#21/23 Mines at MSU Denver, Friday, 7:30 p.m. [Live Video] [Live Stats]
#21/23 Mines at Chadron State, Saturday, 7:30 p.m. [Live Video] [Live Stats]
 

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THE WEEKEND AHEAD
Colorado School of Mines begins a tough four-game road trip with visits to local rival MSU Denver on Friday before heading to the Nebraska panhandle for a showdown at Chadron State on Saturday. Both games will tip off at 7:30 p.m. and be seen live on the RMAC Network.

THE STREAK CONTINUES
The Orediggers' winning streak kept on rolling last week with wins at Adams State and Fort Lewis, stretching the run to 13 games. It now ranks as the third-longest win streak in program history behind a 14-game stretch in 2014-15 and a 17-game run in 2011-12. More importantly, their winning ways have put the Orediggers two games up in the RMAC standings at a perfect 11-0; UCCS is in second at 9-2, followed by Regis and New Mexico Highlands at 8-3.   

IN THE POLLS
Thanks to their hot start, the Orediggers broke into both major national top-25 polls this week, appearing at #21 in the D2SIDA media poll and #23 in the NABC coaches' poll this week. The ranking is Mines' first since January of last year.

LAST TIME OUT
Mines picked up two more wins last weekend at home, beating South Dakota Mines handily 93-71 before surviving a tough test against Black Hills State 78-67. Brendan Sullivan dropped 20 points on Friday and Mines shot 67.9 percent in the second half to blow open what had been a close game; Ben Sonnefeld added 16 points with seven boards and six assists, and Michael Glen had 15/7/4. On Saturday against BHSU, Mines got away late with another second-half surge, hitting 76.2 percent of their shots in the second half compared to 41.4 percent in the first. Mason Baker and Ben Clare each had 17, while Michael Glen hit an 11-point, 12-rebound double-double.

INSIDE THE STREAK
During the 13-game win streak, the Orediggers have won 10 games by double digits, including an average of 17.7 points per game since the new year. The last time Mines had a game decided by fewer than 10 points was back on Dec. 16 in a 80-73 win over Regis. Mines is shooting .539 during the streak to opponents' .438, and are +9.1 rebounding, +6.4 on assists, and +2.3 per game on blocks. Mines is a white-hot .456 for three-point range as well, averaging 9.2 made three-pointers per game over the last 13 games.

SECOND HALF SUCCESS
In 11 RMAC games this year, Mines has been absolutely outstanding in the second half, dominating teams after halftime to build big leads. Mines has been by no means shabby in the first half, shooting .509 to opponents' .485 and an identical .439 from beyond the arc. But the second-half disparity, and particularly the defensive adjustment, is dramatic: in RMAC play, Mines is shooting a huge .588 compared to opponents' .428 overall, including a .505/.307 three-point split, a +10.3 scoring margin, and +4.4 rebounding edge.

MINES NOTABLES
The Orediggers are the RMAC's top three-point shooting team at .429 … Mines leads the RMAC by a huge amount in scoring margin at +13.9 – more than double New Mexico Highlands' next-best rate of +6.8 … Mines ranks in the NCAA Division II top-10 in three-point field goal percentage (2nd, .432), field goal percentage (9th, .509), and blocks per game (10th, 5.1) … Mines has shot .500 or better in three straight and seven of their last eight games … Over their last three games, the Orediggers are a white-hot 54-for-60 (.900) from the foul line … Ben Sonnefeld is coming off a season-high and career-high-tying nine assists against Black Hills State … Michael Glen notched his first double-double of the season against BHSU with 11 points and 12 rebounds … Mason Baker leads the team averaging 15.2 points per game, including 19.0 over the last five ... Brendan Sullivan had a career-high 20 points against South Dakota Mines … Ben Clare ranks third in the RMAC in blocks per game (1.4) and 8th in offensive boards (2.0 orpg) ... The Chadron State game will be a homecoming for Mines center Landon Walker, who hails from nearby Scottsbluff, Neb. and played for Scottsbluff HS.

LAST YEAR
Mines split its season series with MSU Denver last year, losing 67-60 at home before winning 66-64 in the regular-season finale on the road. In the first meeting, Mason Baker scored a career-high 31 but the Orediggers were held to a season-low 34.6 percent shooting in their first loss of the 2017-18 season; Michael Glen scored 10 to go with eight boards. Cameron Williams scored 26 for the Roadrunners. In the return game, Mines took a late lead on back-to-back Glen three-pointers as Zach Rusk came off the bench for 16 points and Ben Sonnefeld also had 16.

The Orediggers swept the season series from Chadron State, winning 83-61 on the road and 83-56 at home. Mines had 46 bench points in the first outing led by Mason Baker's 16; they shot 58.5 percent in the second game as Luke Schroepfer had 21 and Adam Laine 18 in the lopsided victory.

SCOUTING THE COMPETITION
MSU Denver is 7-8 overall and 5-6 in RMAC play, having lost four of five and coming off a double-overtime heartbreaker against New Mexico Highlands. A trio of junior transfers lead their scoring as Druce Asah is at 16.9 points per game with Garrett Carter (12.7 ppg) and Kendall McIntosh (11.9 ppg) right behind. After finishing last in the RMAC a year ago at 1-21, Chadron State is the league's most improved team with a 7-4 in-conference mark so far in 2018-19. That includes three straight wins heading into this weekend as they match up with second-place UCCS on Friday. They are led by the trio of Diontae Champion (12.3 ppg), Colby Jackson (11.9 ppg), and Michael Sparks (11.8 ppg), while Jeremy Ruffin snags a team-best 6.5 rpg.

LOOKING AHEAD
Mines will continue its road trip at CSU-Pueblo on Feb. 1 and New Mexico Highlands on Feb. 2.