DURANGO, Colo. – The Colorado State University Pueblo men's basketball dropped a heartbreaker for the second straight game as the ThunderWolves fell 68-65 to 13th-ranked Fort Lewis College in Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference action at Whalen Gymnasium.
 
Last Friday, the ThunderWolves lost 70-69 at Regis after David Simental hit two free throws with 1.3 seconds left to seal Regis' win and then tonight, Akuel Kot drilled a step-back three-pointer with 1.4 seconds left to seal the Skyhawks come-from-behind win.
 
With Friday's setback, CSU Pueblo dropped its third straight game and drops its record to 10-11 overall and 6-9 in the RMAC, while Fort Lewis won its fourth straight game and improved to 19-2 overall and 13-2 in the RMAC.
 
After trailing by as much as four points at 59-55 with 4:16 left in the game, the Pack used back-to-back baskets from sophomore forward Isaiah Thompson (Colorado Springs, Colo./Fountain-Fort Carson) to tie the game at 59-all with 3:09 remaining. On the ensuing possession, Kot would make 1-of-2 free throws with 2:52 left to give FLC a 60-59 lead.
 
The Pack would retake the lead on a dunk by Thompson off an offensive rebound to give CSU Pueblo a 61-60 lead with 2:17 remaining in the contest. Kot would hit two free throws with 2:03 left to retake the lead at 62-61.
 
About 25 seconds later, senior forward Meekness Payne (Phoenix, Ariz./University of New Hampshire) gave the Pack its final lead of the game following a pull-up jumper with 1:38 left in the game. Payne's basket gave the Pack a 63-62 lead.
 
Kot would add two more free throws with 55 seconds left to give the Skyhawks a 64-63 lead and after Payne missed a turn-around shot that would've helped the Pack retake the lead, Kot would hit 1-of-2 free throws with 18 second left to give FLC a 65-63 lead.
 
On the next Pack possession, sophomore guard Noble Robinson (Lubbock, Texas/Clarendon College) helped tie the game at 65-all on his layup with 10 seconds left. The tie was the 16th and final one of the game.
 
With the game tied at 65, the Skyhawks would have one more possession to win the game and Kot would drill a step-back 3-pointer with 1.4 seconds left to give FLC a 68-65 lead. On the ensuing possession, the Pack turned the ball over on the in-bounds pass to seal Fort Lewis' victory.
 
Thompson paced the Pack with 19 points and a season-high 16 rebounds, while Payne, Robinson and sophomore guard Lian Ramiro (Aurora, Colo./Grandview) each had 10 points in the loss. The double-double was the sixth of the season for Thompson.
 
Kot, who entered the game leading the RMAC in scoring at 24.9 points per game, was held to 19 points on 5-of-12 shooting from the field, including a 1-for-5 effort from the 3-point line. Kot was 8-for-11 at the free throw line in the win.
 
In addition to Kot, JaQuaylon Mays added 12 points and nine rebounds, while Obi Agbim had 11 points for the Skyhawks. Brenden Boatwright pulled down a team-high 10 rebounds.
 
The Pack scored the first three points of the game on a trey by Thompson and led 9-3 just four-plus minutes into the game, before FLC used a 9-2 run to take a 12-11 lead. The lead would grow to 16-13, before Robinson drilled a trey with 10:09 left in the first half to tie the game at 16-all.
 
From that point, FLC would outscore the Pack, 13-12, to take a 29-28 lead at the half. CSU Pueblo fell to 0-9 on the season when trailing at the half.
 
The Skyhawks would open the second half on a 10-5 run to take a 39-33 lead with 17:46 left in the game. The six point lead would be the largest of the game for the Skyhawks.
 
From that point, the Pack responded with a 10-4 leas capped by two free throws from Payne to retie the game at 43-all with 13:46 remaining.
 
After Agbim gave the Skyhawks a 45-43 lead with 13:33 left in the game, the Pack responded with a 5-0 run capped by a dunk from junior guard Makiah Morris (San Diego, Calif./San Diego City College). Morris' dunk gave the Pack a 48-45 lead with 10:21 left in the contest.
 
The Skyhawks would tie the game 17 seconds later on a 3-pointer by Dunnell Stafford and then used an 11-7 run to take a 59-55 lead with 4:16 left.
 
CSU Pueblo finished the game shooting 47 percent from the field and 27 percent from the 3-point line, while Fort Lewis shot 46 percent from the field and 33 percent from the 3-point line.
 
The two teams struggled at the free throw line as the Pack were 7-for-14 (50 percent) at the line, including a 6-for-11 effort at the line in the second half, while FLC was 15-for-25 (60 percent), including an 8-for-16 effort at the line in the second half.
 
CSU Pueblo held a 36-33 edge on the glass and dished out 11 assists on 27 made baskets. FLC had seven assists and forced nine turnovers that led to eight points. The Pack committed 10 turnovers and held a 36-24 edge in points in the paint.
 
The Pack will look to rebound on Saturday, Feb. 4 as they travel to Alamosa, Colo., for a 7:30 p.m. game against Adams State. Adams State suffered an 89-80 home loss on Friday to New Mexico Highlands.