#22 Mines (3-1) vs. Puerto Rico-Mayaguez (0-0) – Thursday, 10 a.m. (AT) – San Juan, P.R.
#22 Mines (3-1) vs. Puerto Rico-Bayamon (0-0) – Friday, 12 p.m. (AT) – San Juan, P.R.

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ISLAND LIFE
This Thanksgiving, the #22-ranked Colorado School of Mines Women's Basketball team will spend its holiday in San Juan, Puerto Rico. It was a trip initially scheduled for the 2020-21 season before it was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. While they're there, the Orediggers will play a pair of games against the University of Puerto Rico-Mayaguez and the University of Puerto Rico-Bayamon. Even though Mines is in Puerto Rico, both games will count as neutral-site contests since all teams involved are playing away from their respective home courts. After a double-digit loss at Nebraska-Kearney last Saturday, both games provide an opportunity for Mines to return to the win column.
 
FAN INFORMATION
As of Nov. 23, Jefferson County enacted a mask mandate for all indoor public spaces. This means that until further notice, all fans at Mines' indoor athletic events are required to wear masks regardless of vaccination status. Tickets for all home games are available at the box office (cash or credit) or online at www.minesathletics.com/tickets.
 
LIVE COVERAGE
As of Wednesday, no live coverage will be offered for Mines' holiday games in Puerto Rico. If that changes, links to the live coverage will be posted at www.minesathletics.com and on Twitter. The rest of the Orediggers' games in 2021-22 will be aired live and for free on the RMAC Network. The RMAC Network has relaunched for 2021-22, and fans used to watching on their smart TV or other device must download the new app by searching "RMAC" in your device's app store. The new watch portal is available online at www.minesathletics.com/tv or www.rmacnetwork.com.
 
LOOKING BACK
Last week, Mines played its home opener and took its first true road trip of the season. The Orediggers opened at home on Thursday with an 84-50 win over Eastern New Mexico. Megan Van de Graaf was tops in the game thanks to 17 points. Courtney Stanton added 13 points and grabbed seven rebounds. On Saturday, Mines made the trip east to Nebraska-Kearney. Cold shooting for the Orediggers and a hot afternoon for the Lopers resulted in a 76-57 loss for the visitors. In spite of the loss, Denali Pinto still muscled up 15 points and Ashley Steffeck scored 10.
 
SCOUTING PUERTO RICO-MAYAGUEZ
The University of Puerto Rico system features three teams affiliated with NCAA Division II including UPR-Mayaguez. The actual campus is located on the western tip of the island. Their mascot is a bulldog and Janes is the nickname for the women's teams while the men are nicknamed the Tarzans. According to information available, Mines is Mayaguez's season opener for 2021-22. Head Coach Franklin Roman enters his 12th season with a record of 5-47. The Janes did not play in 2020-21 and posted a record of 0-9 in 2019-20. Their closest margin in 2019-20 was a 53-42 loss against Southwest Baptist. Mayguez's last win was 64-51 over Eastern Nazarene on Dec. 29, 2018.
 
SCOUTING PUERTO RICO-BAYAMON
Also part of the University of Puerto Rico system and an independent in NCAA Division II, the Bayamon campus is just south and west of San Juan. The athletic teams use Cowboys and Cowgirls as their respective nicknames. Mines also serves as Bayamon's 2021-22 opener. The Cowgirls enter the holiday riding a 14-game skid after also not playing in 2020-21. Head Coach Jerry Batista owns an overall record of 16-34 through 10 seasons. In 2019-20, Batista's squad went 0-8. Their closest losses were a 13-point deficit against Rollins in the season opener and a 12-point loss to Wingate on Dec. 16, 2019. Bayamon's last win in women's basketball was a 73-70 nail-biter against Elizabeth City State on Nov. 14, 2018.
 
SERIES HISTORY
This trip marks the first time that Mines women's basketball will ever play in Puerto Rico and the first-ever meetings with both UPR-Mayaguez and UPR-Baymon.
 
SIMPSON'S TURKEY DAY
Mines Head Coach Brittany Simpson has never played on Thanksgiving since taking over for the 2012-13 season. Her teams are 5-2 with five straight wins the Friday after Thanksgiving. However, Mines has not played on the Friday after Thanksgiving since 2018 when the Orediggers defeated Texas A&M-International by a score of 88-64. On the Saturday following the November holiday, Simpson's teams boast a record of 6-3 including last year's 75-49 win over MSU Denver in the 2020-21 season opener. Overall, Simpson has coached her teams to a record of 11-5 the week of Thanksgiving. The Orediggers' most notable win during the holiday week was an 81-66 victory against #4-ranked Florida Southern inside Lockridge Arena on Nov. 25, 2016.
 
NATIONAL RANKINGS
After Saturday's loss, Mines took a hit in both national polls, but remained inside the top-25. The media poll sponsored by D2SIDA dropped the Orediggers from #8 to #22. In the first WBCA poll of the regular season, the coaches dropped Mines out of its tied for #23 down to #24. The only other RMAC program in either poll is Colorado Mesa at #15 in the media poll. Currently, Alaska-Anchorage holds the #1 slot in the media poll while Fort Hays State is #1 on the coaches' list.
 
FUN FACT OF THE WEEK
So far this season, Mines has scored a total of 286 points for an average of 71.5 points per game. What fans might find interesting is that 105 of those 286 points have come off of the Oredigger bench for an average of 26 points per game. That number was fueled by 34 bench points in the season opener against St. Mary's and 37 more against Eastern New Mexico. Mines' reserves also notched 22 at Nebraska-Kearney last Saturday.
 
UP NEXT
Mines returns home to open RMAC play on Tuesday against Regis at 5:30 p.m. The Orediggers also play South Dakota Mines inside Lockridge Arena on Thursday at 5:30 p.m. Tickets can be purchased online or at the door. Live stats and video on the RMAC Network will be offered at www.minesathletics.com.
 
Fans can keep up with Mines women's basketball on Twitter and Instagram at @MinesWBB. They can also keep up with Colorado School of Mines Athletics all year long on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram using the handle @MinesAthletics.