Mines (14-13, 10-6 RMAC) vs. UCCS (13-11, 8-8 RMAC) – Thursday, 7:30 p.m. – Golden, Colo. [Live Stats] [RMAC Network PPV] [Tickets]
Mines (14-13, 10-6 RMAC) vs. CSU Pueblo (17-7, 11-5 RMAC) – Saturday, 3 p.m. – Golden, Colo. [Live Stats] [RMAC Network PPV] [Tickets]

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BIG WEEKEND AWAITS        
Just four games remain the regular season as the Colorado School of Mines men's basketball team looks to secure their spot in the postseason as they return home this weekend to square off with UCCS and CSU Pueblo for Rock The Lock Night and Alumni Weekend at Lockridge Arena.

LIVE COVERAGE
This week's games will be available for purchase on the RMAC Network with Miles Dunklin on the call. Free live stats will be available as well. Links for video and stats can be found on minesathletics.com.
 
ROCK THE LOCK
Thursday night is also the annual Rock The Lock night for Oredigger basketball. Fans will be able to participate in giveaways and compete for epic prizes while food will be available from Woody's Wood Fired Pizza and the first 500 fans in attendance will get a Rock The Lock t-shirt. There will also be special recognitions for RMAC Champions Mines wrestling and club sport national champions women's rugby and cycling as part of the festivities.
 
ALUMNI WEEKEND
Saturday the Oredigger basketball programs will welcome back their alumni for a celebration of past and present for Alumni Weekend. Additionally, the Oredigger Outfitters Campus Store will have a pop-up stand and will be selling official Mines merchandise to fans.
 
RMAC NETWORK CHANGES
As was announced on June 30, 2025, this year the RMAC Network is moving to a pay-per-view model for all events beginning with the 2025-26 season.
 
RMAC fans can purchase monthly and annual subscriptions that will provide them access to all regular-season, championship, and archived broadcasts on the RMAC Network. A monthly subscription costs $25, and an annual subscription costs $130. Single-game passes are available for $10, which grants access to a single game for 24 hours. For technical support questions, fans may submit a support ticket with Hudl Support or email the RMAC directly (rmac@rmacsports.org). For further support, fans can visit the RMAC Network Help page.

AT THE HELM
The 2025-26 season will be the 25th for the Orediggers under the guidance of head coach Pryor Orser. The winningest coach in the history of the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference, Orser's record stands at 488-245 overall and a mark of 345-163 in league play. Under Orser, Mines has won six RMAC regular-season championships and three RMAC Tournament titles and qualified for 14 NCAA Tournaments including two Elite Eight trips. 
 
IN THE POLLS
Mines was picked to finish second in the RMAC this season in the preseason coaches poll announced in late October. Black Hills State was the favorite to win while the top five behind Mines included Colorado Mesa, UCCS and Fort Lewis.
 
The latest national poll saw significant shakeups with Washburn taking over the top spot followed by Daemen. Southern Nazarene moved up to #3 followed by West Texas A&M and Nova Southeastern to round out the top five.

WEEK 14 RECAP
Mines went 1-1 in their final full weekend on the road, dropping an 87-69 decision to Black Hills State before holding on for a thrilling 74-72 win over Chadron State. Thursday was a four-point game at the break but a second half cold spell shooting the rock saw the Orediggers unable to match the Yellow Jackets offensively. Alex Romack led four in double figures with 17 points while Will Cordonnier went for 11 off the bench. Kellon Johnson and Shelton Henton each added 10. Saturday in Chadron, the Orediggers were up 13 at the break and had to fend off a ferocious second half rally by the Eagles, who went cold from the free-throw line in the late going as they failed in their upset bid. Jonathan Moore and Romack each had a double-double with 16 and 10 and 13 and 10 respectively while Trent Minter just missed making it three double-doubles with 12 points and nine rebounds. Henton again added 10 points to make it 10 double figures performances in 13 games since the calendar turned over to 2026.
 
RMAC RESET
The race for the postseason is on as half of the eight-team field for the 2026 RMAC Men's Basketball championship has been confirmed. Two new faces grace the top of the standings this week as Black Hills State tops the standings at 13-3 followed by Colorado Mesa t 13-4 after their loss to Westminster Tuesday. Fort Lewis has lost four in a row and dropped to third at 12-4 one game up of CSU Pueblo at 11-5 as those four teams know they'll be playing basketball in March. Fifth through eighth in the standings are separated by just two games as Mines and Adams State are tied for fifth at 10-6 with New Mexico Highlands right behind in seventh at 9-7. UCCS holds the last postseason spot at the moment with an 8-8 record and has a two-game cushion with two weeks left. A quartet of 6-10 teams follow at South Dakota Mines, Colorado Christian, MSU Denver and Western Colorado are all still in contention while Westminster improved to 6-11 after knocking off CMU Tuesday night, while Chadron State at 4-12 would need to win out and get some significant help in front of them. Regis picked up their first league win of the season last week over SDSMT and is now 1-15 as they look to finish strong and look to 2026-27.
 
