Grizzlies seeking to defend home court against Mesa, Fort Lewis
by David Mejia
ALAMOSA, Colo. – The Adams State College men’s basketball team has developed a knack for making all its games exciting. This penchant has transitioned into heating up gymnasiums throughout the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference during what has been a very cold winter, which has made the entire season exciting for the teams and basketball fans.
This only means that the final two regular season games against Mesa State on Thursday and Fort Lewis on Saturday should be much of the same. The fact that these games have playoff positioning implications only serves to make them even more important and intense.
To be sure, the Mavericks and Skyhawks intend on spoiling the Grizzlies final home games of the season and enter the post-season with some momentum. However, Adams States team will have a say in that and certainly intend to defend their home hardwood in coach Larry Mortensen’s final home contests.
The Grizzlies’ game plan is relatively simple, which is to send Mesa and Fort Lewis home contemplating the playoffs. Adams State has been playing well as of late, but know that these final two regular season contests are basically well-disguised playoff games.
The team squandered a 13-point lead against rival Western State on Saturday in front of 1,948 rowdy fans at Plachy Hall – the largest crowd of the season. Nevertheless, a win against Mesa State and Fort Lewis would firmly implant the Grizzlies into the RMAC playoff chase.
The Mavericks always play the Grizzlies tough and this game will be no exception. Mesa, which enters the contest with a 11-4 RMAC mark and is 15-7 overall, is still smarting from a 79-75 overtime loss at home by Adams State on Feb. 3.
Adams State’s Roman Moniak (Sacramento, Calif.) leads the team in scoring average at 18.5 a game, while teammate Wes Jensen (Molalla, Ore.) is scoring at 12.7 a game. While Moniak and Jensen have been stalwarts offensively, the likes of shooting guard David Hull (Belen, N.M.) as well as point guards Larry Charles Jr. (Tucson, Ariz.) and Marcus Mortensen (Cortez, Colo.).
Hull has been a deep scoring threat for the Grizzlies, while Charles Jr. and Marcus Mortensen have improved their scoring during the second half of the season.
The Grizzlies have previously defeated three of their next four opponents – the exception being Fort Lewis. Adams State has shown the ability to build sizeable early leads and needs to maintain them to finish the weekend – and the season – with wins to propel them into the postseason.
Game time is set for 8 p.m. on both Thursday and Saturday. The games can be heard on KSPK-FM, 103.5 in Alamosa or via the internet at www.kspk.com.
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