Mines vs. Regis, Tuesday, 7:30 p.m. [RMAC Network] [Live Stats] 
Mines vs. South Dakota Mines, 7:30 p.m. [RMAC Network] [Live Stats]

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MINES BEGINS RMAC PLAY AT HOME
Colorado School of Mines (2-2) turns its sights towards conference play as it hosts RMAC rivals Regis (5-1) and South Dakota Mines (2-4) this week at Lockridge Arena. The Orediggers take on their travel partner Regis on Tuesday before hosting SDM on Thursday, then will have an usual weekend off. Both games tip off at 7:30 p.m. as the second half of a women's/men's doubleheader, and will be seen live on the RMAC Network. 

MASKS REQUIRED FOR FANS AT LOCKRIDGE ARENA
Consistent with the Jefferson County Public Health indoor masking order effective Wednesday, Nov. 24, masks will be mandatory for all spectators attending Colorado School of Mines home basketball games until further notice. 

LAST WEEKEND
Mines got back in the win column and evened its record to .500 with wins over Park Gilbert and University of the Southwest last weekend. Against Park Gilbert on Friday, Ben Boone drained 18 points and Brendan Sullivan had 14 points, four steals, five assists, and two blocks as Mines used a 16-0 run to start the second half to win going away, 75-46. It was a similar story Saturday against USW as Boone scored 17 and Sullivan 12, and the Orediggers again had a 16-0 run to take control of the game to win 74-42. 

AT THE HELM
The 2021-22 season marks the 21st on the bench for Mines head coach Pryor Orser. Under Orser, Mines has gone 381-203, won five RMAC regular-season championships and two RMAC Tournament titles, and qualified for 11 NCAA Tournaments. His 268 RMAC wins (268-140 overall) are the second-most in conference history, and he has the chance to reach two milestones this season. His overall wins are currently five behind Mines all-time leader Jim Darden (386 wins), and he could become only the second RMAC coach to reach 400 career victories as well. 

ENGESSER TOPS 1,000 CAREER POINTS
Justin Engesser has only played four games as an Oredigger, but he's surpassed the 1,000-point plateau for his career. The fifth-year senior, who scored 987 points in his career at Colorado Christian, reached 1,000 on a three-pointer Friday against Park Gilbert and now stands at 1,012.

BLINK AND YOU MISSED IT
Brendan Sullivan does it all for Mines - that's no secret. But his performance in the second half against Park Gilbert was something extraordinary even by his standards: in the span of 1:12, Sullivan had collected three steals and eight consecutive points to blow open a 25-point lead for the Orediggers. With 17:21 on the clock, Sullivan grabbed a steal and cruised to the other end for a fastbreak dunk. Less than 30 seconds later, he did it again. Twenty seconds later, Kobi Betts fed him on an outlet pass for a quick layup, and finally, with 16:09 on the clock, he had another steal-and-slam. 

BOONE DROPS BUCKETS
Senior guard Ben Boone has picked up where he left off in 2020-21, leading the team with scoring through four games at 15.5 points a night. Boone has drained a team-high 10 three-pointers, and has games of 17, 18, and 19 points to his credit already on .490 shooting and .417 three-point shooting.

MINES VS. REGIS
Regis is red-hot to start the season at 5-1, losing their season opener to Lubbock Christian but reeling off five straight wins since then. RMAC Player of the Week Brian Dawson leads them with 14.5 points per game while Will Cranston-Lown adds 12.3 points and 3.8 rebounds per game. The Rangers score a healthy 82.2 points per game shooting .464 as a team. Incredibly, only a single game separates Mines and Regis out of 135 all-time meetings as RU leads 68-67 dating back to their first meeting in the 1924-25 season. Mines has won four straight in the series including both last year, winning 73-50 in Denver and 84-52 at home. 

MINES VS. SOUTH DAKOTA MINES
South Dakota Mines is 2-4 on the young season, including a win over Montana State Billings on Saturday. They score only 61.7 points per game but have a trio of high-scoring players in Alejandro Rama (14.7 ppg), Kolten Mortensen (14.3 ppg), and Brevin Walter (13.3 ppg). The Orediggers and Hardrockers match up for the 26th time dating back to 1958, with the Orediggers holding a 16-9 series lead including two straight wins. Last year, it was a 70-49 victory in Golden paced by five Orediggers in double-digit scoring including Austin Means' 15 and Kobi Betts' 12 as they shot .500. 

LOOKING AHEAD
Mines will visit UCCS on Dec. 11, then Western Colorado (Dec. 17) and Fort Lewis (Dec. 18).