#23 Mines (12-3, 6-1) at CSU Pueblo (7-6, 3-4) – Friday, 7:30 p.m.– Pueblo, Colo. [Live Stats] [RMAC Network]
#23 Mines (12-3, 6-1) at New Mexico Highlands (7-6, 4-4) – Saturday, 7 p.m.– Las Vegas, N.M. [Live Stats] [RMAC Network]

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BUSINESS TRIP
After playing two of their last three games at home, the #23 Colorado School of Mines men's basketball team will return to the road this week when they first head south to take on CSU Pueblo Friday evening before heading to the Land of Enchantment Saturday evening for a meeting with New Mexico Highlands.
 
LIVE COVERAGE
Coverage of this weekend's games will be available on the RMAC Network and have live stats available at minesathletics.com.
 
AT THE HELM
The 2023-24 season will be the 23rd for the Orediggers under the guidance of head coach Pryor Orser. Already the winningest coach in program history, he eclipsed the 400-win mark in November of last season and has a career record of 433-221 overall and a mark of 306-151 in Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference play, with both marks being second-most wins in conference history behind legendary Fort Lewis and Western Colorado head coach Bob Hofman, who recorded 309 conference wins and 443 overall wins during his time in the league while leading the Skyhawks and Mountaineers. Under Orser, Mines has won five RMAC regular-season championships and two RMAC Tournament titles and qualified for 12 NCAA Tournaments including two Elite Eight trips. 
 
THE CAPTAINS
Second-year graduate transfer Sam Beskind and redshirt sophomore guard Cade Mankle will serve as captains for the Orediggers in 2023-24. Beskind burst onto the RMAC scene last year, averaging 9.3 points, 4.2 rebounds and 3.8 assists per game while also shooting .481/.338/.835 on the season and ranking second in the conference in total assists with 120 and leading the league in assist to turnover ratio at 2.2. Mankle split time between the starting five and the bench rotation in his first season of action last year, averaging 4.4 points and 1.6 assists per game while shooting .397/.310/.542 for the year.
 
IN THE POLLS
For the first time since the preseason, Mines was ranked in the NABC Coaches Top 25 Poll this week, checking in at #23 in country. A new number one stands atop the rankings this week, as MSU Moorhead (14-0) earned 15 first place votes and moved up from second last week with Minnesota State (14-0) right behind them, earning one first place vote and moving up from third last week. Following their first regular season loss since March of 2022, defending national champion Nova Southeastern (11-1) dropped the third this week while the rest of the top five stayed the same with West Texas A&M (12-1) in fourth and Saint Martin's (13-1) in fifth. RMAC rivals Fort Lewis and Colorado Mesa were both on the rise this week, as the Skyhawks (12-1) moved up one spot in the Top 10 to ninth while the Mavericks (11-2) rose three spots from #14 to #11. The latest D2CSC Media Poll also had MSU Moorhead at #1, followed by NSU, Minnesota State, Saint Martin's and West Texas A&M in the top five while the Skyhawks and Mavericks were ranked #16 and #20 respectively.
 
Looking at the RMAC, Mines earned a trio of first place votes and was picked to finish third in the league season behind Colorado Mesa, who earned eight first place votes, and Fort Lewis who earned four. Black Hills State and Chadron State rounded out the rest of the top five.
 
WEEK 8 RECAP
Mines started 2024 the same way they ended 2023: winning. The Orediggers closed out non-conference action Thursday night at Regis, picking up a 93-79 win over the Rangers before returning to Lockridge Arena and resuming RMAC play with an 88-72 win over Colorado Christian. Mines shot an eye-watering .629 in the first half against RU and finished the night shooting .554 including .611 from the three-point line. Majok Deng led the way with 25 points on 8-14 shooting and went 6-8 from long range while Alex Romack poured in 17 on another perfect night, going 7-7 and just missing a double-double by two rebounds. Riley Schroeder recorded four blocks and five rebounds while dropping 15 on 6-9 shooting while Sam Beskind stuffed the stat sheet with eight points, six boards and nine assists. Saturday against the Cougars, five Orediggers finished in double digits as Deng and Adam Krasovec led the way with 15 each as the big Hungarian went 6-10 shooting and missed a double-double by one rebound. Juani Dassie continued his strong play of late, adding 14 off the bench on 5-6 shooting highlighted by a 4-5 day from deep. Cade Mankle bounced back from a slow night to score 12 while Reagan Koch turned in another solid outing with 10 points off the bench and was a perfect 3-3 from downtown.
 
