GOLDEN, Colo. – Back at Lockridge Arena for the first time in the new year, the #7/10 Colorado School of Mines men's basketball team scored first and never trailed Friday night against CSU Pueblo in the latest installment of the series, riding five double-digit performances to a 97-62 win.
 
The Orediggers (13-1, 7-1) saw Riley Schroeder score a game-high 16 off the bench in just 17 minutes, while Ben Boone made his presence felt in his return to action, scoring 13 points off the bench in 14 minutes while Sam Beskind, Reagan Koch and Brendan Sullivan all scored 10 or more as the ThunderWolves (7-7, 3-5) were unable to overcome a slow start to the night shooting in the first half as they dropped back to .500 on the season with the loss.
 
After a few turnovers on the first few possessions of the night, Cade Mankle kicked off the scoring with a three at 18:16 to give Mines the first and only lead they would end up needing as the night moved on. CSU Pueblo was able to hang with the Orediggers in the opening minutes, as a layup by Isaiah Thompson kept the visitors with five at 13-8 with 12:50 left in the first half.
 
Benn Boone, playing for the first time since November 18, came off the bench shortly after and promptly drilled his first shot of the night, a corner trey from Trent Dykema to make it 16-8 at the 12:19 mark. The ThunderWolves continued to battle, keep the deficit between five and eight points as a Meekness Payne jumper with 7:06 left made it 23-18, but another triple from Boone pushed it back to an eight-point lead before Reagan Koch made it a 10-point game for the first time with a jumper on the next Mines possession.
 
Following a De'Shaun Cooper layup that cut the gap back to 29-20 in the final five minutes of the half, Adam Thistlewood pushed the lead back north of 10 for good with a three of his own from Cade Mankle. The duo reversed roles on the next possession as Mines scored 10 the final 12 points in the opening frame to lead it 39-22 heading to the break.
 
CSUP looked to fight their way back into the game as the action resumed in the second half, scoring six of eight to begin the period to close the gap to 13 at 41-28 at the 17:54 mark, but the Orediggers responded and never let the lead drop below that margin for the remainder of the night. The margin fluctuated some over the following minutes but hit 20 for the first time in the night on a three by Sullivan from Adam Krasovec as part of his own personal 6-0 run to make it 57-37 with 13 minutes to play.
 
Mines kept their foot on the gas as the second half continued, with the lead hitting 30 on a jumper in the lane from Thistlewood with 3:05 to play to make it 84-54. Koch made it a 30-point game for good a little over a minute later after the teams traded baskets in succession before Schroeder just about closed out the night by himself, scoring six of the final eight points for the Orediggers in the game to cap off a 97-62 win.
 
 
NOTABLES
-Schroeder came off the bench and led all scorers with 16 points on 7-8 shooting with five rebounds, two assists and two steals as he went for double figures for the second time in the last three games
-Beskind was back in double-digits with 13 on 6-10 shooting
-Boone came off the bench to score 13 points on 5-9 shooting, including 3-4 from three, in just 14 minutes
-Sullivan and Koch each finished with 10 and combined to go 7-10 from the floor and 3-5 from three
-Five Orediggers finished in double-figures for the third time this season as Mines now has eight games with four or more players scoring double digits
-Mines tallied a season high 11 blocks, as six different players recorded at least one with Barr posting a career-best four; it's also the first time since the 2019-20 season the Orediggers have registered 10 or more blocks in a game, the last time also coming against CSU Pueblo on January 31, 2020

LOOKING AHEAD
Mines takes on New Mexico Highlands Saturday night at 7 p.m. before kicking off a four-game road trip Friday January 13 at Regis.
 
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.