Colorado School of Mines vs. New Mexico Highlands, Tuesday, 7:30 p.m. [RMAC Network] [Live Stats]
 

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THE POSTSEASON IS HERE
The postseason begins for Colorado School of Mines at home on Tuesday as they host New Mexico Highlands in a RMAC Tournament quarterfinal at 7:30 p.m. The game is part of a doubleheader as the women's basketball team takes on Black Hills State starting at 5:30 p.m.
 
ON THE RMAC NETWORK
Every Mines home game and all RMAC road contests can be seen live and for free on the RMAC Network at minesathletics.com/tv. The RMAC Network can also be found on Apple TV, Roku, Amazon Fire, and Android TV devices by going to the app store and searching "RMAC".

TICKET INFO
Tickets for the RMAC Tournament are on sale via Mines' ticketing portal, or buy them at the gate on game day. Ticket pricing remains the same as the regular season at $10 for adults and $5 for seniors, military, and children. No passes, including Mines All-Sports Passes, are accepted for postseason play. Mines students will be admitted free with Blaster Card courtesy of Student Life. No pets (except service animals) are permitted inside Lockridge Arena.

THE RMAC TOURNAMENT
Mines, the third seed in the RMAC Tournament, hosts sixth-seeded NMHU, with three other quarterfinals taking place Tuesday night as top-seeded Dixie State plays Regis, Colorado Mesa hosts UCCS, and Black Hills State hosts South Dakota Mines. The Mines-NMHU winner matches up with the BHSU-SDSMT winner. The top remaining seed after Tuesday's quarterfinals will host the semifinals and finals on Friday and Saturday.

MINES IN THE RMAC TOURNAMENT
Mines has won the RMAC Tournament twice in its history, in 2012 and 2017. The Orediggers have advanced out of the quarterfinals every year since 2015-16. It's been quite awhile since Mines and New Mexico Highlands have played in the postseason: the Orediggers and Cowboys last saw each other there in 1990, when Mines won 104-94 in the second round of the NAIA District tournament. They have not met in the actual RMAC Tournament since 1988, when NMHU won 75-68.

IN THE RANKINGS
Mines remained at #7 in last week's NCAA Regional Rankings, with the top eight getting into the NCAA Tournament. Their win over UCCS was an important one as the Mountain Lions appeared at #10; Mines is now 4-1 against teams in the South Central regional rankings with wins over #3 Dixie State and #8 Lubbock Christian, and a split with #6 Black Hills State.

LAST TIME OUT
Mines ended the regular season with a key road win as it pulled away to beat UCCS 74-57. Kobi Betts led all scorers with 20 points, while Brendan Sullivan turned in an 18-point, 11-rebound double-double to guide Mines in the win. Michael Glen pitched in 11 points points, seven rebounds, and two blocks, while Titus Reed scored eight with two swats. Mines hit a run before halftime to lead 37-25 at the break, and kept UCCS at bay in the second half to end the game with their largest lead.

SULLIVAN NAMED ACADEMIC ALL-DISTRICT
Last week, sophomore Brendan Sullivan was named to the CoSIDA Academic All-District team for his outstanding combination of athletic and academic achievement in 2019-20. A sophomore with a 3.79 GPA in civil engineering, Sullivan has enjoyed a terrific second season with the Orediggers, averaging 13.9 points, 5.5 rebounds, and 2.1 assists per game from the starting 3 spot. Sullivan is shooting .525/.489/.788, leading Mines in three-point shooting at 44-of-90, and he's also adding a team-best 1.4 steals to go with 0.8 blocks per game.

DURING THE REGULAR SEASON
Mines lost at home to NMHU 74-72 back on Feb. 1, but avenged the loss in Las Vegas on Feb. 14 with a 93-86 victory. In the first matchup, a late NMHU basket by Patrik Boloz gave them the lead; Sammy Barnes-Thompkins led all scorers with 27 points. Brendan Sullivan scored 16 and Titus Reed 15 for Mines. In their second meeting, Michael Glen poured in 22 and Titus Reed had an 18-point, 10-rebound double-double as Mines made 30-of-36 free throws. Raquan Mitchell scored 29 but Mines held Barnes-Thompkins to 15 points, his lowest total of the season.

SCOUTING NMHU [Series: CSM, 44-33]
New Mexico Highlands, the defending RMAC Tournament champion, is 18-9 overall and went 13-9 in RMAC play this season. They ended the regular season with the RMAC's top scoring offense at 89.4 points per game led by conference scoring champion Sammy Barnes-Thompkins, who averages 24.7 points per game. Raquan Mitchell is third in the RMAC at 23.8 points per game. Beyond those two, however, NMHU does not have a player averaging more than nine points per game.