THEY CALL THAT A WINNING STREAK
After being dealt a tough 86-79 loss by preseason RMAC favorite and then #18 Colorado Mesa to start the month of December, the Orediggers have done nothing but find ways to win. Currently on an eight-game winning streak, Mines has averaged 81.6 PPG and won by an average of 15.3 points during that span. They've proven they can win close games, picking up a 66-65 win at South Dakota Mines on December 8 and proven they can win by 20 or more as they did against Westminster on December 2 and Northern New Mexico on December 31. Last season's longest winning streak was nine games which happened on two occasions, and this year's club is now just one away from matching that eyeing the first double digit winning streak since the 2020-21 season, when Mines rattled off 11 in row amidst several schedule interruptions due to Covid-19. While the remaining schedule certainly isn't easy by any stretch, Mines will have a chance this weekend and possibly beyond to keep the train rolling.
 
ROAD WARRIORS
Mines has played within the walls of Lockridge Arena just five times in 15 games this season and has played just as well, if not better, on the road during the 2023-24 campaign. Away from Golden, the Orediggers are 8-2 including 6-1 in true road games and going 2-1 in neutral site matchups. After losing to St. Mary's in San Antonio back on November 11, Mines has won six in a row on the road, averaging 77.3 PPG and winning by a margin of 9.3 points on average. They'll look to keep that success going this weekend against the ThunderWolves and Cowboys.
 
LEAGUE LEADERS
Several Orediggers find themselves at or near the top of the RMAC in several statistical categories. Freshman Alex Romack leads the conference in total rebounds with 118 while his average of 7.9 per game ranks fifth. Majok Deng's 15.9 PPG is good for 10th in the conference heading into the weekend, while his 37 made three-pointers trail only Alejandro Rama of South Dakota Mines by a margin of three with his .457 three-point percentage tops in the RMAC. Sam Beskind leads the conference with 72 assists and is averaging close to five dimes per game while he and Cade Mankle are 1-2 in assist/turnover ratio at 2.5 and 2.1 respectively and are the only players in the league with an ATO above 2.0. Riley Schroeder's big week defensively has launched him back into a tie for second in the RMAC with 17 blocks while Romack is tied for seventh with 12.
 
In addition to leading the conference in blocks and rebounds, the Orediggers are also tops in assists at 241 and rank tied for fourth in three-point field goals with 114 while tying for the conference lead with 414 made field goals.
 
A BUSY, BUSY MAN
Graduate student Sam Beskind is an ambitious man and a bright one at that. After all, how many people can boast having two degrees from Stanford (B.S. & M.S. in Management Science & Engineering) already to their name while working on a second Master's degree while at Mines (Humanitarian Engineering/Advanced Energy Systems). The Tucson native is also doing all that in the classroom while also running the Orediggers offense from his point guard spot and is currently averaging 9.7 points per game and scored in double-digits in four of six contests this season while also averaging 5.8 rebounds and 3.2 assists per game. And as if he weren't busy enough, he hosts his own podcast called "Built for Earth", which is available on Spotify and Apple Podcasts. Started in January 2023, the series is already 23 episodes deep and features interviews with industry leaders in the renewable energy space and discuss wide-ranging solutions to help preserve the planet and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. If you need something new to listen to and maybe learn a thing or tune, be sure to tune in. We're sure Sam won't mind some new listeners when he checks his analytics.
 
THE 200 CLUB
Some folks can go an entire career and not hit any major statistical milestones. Second-year graduate transfer point guard Sam Beskind needed only 47 games to reach one. Saturday against Colorado Christian, Beskind recorded his 200th career assist between his time at Mines and Stanford. The Tucson native has done most of that work during his time with the Orediggers, recording 192 assists since his arrival last season and ranking at or near the top of the RMAC as a result.  Depending on what he does the rest of the season, Beskind could pencil his name into the all-time assist list at Mines, eyeing Russ Pulling (1985-89) in 12th place with 248. He needs 56 to get there over the final two months of the season which includes 15 more games, and he would need to average 3.73 assists per game to get there. Considering he's putting up close to five per night halfway through the season, he's definitely got a chance to get there.
 
