PUEBLO, Colo. (Feb. 22, 2021) – The Colorado State University Pueblo men's basketball team enters the final week of the season with two Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference weekday games. The ThunderWolves will play hosts to Black Hills State University Tuesday at 5 p.m. and then turn around to play at Regis University Wednesday beginning at 6 p.m. 
 
No fans will be allowed at either venue. A free video stream and live stats will be available for both contests. Audio will be available on AM1350 Fox Sports Pueblo, online or on the iHeart app. Play-by-play will come from Jim Brooks, the Voice of the ThunderWolves.  
 
VERSUS THE OPPONENTS
 
• The ThunderWolves (3-11, 3-11 RMAC) snapped a five-game losing streak to the Yellow Jackets (7-5, 7-5 RMAC) in Spearfish last year with a last second layup to edge BHSU 68-67. The two teams split the season series last season with each squad winning on the road. The Yellow Jackets won 94-76 at Massari Arena. CSU Pueblo is 7-8 against Black Hills State in the last 15 meetings. 
 
• Against Regis (3-9, 3-9 RMAC), the ThunderWolves won the only match up last year, as they posted a 78-74 home win. In that win, Jaedon Bowles scored 19 points and brought down six rebounds. Bryce Sanchious had 10 points and six rebounds. CSU Pueblo is 14-5 against the Rangers since the 2005-06 season. 
 
LAST TIME OUT
 
CSU Pueblo lost its fifth straight Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference game Saturday, as it fell on the road, 89-77, to Fort Lewis College.
 
There were six lead changes and on eight occasions, the contest was tied, but an offensive drought by the ThunderWolves during the end of the first half and start of the second half was costly in the loss. 
 
Despite the slump, the Pack still shot 50 percent from the field, but the Skyhawks finished the game shooting 62.5 from the field. CSU Pueblo lost the rebounding battle 35-22.
 
Junior guard David Simental led the team with 27 points. He shot 11-of-17 (64.7%) from the field.
 
After trading leads during the first quarter of the opening half, the ThunderWolves built a lead of eight at 30-22 with 9:09 showing on the game clock. During the run to open the large lead, Simental scored seven straight points for the Pack and had 14 points midway through the half. 
 
With 7:11 left, CSU Pueblo kept the pressure on and led by nine at 35-26 following a Micah Lamberth layup.
 
The Pack lead was seven at 42-35 after a freshman Tristan Hurdle jumper and 4:25 left. It was all Skyhawks for the remainder of the half, as the home team posted a 12-2 run to own a 47-44 lead and only 22 seconds left in the frame. Ramiro was fouled on a 3-point attempt at the halftime buzzer and he hit all three from the charity stripe to tie the contest 47-47 going into the locker room. 
 
Ramiro knocked down a jumper for the first basket of the second half to hand the ThunderWolves a 49-47 lead, but it would be the last advantage for CSU Pueblo. 
 
The offensive woes carried over into the second half, as a 14-0 run by the Skyhawks broke open the contest, 61-49 with 14:30 left. The ThunderWolves never recovered from the slump in the 12-point conference loss. 
 
THE PACK
 
• Junior David Simental leads the team with 17.9 points per game to sit 10th in the RMAC. He is shooting 60.7 percent from the field to rank tied for fifth in the league. His 92.2 percent effort from the free throw line is second in the conference. Simental scored 48 points against Westminster (Feb. 13) to establish a program record (previous record was 46 by Damon Williams in 1997). The effort is the most by a member of the RMAC since 2015 and is the second most in NCAA Division II this season. 
 
• Junior Tre Brown is averaging 14.3 points per game. He has five games with 19 or more points. Brown is shooting 86.0 percent from the free throw line to sit seventh in the league. He owns 2.8 assists per game to rank tied for ninth. 
 
• Freshman Lian Ramiro is tied for second in the RMAC with a 1.9 assist/turnover ratio. He guides the team with 37 assists, a 3.1 assists per game average that ranks tied for eighth in the league. Ramiro adds 13.5 points and a team-high 4.0 rebounds per game. He is shooting 39.4 percent from long range to rank sixth in the RMAC. His 2.2 3-pointers per game is tied for eighth in the league. He totaled a season-high 31 points at Western Colorado (Feb. 19). 
 
• Freshman Tristan Hurdle has a team-best 30 3-pointers, which are 2.1 3-pointers per game that ranks tied for 10th in the RMAC. His 38.0 percent effort from long range is good for eighth in the league. He has 9.7 points per game and is tied for second on the team with 3.6 rebounds per game. 
 
• Freshman De'Shaun Cooper adds 7.1 points per game and is shooting 56.4 percent from the field. His 0.7 blocks per game (10 total) is tied for 10th in the conference. He is tied for second on the team with 3.6 rebounds per game. 
 
• In the RMAC, the team is third in free throw shooting (76.5%) and tied for fourth in scoring (77.7 ppg).
 
• Head Coach Matt Hammer is in his second season as head coach. 
 
• CSU Pueblo returned four players from last year's roster, while only three saw the floor. The rest of the 14-player roster is made up of four transfers and seven freshmen. 
 
THE YELLOW JACKETS
 
• The Yellow Jackets are 7-5 overall and 7-5 in RMAC play this season. BHSU takes a four-game win streak to Western Colorado Monday before visiting the ThunderWolves Tuesday. Black Hills State last posted a 91-63 home victory against Colorado Christian Feb. 14 and a 74-53 home win against Chadron State. BHSU has only played three road games entering Monday's contest.
 
• The Yellow Jackets lead the RMAC with a 51.0 percentage from the field. The team is tied for fourth in the league with 77.7 points per game, while BHSU's +6.3 scoring margin is third. 
 
• Joel Scott leads the team with 20.5 points per game to sit fourth in the RMAC. He is shooting 61.5 percent from the field (3rd in the league) and adds 6.5 rebounds per game. 
 
• Sindou Cisse adds 15.9 points per game and is shooting 61.4 percent from the field. Trey Whitley owns 13.2 points per game. Adam Moussa owns 8.8 points and a team-best 3.5 assists per game (4th in the conference). Moussa's 43.6 3-point percentage is third in the RMAC, while his 1.8 assist/turnover ratio also ranks third. 
 
THE RANGERS
 
• The Rangers are 3-9 overall and in league play this season. Regis has lost four straight games and is 1-4 at home this season heading into a Monday game against Colorado Christian. After 18 days idle due to COVID-19 testing and protocol, the Rangers returned Feb. 19 to play nationally-ranked Colorado Mesa. RU lost 73-63 and then lost 66-56 to Westminster on Feb. 20. 
 
• Regis by far leads the league with a +4.83 turnover margin, while its 9.2 steals per game is also a conference best. The Rangers average 67.7 points per game and allow 72.8 points per contest. 
 
• Brian Dawson leads the team and ranks second in the RMAC with 21.3 points per game. He has 33 3-pointers, which is 2.8 per game to rank third in the league. Dawson leads the team and sits third in the league with 2.1 steals per game. 
 
• Will Cranson-Lown adds 12.8 points per game. Troy Brady has produced 9.8 points and a team-best 2.6 assists per game. 
 
-- PACK --