HOME SWEET HOME
Mines has made the most playing at Lockridge Arena this season and with three of four at home to end the regular season, will look to keep that momentum going as they look to lock up a spot in the RMAC Tournament. In 10 home games this season, the Orediggers are 9-1 and average 84.0 PPG while in their 17 dates away from Golden are 5-13 including 3-7 in true road games and average almost a full 10 points less per game at 74.5 PPG even with a pair of 100-point performances. Home court advantage is a serious thing for the Orediggers, who since the 2020-21 season have gone 67-11 (.855) as they'll look to continue that success to end the month of February.
 
CHASING 1,000
Alex Romack has got a shot at history this weekend as he looks to become the latest Oredigger to net 1,000 points in a Mines uniform. Enjoying the best offensive season of his career, Romack has 372 points through 27 games in the 2026-26 campaign and is averaging 13.8 PPG. As a freshman, he scored 294 points and saw a slight bump last season as he ended the year with 310. Featuring more prominently in the offense this, Romack hasn't missed a beat and stepped his production up in all areas of his game. On top of chasing 1,000 career points, he's also set new career highs this year in field goals (136), three-pointers (3), free throws (97), rebounds (252), assists (55), blocks (29) and is close to doing so in steals as well.
 
DOUBLE-DOUBLE MACHINE
What Alex Romack is doing this season is something never before seen in the history of Mines basketball when it comes to double-double performances. Coming into the season, Romack had just eight double-doubles in his career with six of those coming in his RMAC Freshman of the Year campaign in the 2023-24 season. This season, the junior from Indiana is up to 17 such performances already with still two weeks left to go in the season. That total ranks tied for second in NCAA Division II and is tied for fourth across all levels of the NCAA this season.
 
Looking back through the years, the most double-doubles by an individual in a season in the last 13 years came courtesy of Trevor Wages with 14 in the 2013-14 season. In fact since the year 2000, there have just been three seasons with 10 or more double-doubles by an Oredigger, as Wages recorded 12 in the 2012-13 season. And for more context as to what Romack has been doing this season, over the 2023-24 and 2024-25 seasons, Mines had a combined 13 double-doubles as a team and in the two seasons before that, combined for just 10 total double-doubles.
 
HEEEEERE'S JONNY!
After recording his first career double-double at Fort Lewis two weeks ago, Jonathan Moore did it against Saturday in the win over Chadron State as he went for 16 points and 10 rebounds. Over the last four weeks, Moore is averaging 13.5 PPG with a pair of 20-performances and two double-doubles while being an absolute menace defensively with 0 blocked shots.
 
BLOCK PARTY
Opposing teams have driven in the paint against the Orediggers at their own peril this season, and the numbers prove it. A team with significant length and athleticism inside defensively, Mines is back atop the RMAC with 113 blocked shots and are among the top teams in Division II in rejections. Leading the effort have been the big men Jonathan Moore and Alex Romack, with 35 and 29 blocks respectively. Moore ranks second in the RMAC in rejections, with Romack close behind in fifth. Will Cordonnier and Derek Lamb have also led things defensively inside off the bench with nine and eight blocks respectively. In fact, 12 of the 14 Orediggers who have suited up this season have recorded at least one block, while 10 have at least a pair to their credit.
 
FROM DOWNTOWN
Mines also finds themselves second in the RMAC as a team with 249 field goals of the three-point variety and with good reason. Eight Orediggers have made 10 or more treys this season, lead by freshman Shelton Henton's 68. In fact, Henton ranks second in the RMAC in three-pointers while his .436 shooting rate from deep is good for fifth. Jonathan Moore follows with 40 ahead of Braydon Jacob with 25 and Kellon Johnson with 24, while Kasen Lehman has 20. Markus Pastorcic-Straun had 16 triples before his injury while Cooper Mroczek and Will Cordonnier each have 18.
 
GLASS CLEANERS
This season, no one in the RMAC has been better than the Orediggers on the glass and it hasn't been close. In 27 games, the Orediggers lead the RMAC with 1,008 total rebounds and are fifth in rebounding average at 37.3. They also lead the RMAC with 335 offensive rebounds and are fourth in the RMAC with 12.4 offensive boards per game. In fact, just 18 teams nationally have more total offensive rebounds than Mines, who ranks in the top 50 nationally on the offensive glass.
 