LOCKDOWN DEFENSE
As is no surprise when it comes to Pryor Orser coached teams, defense plays a big part in the success of the team and how the year will go. 13 games into the season, Mines leads the RMAC in scoring defense at 67.3 PPG and is just one of two teams in the league holding opponents under 70 per night with Fort Lewis (68.8). The Orediggers are also limiting teams to a .417 shooting percentage which ranks in the top five in the RMAC. When it comes to rebounding, Mines leads the RMAC with 564 for an average of 37.6 RPG and have held opposing clubs to just 454 on the season, an average of 30.3 per game. Additionally, Mines now leads the RMAC in blocked shots with 54, averaging 3.60 per game and has an assist to turnover ratio of 1.30 which also leads the league.
 
STANDINGS RESET
Following the first week of RMAC action in 2024, it's worth looking at the latest conference standings as all 15 teams look to jockey for one of the eight spots in the RMAC Men's Basketball Tournament in March. Fort Lewis and Colorado Mesa lead the way at 7-0 in league play with Mines hot their heels at 6-1 while Chadron State is 5-2. Regis and Black Hills State are currently tied for fifth at 4-3 while the final two spots in the field are held by MSU Denver at 3-3 and New Mexico Highlands at 4-4. CSU Pueblo is currently the first team out at 3-4 in league play followed by South Dakota Mines at 3-5. Colorado Christan and Adams State are next at 2-5 with UCCS, Western Colorado and Westminster bringing up the rear at 2-6, 1-5 and 0-7 respectively. This is by no means an indication of where everyone in the league might finish, but rest assured the final eight weeks of the regular season are sure to be exciting.
 
LOOKING AT THE STATS
Majok Deng remains the clubhouse leader in scoring at 15.7 PPG and is shooting .444/.457/.809 while pulling down 3.4 rebounds per game. Cade Mankle continues to shine in his expanded role this season, scoring 12.6 PPG and shooting .535/.417/.722 with 3.2 RPG and 38 assists, good for second on the team. Riley Schroeder isn't too far behind, scoring 9.6 PPG and shooting .459 from the floor and really emerging as a three-point threat, connecting 15 times from deep while going 17-20 at the line and hauling in 4.1 RPG with 17 blocks and nine steals.
 
Alex Romack's 7.9 RPG lead the team while also scoring 8.1 per night and shooting .694 with 12 blocks while Sam Beskind is scoring 7.9 PPG with 5.5 RPG and has 72 assists along with nine blocks and seven steals and is shooting .429 from the field and .811 at the line. Juani Dassie has turned it on in recent weeks, and is now scoring 6.7 PPG, shooting .592 from the floor and .538 from downtown with 21 made three-pointers. Markus Pastorcic-Straun (5.6 PPG) has been a sparkplug defensively, recording a team-high 13 steals while also dishing out 20 assists off the bench while fellow reserve Reagan Koch (4.3 PPG) is starting to emerge from a slow start to the season, having now made 12 three-pointers on the season, 10 of which have come over the last four games along with 15 assists and 10 steals.
 
On the season, Mines averages 75.9 PPG and is +8.6 in scoring margin while shooting .486/.380/.679. They average 37.6 rebounds per game and are +7.3 in rebounding margin while also recording 16.1 assists, 12.3 turnovers,5.3 steals and 3.6 blocks per game. Opponents meanwhile are scoring 67.3 PPG and shooting .417/.337/.777 with 30.3 rebounds, 10.5 assists, 6.3 steals and 2.2 blocks per game and are +1.8 in turnover margin, doing so just 10.5 times per game.
 
SCOUTING CSU PUEBLO
It's a new-look team for CSU Pueblo this season as just five total players off last year's club are back as Tristan Hurdle and Isaiah Thompson both left to head to Fort Lewis to headline the roster turnover in Pueblo. Several transfers joined the ThunderWolves in the offseason, including Isaiah Morris from Cal State Dominguez Hills and Brevin Walter from South Dakota Mines. Walter, who has started six times in nine games, has missed four games this season but has been impactful when on the court, leading five players in double-figure scoring at 20.4 PPG and shooting .409/.360/.886 with 52 made field goals, 18 three-pointers and 30 assists. Makiah Morris, the leading returner for CSUP, follows at 14.4 PPG and is the team's leading rebounder at 6.2 per night and is tops in both assists (42) and steals (30) while shooting .534 from the floor and .526 from three.
 
