LAS VEGAS, N.M. - #22 Colorado School of Mines moved into first place in the RMAC standings with an 86-77 road win at New Mexico Highlands. 

The win officially put Mines (22-4, 17-3 RMAC) into a first-place tie with Fort Lewis, who they beat Friday night; FLC was idle Saturday. Mines controls its own destiny and could win the RMAC regular-season title at home next weekend with wins over UCCS and MSU Denver; the Orediggers hold any potential tiebreaker over Fort Lewis in terms of RMAC Tournament seeding.

In his second game back after missing a month due to injury, Caleb Waitsman again starred off the bench for Mines with a game-high 23 points, one of four Orediggers in double figures along with Gokul Natesan (16), Ben Clare (16), and Murphy Gershman (10).

Mines never trailed after their second bucket of the game, and ended the first half on a 9-0 run started by Gershman's three-point play to take full control of the game.

The Orediggers led by as much as 15 midway through the second half, but NMHU refused to go away and cut the lead down to five on James Healy's three-pointer with 4:59 left. Back-to-back layups by Clare and Waitsman gave Mines some breathing room before Marlon Johnson's three made it 74-68 at the 3:39 mark, but that would be as close as the Cowboys would come. Free throws by Ben Sonnefeld and Waitsman combined by a fastbreak dunk from Clare and two more foul shots from Zach Rusk put Mines ahead 11 inside the final minute, and Natesan's final foul shots set the lead at 86-77.

NOTABLES
- Waitsman's 23 points matched his career high in a regulation game, set earlier this season against Chadron State. He was 10-of-18 from the floor and 3-of-3 at the line.
- Waitsman now sits at 995 career points. 
- The Orediggers shot 50.8 percent for the game. NMHU was at 42.9 percent for the game with a much-improved 60 percent second half after a 9-for-31 (29 percent) first half.
- NMHU stayed in the game in the second half at the line, making 21 of 28 opportunities; Mines was 13-of-17, and had been to the line only five times until late in the second half.
- Ron Lawton led NMHU with 21 points, and Marlon Johnson had 16 points, 13 rebounds, and four blocks.
- Mines swept the season series from the Cowboys after winning 61-58 in Golden back on Jan. 17.
- Mines ends its regular-season road schedule 11-3.

NEXT UP
Mines hosts UCCS Friday at 8 p.m.