Fort Lewis too much for balanced Grizzlies
ALAMOSA, Colo.— The inside-outside combination of Kirk Archiebeque and Ryan Jameson combined for 47 points as the Fort Lewis College Skyhawks held off a balanced attack of four Adams State College players in double-figures en-route to a 97-82 Skyhawk victory in Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference action, Tuesday night in the Grizzlies’ Plachy Hall.
Archibeque, a 6-foot-9 center who transferred from Division I Northern Colorado, was 9-for-11 from the field and 7-for-11 from the line while scoring a game-high 25 points for the Skyhawks, who improved to a RMAC-best 15-4 overall and to 6-2 in conference play, just a half-game behind RMAC West Division leading Western State.
Jameson, a 6-foot senior guard, nailed six 3-pointers and scored 22 points as he and Jordan Brooks finished with eight assists each. Brooks also had a game-high 11 rebounds and nine points while Archibeque chipped in eight rebounds.
The Grizzlies, who slipped to 4-12 overall and to 1-7 in RMAC action, were led by 18 Vitor de Zoppa (Sorocaba, Sao Paulo, Brazil) points. Nate Ingbretson (Castle Rock, Colo.) also chipped in 17 while junior Eric Miller (Aurora, Colo.) and senior Sean Amos (Philadelphia, Pa.) tallied 14 and 12, respectively.
Amos also had a team-high five assists while Seth Heinbaugh (Prescott, Ariz.) led the Grizzlies with six rebounds.
The Skyhawks shot an impressive 59.0 percent (36-61) from the field and a deadly 47.6 percent (10-21) from 3-point land and jumped out to a 52-37 halftime lead minutes before a valiant Grizzly squad used a 15-4 run to diminish a 19-point disadvantage to as little as eight with 14:18 left.
Trailing by that same margin after two de Zoppa free throws at the 11:58 mark and by just 10 after an Amos bucket with 10:06 left, the Grizzlies then surrendered 3-pointers to Jameson and Trent Bowman and another Bowman jumper as the Skyhawks went back up by 16 before coasting to the win.
The first half also had its flurries as the Grizzlies jumped out to a 15-10 lead with an 8-0 run triggered by four Ingbretson free throws following technical fouls on Brooks for hanging on the rim and FLC coach Bob Hofman for arguing the call.
However, the Skyhawks quickly answered with a 20-4 of their own, started by five straight Archibeque points, to take a 30-19 lead at the 11:18 mark of the period.
The Grizzlies were able to get back to within five (35-30) on a Heinbaugh trey and Adrian Davis (Lubbock, Texas) layup but again gave up a big run, this one a 12-0 spurt, that put the Skyhawks up by 17 at the time and 15 at the half.
The run-and-gun Skyhawks finished the night with a 37-21 rebounding advantage and also recorded 28 total assists as they shot 65.4 percent (17-26) from the field in the second half.
The Grizzlies also ran an effective offense that shot 60.0 percent (18-30) in the second half and 55.9 percent (33-59) overall. The Grizzlies also had 22 assists as a team while committing just nine turnovers, a season-low.
The Grizzlies also came up with 10 steals, four of which were registered by Miller, while forcing 14 Skyhawk turnovers.
The Grizzlies now remain at home for a Thursday night tilt with Western New Mexico (7-8, 3-4 RMAC). Tip-off is at 8 p.m. and can be heard live on KSPK-FM (104.1 in Alamosa) and via the internet at www.kspk.com.
Championship Night festivities, that will honor all of ASC’s Championship teams during the 2008 calendar year, will also take place during halftime of the contest.
Related Item: Online Photo Store Gallery
 |  |
 |
