Mines (18-9, 15-7 RMAC) vs. Black Hills State (17-10, 14-8 RMAC) – Tuesday, 5:30 p.m. – Lockridge Arena [Live Stats] [Live Video]
 

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GAME DAY 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.
 
ON THE RMAC NETWORK
Every Mines home game and all RMAC 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".
 
WHOLE NEW SEASON
The Colorado School of Mines Women's Basketball team opens the postseason at home on Tuesday by hosting Black Hills State in the RMAC Tournament quarterfinals. Tipoff is slated for 5:30 p.m. as part of a doubleheader with the men's basketball team taking on New Mexico Highlands at 7:30 p.m. Mines enters the weekend riding a three-game skid but the postseason means the records clear. Now, the name of the game is survive and advance or win and go home.
 
LOOKING BACK
Last weekend, Mines traveled to Colorado Springs for the 2019-20 regular season finale against UCCS. The Orediggers fell in a 70-49 loss that marked their first double-digit defeat of the season. Denali Pinto led the team with 12 points. Megan Van de Graaf added 10 points as well. Liz Holter dished out six assists and Mines forced UCCS to commit 22 turnovers. The difference in the game proved to be the Mountain Lions shooting 70 percent from long range in the first half and 55 percent overall in the game.
 
SCOUTING BLACK HILLS STATE
Black Hills Stat rolls into Golden after going 17-10 overall and 14-8 in the regular season. Over their last five games, the Yellow Jackets are 3-2 with losses to MSU Denver and UCCS while defeating Chadron State, Mines and South Dakota Mines. As a team, BHSU scores 66.2 points per game while giving up 58.6 per contest to the opposition. Individually, Racquel Wientjes tops the offense scoring 16.8 points per game. She also leads on the glass with 5.4 rebounds per game. Ashlee Beacom coordinates it all, touting 52 assists along with 38 steals. Additionally, Morgan Ham averages 14.7 points per game to give BHSU two individuals averaging double-digit scoring numbers.
 
KNOW YOUR VESPULA
It's a repeat, but vespula is such a fun word we thought we'd use it again. Black Hills State University claims the Yellow Jacket as the nickname for its athletics teams. Sometimes mistakenly called bees, yellow jackets are actually wasps of the genera (genus plural) Vespula and Dolichovespula. Specifically, yellow jackets are referred to as social wasps meaning they form colonies, but nest above ground. While bees are only capable of stinging once, wasps can sting repeatedly and painfully. Yellow Jacket colonies/nests can reach sizes up to 4,000-5,000 workers. Their diet consists of fruits, nectar and tree sap. While the two-word spelling has become popular over time, the proper entomological spelling is as a single word, yellowjacket.

LOCKRIDGE ARENA
Fondly referred to as "The Lock", Mines' home court for volleyball, men's basketball and women's basketball features seating for 3,000 at Oredigger home athletics events. The venue has also twice hosted the NCAA Division II Men's Basketball South Central Regional Tournament. Additionally, Lockridge Arena hosts numerous major campus events and has been graced by the presence of Barack Obama, Neil DeGrasse Tyson, Bill Nye and many others.
 
SERIES HISTORY
The Orediggers narrowly trail BHSU by a margin of 7-6 in the all-time series between the two teams. For three straight seasons, Mines and the Yellow Jackets have gone 1-1 against each other in the regular season. However, the 2019-20 campaign marks the first time the two programs will meet three times in one campaign. That's right, the Orediggers and Yellow Jackets are 0-0 when facing each other in the postseason. Following the two meetings earlier this year, Denali Pinto boasts an average of 18.0 points and 7.0 rebounds when playing BHSU. Courtney Stanton has averaged 12.0 points per game while Sammy Van Sickle touts 10.5 rebounds per contest. Liz Holter has racked up eight assists and Ashley Steffeck has notched four steals.
 
THE RMAC TOURNAMENT
Mines, the fourth seed in the RMAC Tournament, hosts fifth-seeded BHSU, with three other quarterfinals taking place Tuesday night. Top-seeded Colorado Mesa plays MSU Denver, Western Colorado hosts Dixie State and Westminster faces South Dakota Mines. The Mines-BHSU winner matches up with the CMU-MSUD winner. The top remaining seed after Tuesday's quarterfinals will host the semifinals and finals on Friday and Saturday.
 
MINES IN THE RMAC TOURNAMENT
Tuesday marks Mines' fifth straight RMAC postseason appearance. Last season, the Orediggers won their first postseason game with Head Coach Brittany Simpson at the helm. It was also Mines' first RMAC Tournament win since 2009. Speaking of Coach Simpson, she has guided her team to six tournaments in eight seasons. The Orediggers also advanced to the NCAA Tournament in 2016 for the second time in program history. Mines has made two runs to the RMAC Tournament finals, making its first appearance in the championship game as the #8 seed in 2006. The Orediggers also advanced to the title game in 2009 as the #3 seed. Overall, Mines is 5-18 in the conference postseason.
 
LOOKING AHEAD
If the Orediggers win on Tuesday, they advance to the RMAC Tournament semifinals on Friday at the highest remaining seed. If Mines loses, its season comes to a close.
 
Keep up with Colorado School of Mines Athletics all season long on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram using the handle @MinesAthletics.