ALAMOSA, Colo.—After a two-week break, the Adams State University men's basketball team will be back on the court for three games in four days as they are set to host MSU Denver on Friday (Dec. 31), Colorado Christian on Saturday (Jan. 1) and CSU Pueblo on Tuesday (Jan. 4).
On Friday, Dec. 17, Adams State last played when they fell to Colorado Mesa 90-45. Adams State shot 35.6 percent (16-of-45) from the field in the game.
Kaelin Crane led the way for the Grizzlies as he played 27 minutes and had 12 points. However, the Grizzlies suffered the turnover bug as they surrendered the ball 25 times.
The Grizzlies, who sit in a three-way tie for eighth place in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference (RMAC) standings, hold a 6-5 overall record and a 2-3 conference mark. The Grizzlies, who average 78.6 points per game, are led by
Rylan O'Brien. O'Brien, who averages 14.5 points per game, leads the team from beyond the arch with a 41.7 percent shooting mark from deep.
MSU Denver enters the weekend with a three-way tie for fifth place in the conference with a 9-2 overall record and a 3-2 conference record. The Roadrunners' two losses came at the hands of Westminster (66-81) and Western Colorado (64-78).
Laolu Oke was named the RMAC Defensive Player of the Week before Christmas for the fifth time in six weeks this season. He has won eight of the last nine weekly league honors dating to last season and has won the award 11 times since the start of last season – including ten times in the 2021 calendar year. Oke averaged 15.0 points, 9.5 rebounds, 3.0 assists, 1.0 blocked shots, and 2.0 steals per game in the Roadrunners' 66-59 win over Colorado Christian and 57-52 win over South Dakota Mines. He also shot 77.8 percent from the field (14 of 18). He leads the Roadrunners in points per game (15.5), rebounds per game (13.9), and field goal percentage (64.5 percent).
The last time these two teams met, an 11-of-17 shooting performance from
Destan Williams, that also included 10-of-11 from the free-throw line saw the No. 5 seeded Grizzlies defeat the No. 4 seeded MSU Denver Roadrunners, 78-66 inside the Auraria Events Center in the quarterfinals of the 2021 RMAC Men's Basketball Tournament. Adams State had won seven straight over the Roadrunners, with the last loss coming on Jan. 1, 2016, inside Plachy Hall when the Roadrunners won 74-71.
Colorado Christian enters the weekend with a 4-7 overall record and a 1-4 conference mark, tied for 13th in the conference. The Cougars' lone RMAC win came on Dec. 16 when they defeated South Dakota Mines 73-66.
Adams State has won six of the last seven matchups with the Cougars, with a single loss back on Feb. 8, 2020, in Lakewood. Adams State won last season's game on Jan. 3 in Lakewood, 82-78. The Grizzlies hit ten treys in the game and were 14-of-15 from the free-throw line.
CCU, who average 70.5 points per game, is led by Ross Williams, who puts up 22.9 points per game.
Tuesday's opponent, CSU Pueblo, enters the weekend with a 5-6 overall record and 2-3 in the conference, tied with the Grizzlies. They are led by Lian Ramiro, who averages 15.1 points per game, 3.4 assists per game, 40 percent from beyond the arch, and an impressive 75 percent from the free-throw line.
The Grizzlies and ThunderWolves have already met once this season. Their last meeting, which was on Dec. 7, was a 78-64 win for Adams State inside Massari Arena in Pueblo. In that game, the Grizzlies had four players finish with double figures. O'Brien led the way with 20 points, Crane had 17,
Hayden Meakes had 14, and
Cody Fredrickson had 12. CSU Pueblo had four players with ten or more points, with Ramiro scoring 17 points.
After Tuesday's game, the Grizzlies will be off for ten days before they hit the road two consecutive weekends and four straight games. They will play at UCCS on Jan. 14, at New Mexico Highlands on Jan. 15, at Western Colorado on Jan. 21, and at Fort Lewis on Jan. 22.
