PUEBLO, Colo. (Jan. 16, 2021) – The Colorado State University Pueblo men's basketball team suffered a 73-67 Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference loss Saturday at Massari Arena to University of Colorado Colorado Springs. 
 
The ThunderWolves (2-5, 2-5 RMAC) shot 49.1 percent from the field and allowed the Mountain Lions (2-3, 2-3 RMAC) to shoot just 38.6 percent. The difference was a 26-for-32 (81.3%) effort from the free throw line by UCCS. The Mountain Lions went 22-of-27 (81.4%) in the second half. CSU Pueblo shot just 16 free throws and went 9-for-16 (56.3%).
 
Guard David Simental (R-Jr., Pueblo West, Colo.) guided the team with his second consecutive 20-point game, as he dropped 22 points on an 8-of-9 (88.9%) effort from the field and a perfect 5-for-5 performance from the line. He was the only Pack player who scored in double figures. He scored 20 points in the second half after getting into foul trouble during the first half and only playing six minutes. 
 
Postgame Comments
 
"One thing we have been talking a lot about is in order to win you have to subtract losing first," said CSU Pueblo Head Men's Basketball Coach Matt Hammer. "Tonight we put them on the line 32 times and turned it over 18 times, which made it a surprise that it was as close as it was. Those are the things that tend to happen with a younger team when playing a physical team like they are. I was happy with our intensity and we showed some fight. We have a big week a head of us, so we can't spend much time pouting and hanging our heads." 
 
"I think we all struggled with the fouls," Simental said. "We definitely have to be smarter as a group. The rebounds and turnovers really killed us and we need to do a better job in that. I always want to be aggressive and I started getting it going in the second half."
 
Stat Leaders
 
Guard Tristan Hurdle (Fr., Highlands Ranch, Colo.) led the team with eight rebounds and produced seven points.
 
Senior forward Bryce Sanchious (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.) came off the bench and provided a spark. He scored eight points and brought down three rebounds in 15 minutes of play. 
 
Summary
 
The game was a back and forth battle, as the contest was tied on 10 occasions and the lead changed seven times. UCCS won the glass 38-29 and used 13 offense rebounds to produce 10 second chance points. The ThunderWolves had 18 turnovers, which translated into 18 points off turnovers for the visitors. 
 
The Pack opened the game holding a 12-4 lead through 7:20 of clcok time, but UCCS chipped away and tied it 17-17 with 6:43 remaining in the opening half. The Mountain Lions pushed their run to a 21-17 lead and held a 31-29 advantage at the break. 
 
The league contest was tied 39-39 five minutes into the second half and after trading buckets, the Pack held a 51-50 lead with 7:23 remaining.
 
A Simental jumper moved the score to a 59-59 tie with just 2:58 remaining. A 6-0 run by the Mountain Lions handed the road team their largest lead of the night with under two minutes to play. 
 
The deficit was just two at 67-65 with only 29 ticks left, but the ThunderWolves weren't able to close out the game and fell by the six-point margin, 73-67.
 
Up Next
 
CSU Pueblo is scheduled to play on the road at Metropolitan State University of Denver Tuesday at 6 p.m.

-- PACK --