BURN THAT SHIRT
Orediggers fans have quickly gotten acquainted with freshman Kasen Lehman over the last three weeks as the Castle Rock native has announced his arrival with authority. Since debuting against Chadron State on January 8, Lehman has scored 20 or more points twice and gone for double figures off the bench in four of 10 games. He's averaging 7.7 PPG at the moment and is shooting .430 from the floor and .339 from deep with 10 steals and eight assists in just about 17 minutes a night off the bench. Having passed his allotment of games in order to retain his redshirt for this season, Lehman figures to be a key piece for the Orediggers down the stretch off the bench heading towards the postseason.
 
BUTKOVICH INDUCTED TO MINES HOF
The first All-American in program history, Joe Butkovich was inducted earlier this fall to the Harry D. Campbell Mines Hall of Fame. A prolific scorer and rebounder in the post, Butkovich was named an all-American as a senior in 1971-72, the Orediggers' first national honoree. Upon the conclusion of his career, Butkovich was Mines' all-time rebounding leader with 891 and third on Mines' all-time scoring list with 1,641 points. More than 50 years after graduating, he still owns Mines' career and season per-game rebounding records of 11.7 and 12.3 (1970-71) rebounds per game, respectively, and he also set the record (since broken) for season scoring average with 24.9 points per game in 1971-72; today he ranks third in that category. That senior season saw him lead the RMAC in scoring and rank among the NCAA and NAIA national leaders in both scoring and rebounding, and his top individual games were a 37-point night against Western New Mexico (the Mines single-game record at the time) and 20 rebounds against UMKC. 

Butkovich earned his degree in engineering from Mines in 1972. His post-collegiate basketball career included tryouts with the Denver Nuggets and Chicago Bulls, and he played professionally in France and Belgium before returning stateside to work as an engineer, spending much of his career dismantling chemical weapons across the United States. 
 
CHECKING THE STATS
While awaiting the return of Markus Pastorcic-Straun, Alex Romack continues to hold things down on both side of the ball with 13.8 PPG and 9.3 RPG while shooting .540 with 55 dimes, 29 blocks and 28 steals. Jonathan Moore is scoring 12.6 PPG on .491/.465/.883 shooting with 35 blocks, 34 assists and 12 steals. Shelton Henton has turned it on in the second half of the season, scoring 10.6 PPG on .431/.436/.800 shooting with 68 three-pointers, 52 assists and 18 steals.
 
Kasne Lehman is netting 7.7 PPG as he's cooled some since bursting onto the scene, while Kellon Johnson remains a steady hand with 7.3 PPG on .448 shooting, 49 assists and 22 steals. Trent Minter has had a strong second half as well and is averaging 5.7 PPG with 4.4 RPG and 90 assists with 25 steals and 10 blocks, while Cooper Mroczek is scoring 5.3 PPG on .426 shooting with 20 assists. Braydon Jacob has been heating up from three down the stretch and has 25 triples on the year entering the week while dishing out 43 assists and pocketing 17 steals. Will Cordonnier has stepped up lately as well and is shooting .341 on the year with 29 assists, 15 steals and 10 blocks.
 
On the season, Mines averages 78.0 PPG and is +2.3 in scoring margin. They've shot .451/.355/.701 this year compared to .452/.311/.716 by opponents and are +2.9 in rebounding margin at 37.3 RPG while dishing out 16.6 assists per game. Mines turns it over 13 times per game and is -2.4 in turnover margin while scoring 11.4 PPG off turnovers. Defensively, they average 6.6 steals and 4.2 blocks per game.
 
SCOUTING UCCS
UCCS enters the week looking to cement their standing for the postseason as they come off a 2-2 stretch over the last two weeks. The Mountain Lions knocked off CCU 88-74 at home Saturday after dropping an 80-69 decision to CSU Pueblo last Tuesday.
 
Four players are scoring better than 10 PPG for UCCS led by MSU Denver transfer Marzouq Abdur-Razaaq. After sitting out last season, the big man is averaging 14.0 PPG and 6.0 RPG to lead the Mountain Lions and is shooting .575/.371/.685 on the season with 24 assists and 20 steals. Point guard Xavier Martinez has been in and out of the lineup in recent weeks but is still scoring 12.9 PPG on .456 shooting with 33 three-pointers and remains one of the elite facilitators in the RMAC with 107 assists and is tops on UCCS with 40 steals. Freshman Brodie Hull is the lone man to start all 24 games and is averaging 12.8 PPG and 4.8 RPG with six blocked shots and is shooting .473/.325/.856 and is second to Martinez with 39 steals. Mario Williams Jr. rounds out the group with 10.7 PPG on .412 shooting and leads the Mountain Lions with 35 three-pointers and is second with seven blocks.
 
