawks could find to slow the Cougars offense or put points on the scoreboard.

Over the last four-plus minutes the Cougars went 5-for-7 from the field while making all six of their shots from the foul line to seal the victory.

QUOTABLE: "We played hard. If we can consistently play with that type of intensity we will be able to compete game-in and game-out," said head coach Jeff Hironaka. "Jeremiah towards the end of the game stepped up big. Overall this was a great effort and I am happy with didn't turn the ball over and shared the ball and had 19 assists."

COUGAR LEADERS: Hanson was a force with team highs in points (23) and rebounds (7). He made three shots from behind the arc and made all four of his foul shots. All but two of his points came in the second half.

Hackethal was solid as well as he scored 17 points in 32 minutes while Jeff Hornick notched a 16-point evening.Braxton Tucker went 5-for-8 from the floor in 22 minutes.

INSIDE THE BOXSCORE                                                                                                                       

- Hornick didn't miss any of his six shots in the first half (4-for-4 FG, 2-for-2 FT)
- The Cougars had a season high 19 assists with just nine turnovers
- Colorado Christian nailed 10 three-pointers on 20 attempts
- The Cougars made 13 of their 14 attempts from the charity stripe

UP NEXT: The Cougars hit the road for a four-game road swing beginning next Friday at Western. Tip-off is at 7:30 p.m.