PUEBLO, Colo. (February 6, 2016) — With the anything but conventional, super mascot "Rocky" from the Denver Nuggets inside Massari Arena to entertain fans Saturday, the Colorado State University-Pueblo men's basketball team delivered arguably its most unconventional games of the season in a 90-83 victory over Metro State University of Denver.
For the first time this season, the Pack (14-9 overall, 10-7 RMAC) shot better from 3-point distance (11-of-16, 68.8%) than they did from the field in general (25-of-43, 58.1%) and the free-throw line (29-of-44, 65.9%). The 68.8 percent mark from long range is CSU-Pueblo's best 3-point field goal percentage in a game this season, topping the 61.5 percent effort against Colorado School of Mines on Jan. 22. The mark is also best since the 2003-04 team posted a 71.4 percent clip (10-of-14) from long range (Dec. 15, 2003 at Regis University)
Despite the woes at the charity stripe, the ThunderWolves made free throws when it counted most as they nailed 11 of their final 12 free throws in the last 1:10 to close out MSU Denver (14-9 overall, 12-5 RMAC), which entered Saturday's matchup atop the Rocky Division and on a five-game win streak.
Sophomore guard Will Newman (Lawndale, Calif.) poured in a career-high 28 points off the bench — the Pack outscored the Roadrunners 39-24 in bench points — and was a spotless 5-of-5 from 3-point range.
Joining Newman in double figures were senior guard Chris Golden (Milwaukee, Wisc.) and junior forward Nelson Kahler (Noosa Heads, Australia) with 17 points apiece, and sophomore Josh Smith (Colorado Springs, Colo.) with 13 points. Kahler, who entered the weekend ranked No. 25 nationally in blocked shots, added four more swats to his RMAC-leading total (51) and totaled a team-high six rebounds. The 51 blocked shots for Kahler puts him fifth on the school's all-time single-season list.
CSU-Pueblo took control of the game with a 22-9 blitz between the 13:01 mark and 5:13 mark of the second half, capped by a 3-pointer from Smith. The Roadrunners never inched closer than seven points the rest of the way.
The Pack got off to a slow start Saturday, falling behind 6-0 early and trailing through the first 10 minutes of the half before taking their initial lead at 19-18 on a layup from junior forward Stevan Radokovic (Belgrade, Serbia), who scored seven of his nine points in the first half. Newman and Golden took over from there as the duo combined for 22 of Pack's 39 first-half points, en route to a 39-34 advantage at the break.
With the win, the ThunderWolves completed the sweep of their home back-to-back and improved to 6-3 inside Massari Arena this season. The wins also ended a five-game win streak for both Friday's opponent University of Colorado Colorado Springs and MSU Denver Saturday.
CSU-Pueblo will have five days off before beginning a road weekend Friday against Adams State University and Saturday against Fort Lewis University. Both games are slated for a 7:30 p.m. start.
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As a member of the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference, Colorado State University – Pueblo competes in 22 varsity sports in NCAA Division II intercollegiate athletics.
