Box Score How It Happened
Staring at its first loss since the beginning of the season, Colorado School of Mines (11-2, 9-0) rallied in the final minute to sweep the season series against Fort Lewis (8-6, 4-5) by the final of 65-63 for its 11th consecutive victory on Saturday, January 9 in Lockridge Arena.
Down 63-60 with 1:19 left in the game, Mines needed a break to keep the win streak alive and they got just that from FLC's Kate Bayes who fouled senior Courtney Martin then picked up a subsequent technical foul. Bayes' misfortune was to the Orediggers benefit as redshirt-freshman Emily Bailey hit both technical free throws and Martin hit one of her two attempts to tie the game at 63 with 43 seconds left.
After a defensive stop and timeout, Martin got matched up on a smaller defender, posted up on the low block, and then dived inside for the game winning basket to sweep the season series against the Skyhawks.
Just like in the first meeting, the first half was hard fought, defensive and low scoring as the two teams headed into the halftime locker room tied at 26.
After a first period that saw a combined 21 points, the action ticked up slightly in the second quarter for both teams. Fort Lewis came out with the period's first bucket to take a 14-9 lead which was the first of two five-point leads they would possess in the first half.
Trailing 23-19, Mines closed out the half on a 7-3 run that saw Emily Bailey hit four free throws in the final 17 seconds to tie the game up. While the Orediggers had a hard time finding any offense in the first half, Bailey had no such issue as the Oregon native scored 11 points to go along with five boards.
The third period became a complete draw between Mines and Fort Lewis as both teams scored exactly 14 points to head to the fourth quarter tied at 40-40. The quarter did see CSM regain the lead for the first time since the opening bucket with Bailey supplying six points in the frame.
As much as the first three quarters were a defensive slog, the final period saw both teams' offenses finally come to life. The opening of the quarter saw the two teams trade basket-for-basket with each other until Mines finally appeared to take over at 60-53.
The Skyhawks were relentless though as they stormed back and took the lead at 61-60 on back-to-back three balls from Kylie Santos and Kate Bayes. Dallas Dickerson then put her team up three with 1:19 to go which set the scene for Bailey and Martin's heroics.
Notables
- With the win Mines has now won 11 straight games and have won six games by three points less during the streak.
- While only shooting 32.8% for the game, Mines uncharacteristically got it cooking from deep as they hit 7-of-15 for a 46.7% clip.
- The Orediggers also outrebounded the Skyhawks 51-35 and 16-7 on the offensive glass.
- CSM was also strong at the charity stripe as they hit 20 of 28 attempts with six of them coming in the final quarter.
- Emily Bailey was simply fantastic leading the Orediggers this evening as she scored a game-high 19 points, grabbed seven rebounds, dished out three assists and blocked two shots. She was also a sensational 10-of-10 at the free throw line.
- The bench tandem of freshmen Mikaela Moore and Cassidy Budge were also huge. Moore grabbed 12 rebounds (six offensive) with seven points while Budge poured in 11 points.
Up Next
Riding high after the emotional win over Fort Lewis, Mines now heads back on the road next weekend as they head to UCCS (1/15) and MSU Denver (1/16).
