GOLDEN, Colo. – Looking to rebound following their second loss of the season Friday, the #5/6 Colorado School of Mines men's basketball team was back in action against Adams State Friday night at Lockridge Arena, and rebound they did, hitting the century mark in a game for the third time this season at home and shooting 53% from the field in a 102-81 victory.
 
Kai Barr led the Orediggers (19-2, 13-2) with a tone-setting double-double for his first of the season, while Riley Schroeder, Ben Boone and Reagan Koch all shined off the bench as the defense pounded the glass, recording 55 rebounds and creating nine steals while holding the Grizzlies (3-17, 1-13) to 35% shooting for the night in the win.
 
It was Adams State that struck first on a Maison Adeleye three, but Brendan Sullivan answered right back with a trey of his own before Barr gave Mines their first lead of the evening with a trio of free throws to make it 6-3. The action remained close as the pace was quick from the outset and saw ASU retake the lead and go up by four following a layup and a three from Alex Hurr to make it 14-10 with 15:23 in the half.
 
A thundering dunk from Adam Thistlewood followed by a trey from Koch flipped the score and saw Mines briefly go back ahead before Hurr regained the lead for the Grizzlies on their next possession. Two free throws from Thistlewood at 13:51 made it 17-16 as the lead changed hands for the final time before the Orediggers set about extended the advantage. Trent Dykema drilled a three keyed off a run that saw the lead stretch to as much as 11 following a triple from Boone at the 10:33 mark to make it 27-16.
 
ASU was able to cut the gap back to six at 29-23 following a three from Baron Holman at 8:22 but that ended up being as close as it would be for the remainder of the night, as Barr scored the next six before Sullivan knocked home another trey to make it a 15-point lead at 38-23 with 5:31 remaining. The lead never dropped below 11 for the balance of the first half and swelled to as much as 17 on a Boone three with 1:11 left, but Adams State was able to score five in the final minute as 20 minutes came and went with a score of 50-36.
 
Riding some of the momentum from the end of the first period, the Grizzlies came out firing to open the second, opening on an 11-3 run that included a trio of three-pointers that got them back within six at 53-47 at the 17:46 mark. Cade Mankle and Sterling Benjamin exchanged treys on the next two trips before the Orediggers scored the next nine points to go back up by 15 at 65-50 following a free throw from Schroeder at 13:12.
 
Mines was able to keep the lead to double digits for the final 15 minutes of action, never letting ASU get closer than 10 which happened just two more times around the 10 minute mark. A Schroeder jumper made it an 18-point lead with 8:50 left at 79-61 before Barr jammed one home to make it 20 at 88-68 with 5:30 to play.
 
A quick 6-0 run from Thistlewood, Sam Beskind and Schroeder gave the Orediggers their biggest lead of the game at 23 at the 4:05 mark as they continued to keep Adam State at bay over the closing minutes. A layup from Barr hit the century mark with 92 seconds left to lead 100-79 before Schroeder wrapped up the night with a jumper to seal the 102-81 win.
 
NOTABLES
-Barr set a new career high in scoring for the second time in the last three games and recorded the second double-double of his career, finishing with 24 points on 6-10 shooting and setting a new career high with 12 free throws on 16 attempts, along with a career-best 11 rebounds, two blocks and a steal
-Schroeder added 17 off the bench on 7-9 shooting and added six rebounds along with a career-high five assists
-Boone also came off the bench to score 13 on 4-7 from the floor and went 3-6 from three-point range with two rebounds and two assists
-Koch finished two rebounds shy of his first career double-double, scoring 11 off the bench for the second night in a row on 4-6 shooting with a career-high eight boards and four assists
-10 different players scored in the game for the Orediggers as they've now won eight in a row against Adams State
-Saturday night marked the third 100-point performance for Mines this season; the last time that happened was the 2016-17 season when it the Orediggers also accomplished the feat on three occasions

LOOKING AHEAD
The Orediggers return to the road to take on Black Hills State and South Dakota Mines February 3-4.
 
Fans can keep up with Mines men's basketball on Twitter at @minesmbb. They can also keep up with Colorado School of Mines Athletics all year long on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram using the handle @MinesAthletics.