RMAC Men's Basketball Week 9 Release

Grizzlies hosting 12th-ranked Orediggers Friday night

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – Click here to view the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference’s (RMAC) ninth men’s basketball release of the 2011-12 season. Monday’s release includes league standings, RMAC/Baden Players of the Week, recent results, upcoming match-ups, news & notes from around the league and a look at the polls.

Following a pair of weekend losses on a road trip to the Land of Enchantment, the Grizzlies now stand at 9-3 overall and 6-3 in league play. However, the Grizzlies remain at third in the RMAC standings, behind only Division II’s top-ranked Metro State and 12th-ranked Colorado Mines.

Turnovers doomed the Grizzlies Friday against Western New Mexico, coughing the ball up 31 times. The Mustangs tallied 27 points off of ASC turnovers, and would claim an 84-61 victory.

On Saturday, a big second half just wasn’t enough as the top two offenses in the RMAC collided in Las Vegas, N.M. Grizzly senior Marqus Richards (Los Angeles, Calif.) led the attack with a season-high 26 points, but Adams State fell, 84-90.

Junior Jack Osborn (Hobart, Tasmania, Australia) continued to impress in the post, scoring 19 points each night, while also grabbing 11 rebounds on Friday to tally his second double-double of the season. Osborn has now reached double figures scoring in 11 of the Grizzlies’ 12 games this season.

This weekend, the Grizzlies will play host to the No. 12 Orediggers on Friday, and then Colorado Christian Saturday.

The Orediggers are 12-1 overall and 8-1 in league play, having suffered their lone loss of the season against Nebraska-Kearney on Dec. 17. CSM has won its last five, and is second in the league standings behind the undefeated Roadrunners. While averaging 77.5 points per game – ranked third in the RMAC- the Orediggers are also outscoring opponents by a league best 15.3 points this season.

Colorado Mines is also atop the league in out-rebounding their foes by 7.7 boards per game, and shoot an RMAC best 49.5 percent from the field and 41.5 percent from 3-point range. The Oredigger offense is led by the league’s second ranked scorer in Brett Green, who averaged 17.0 points on 2.2 3-pointers per night. He also leads the league in free throw percentage (.879) and minutes played (33.9).

ASC’s Saturday night opponent, Colorado Christian, enters the weekend at the bottom of the RMAC standings with records of 2-11 overall and 1-8 in league play. The Cougars rank last in the league in scoring (61.5) and scoring margin (-19.3), but shoot well from beyond the arc, averaging 6.7 3-point field goals per game. CCU scored its first league win of the season on Friday night, topping Regis 69-64.

Luke Gilliam paces the CCU attack, averaging 2.0 triples per game while shooting 45.3 percent from downtown. The Cougars’ Kyle Weaver ranks fifth in the RMAC in free throw percentage, connecting on 85.7 percent of his attempts from the charity stripe.

Men’s action on Friday and Saturday will tip-off at 8 p.m. in Plachy Hall following 6 p.m. women’s match-ups.

Fans unable to attend the weekend contests can follow Friday night’s game live by tuning in to live stats, listening in at www.kspk.com (104.1 FM in Alamosa), or by watching through subscription-based America One.

Due to Denver Broncos playoff football on Saturday evening, the Grizzlies’ games versus Colorado Christian will not be broadcast live on KSPK-FM, but will be aired on a tape-delayed basis on Sunday afternoon beginning at 1 p.m. with the ASC pre-game show and Grizzly Connect. Live stats and video, courtesy of subscription-based America One, will be available on Saturday night.