Gavin Carter headlines the second unit at 7.2 PPG behind .458 shooting with 26 dimes and 15 steals. Jezza McKenzie, who recently went over 1,000 career points at UCCS, is scoring 6.7 PPG on .421 shooting with 4.2 RPG and 20 steals along with 39 assists and six blocks. Alex Hurr averages and even 6.0 PPG off the bench on .495 shooting with 21 treys, while Shawn Williams leads the team with 11 blocks while scoring 5.3 PPG on .573 shooting with 21 assists and 13 steals. Tre Lucia (4.3 PPG, .486 FG%, 13 STL) and Evan McKean (3.5 PPG, .326 FG%, 17 STL) are also ones to watch to provide a spark off the bench defensively.
 
On the season, UCCS averages 87.5 PPG as the top scoring offense in the league but is just +1.8 in scoring margin with the second-worst scoring defense in the RMAC at 85.7 PPG. The Mountain Lions have shot .472/.343/.717 this season against .504/.385/.736 by opponents. They average 34.4 rebounds per game and are -0.4 in rebounding margin while dishing out 14.0 assists per game. UCCS turns the ball over 12.9 times per game and is +3.0 in TO margin while scoring better than 20 PPG off turnovers. Defensively they average 8.8 steals and 1.8 blocks per game.
 
SCOUTING CSU PUEBLO
First-year head coach Zach Ruebesam has breathed new life into the ThunderWolves this season as they've locked up a postseason spot already and posted their highest win total since the 2016-17 season when they went 19-9. The Pack take on MSU Denver Thursday night before making the trip up to Golden Saturday.
 
Jordan Blair is one of two players to start all 24 games for CSU Pueblo this season and is one of three averaging better than 10 PPG. He leads the way in scoring at 13.9 PPG on .452/.412/.661 shooting and rebounding at 6.8 RPG while also dishing 57 steals and recording 16 steals and seven blocks defensively. Jaden Kennis is averaging 11.0 PPG on .405 shooting with 24 three-pointers and is second in rebounding at 5.2 RPG while leads the way with 26 steals to go with 56 assists and five blocks. Dylan Sanders has split time off the bench and starting and is averaging 10.5 PPG in his swingman role, shooting .441/.417/.833 and is second on the team with 43 three-pointers while pocketing 21 steals.
 
Bryce Riehl nets 7.9 PPG off the bench on .513 shooting which is backed by his team-leading 39 three-pointers as he also has 32 assists and 17 steals. Kyren Allen has been a big rotation piece as well, scoring 6.8 PPG with 5.1 RPG while shooting .689 inside with 12 steals and 11 blocks. Ty Adam nets 6.7 PPG on .510 shooting while South Dakota mines transfer Mac Terry is the second of two players to start all 24 games and is scoring 5.8 PPG with a team-leading 85 assists. Sam Howery, younger brother of former Mines women's standout Josephine, has 70 assists and average 4.4 PPG. Corbin Garver (3.9 PPG, .403 FG%, 9 STL), Cash Callaway (3.5 PPG, .469 FG%, 20 AST) and Kaleb Mitchell (2.8 PPG, .429 FG%, 15 BLK) are also worth keeping an eye on.
 
This year CSU Pueblo has averaged 72.9 PPG and is +8.4 in scoring margin with the best scoring defense in the RMAC, allowing just 64.5 PPG. They have shot .449/.371/.702 on the year against .407/.308/.676 by opponents and average 36.0 RPG for a +4.0 rebounding margin and 16.1 assists per game. The Pack turns the ball over 11.8 times per game and is +0.5 in TO margin while scoring 14.8 PPG off turnovers. Defensively, they average 6.7 steals and 2.8 blocks per game.
 
SERIES HISTORY
Mines leads the series with UCCS 40-14 all-time and sports a 19-5 record when playing in Golden. Last season the teams split the season series with UCCS taking the most recent meeting 58-57 last February in Colorado Springs while the Orediggers steamrolled their way to a 107-67 win at Lockridge Arena in November 2024. Over the last 10 games, Mines is 7-3 against the Mountain Lions and hasn't lost in Golden since 2019.
 
January's 63-54 loss to CSU Pueblo saw the ThunderWolves extend their lead in the series to 37-33 and snapped an 11-game winning streak by the Orediggers as well. However, in 32 meetings in Golden Mines holds an 18-14 edge. The teams last met in Lockridge Arena last January in a game that resulted in a 96-75 Mines win. Looking back, CSUP's last win in Golden came all the way back in 2018 by a tally of 83-79.
 
LOOKING AHEAD
Mines plays their final home game the regular season Tuesday night February 24 against Regis for Senior Night before closing out action with game 31 at MSU Denver Thursday February 26.
 
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.