JUCO transfers Daeyon James and Armon Muldrew are both averaging 11.2 PPG with the former leading the team with 36 three-pointers along with 17 assists, 13 steals and a team-high seven blocks, while the latter is third on the team with 55 made field goals with 21 assists and six blocks while shooting .440. De'Shaun Cooper, one of the returners from last season, rounds out the group at 10.8 PPG and is shooting .615 with 4.8 RPG, 12 assists and five blocks. Corbin Garver (4.9 PPG) has 10 steals off the bench this season while the transfer Isaiah Morris (3.7 PPG) and returner Sam Howery (1.4 PPG) have 19 and 16 assists respectively off the bench.
 
As a team, the ThunderWolves are scoring 80.3 PPG and are +5.8 in scoring margin, shooting .447/.388/.717 on the season. They are -3.0 in rebounding margin at 35.5 per game and average 14.2 assists, 12.7 turnovers, 7.5 steals and 2.0 blocks per game. Opponents are scoring 74.5 PPG and shooting .435/.303/.730 with 38.5 rebounds, 13.4 assists. 15.2 turnovers, 7.2 steals and 2.8 blocks per game.
 
SCOUTING NEW MEXICO HIGHLANDS
Several new faces can be found on the Cowboys roster this season as well along with eight returners from last season's club. One of those transfers, Kenard Richardson, is the team's leading scorer at 10.6 PPG playing mostly off the bench in 12 games and shooting .373/.371/.727 with 10 assists and 10 steals. Another transfer, Kyrie Thomas, is next at 10.5 PPG and leads the team with 21 three-pointers and 22 assists while also adding 10 steals and shooting .370/.375/.839. Division I transfer AC Curry is the third man for NMHU scoring in double-digits at 10.3 PPG and is second behind Thomas in three-pointers with 18 and is also second in rebounding at 5.7 per game and is shooting .400 on the season with 18 steals and 12 blocks.
 
 
Thomas' JUCO teammate Rodney Mason II checks in next at 7.5 PPG and leads New Mexico Highlands with 19 steals and is shooting .458 this season. Returning big man Ezichi Kalu is scoring 7.3 PPG and leads the way in rebounding at 8.4 per night and blocks this season with 14 while going .564 from the floor. Messiah Turner (7.0 PPG) and Aahmod Scarbrough (6.2 PPG) are ones to watch off the bench, combining for 32 assists and 12 steals between them while Tyler Rodgers (3.2 PPG) has eight blocks and six steals by himself.
 
For the year, NMHU is scoring 73.8 PPG and is just -0.8 in scoring margin, shooting .426/.347/.721 on the year. They are +2.5 in rebounding margin at 36.2 per night while also averaging 10.7 assists, 15.6 turnovers, 8.2 steals and 3.3 blocks per night. Opponents are scoring 74.6 PPG and shooting .425/.343/.731 with 33.7 rebounds, 14.8 turnovers, 8.0 steals and 2.6 blocks per game.
 
SERIES HISTORY
Looking at the all-time series with CSU Pueblo, Mines is 30-36 but is trending up of late, winning the last eight contests including the lone meeting last season by a score of 97-62 in Golden. When playing away from home, the Orediggers are just 13-22 against the ThunderWolves but have won the last nine games in Pueblo, last losing on the road in 2009. Against New Mexico Highlands, Mines is 47-33 all-time and winners of the last four and have lost just twice to the Cowboys since the 2010-11 season. Mines won last season's lone meeting 76-56 in Golden and has won four straight in Las Vegas with their last trip coming in 2020 and resulting in a 93-86 win to improve to 16-22 on the road in the series.
 
LOOKING AHEAD
After this weekend's road trip, Mines will be back at Lockridge Arena for their next four dates starting January 19 and 20 when they host Regis and UCCS in the second of two meetings this season with each team, this time in Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference play. The Orediggers have played each team once already this season in non-conference action.

Fans can keep up with Mines men's basketball on X and Instagram at @minesmbb. They can also keep up with Colorado School of Mines Athletics all year long on Facebook, X and Instagram using the handle @MinesAthletics.