James Williams
The Paw Print
The Adams State College Grizzlies men’s basketball team couldn’t overcome their struggles shooting the basketball, beginning a four game road trip on Friday night with a loss to the arch rival Western State Mountaineers 55-48 in the first matchup of the season between the cellar dwellers of the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference’s West Division.
Last Saturday against CSU-Pueblo, the Grizzlies couldn’t miss to start the game, making 11 of their first 12 shots from the field. Not quite a week later, the Grizzlies couldn’t buy a basket, missing their first 14 shots from the field during a game-opening eight minute scoreless streak.
The Mountaineers had their own struggles shooting the basketball, and failed to capitalize on the poor start by the Grizzlies. The Mountaineers opened a seven point lead over the eight minutes the Grizzlies were unable to score before sophomore guard Robby Hanzlik put the Grizzlies on the scoreboard with a layup with 11:40 remaining in the first half.
The Grizzlies chipped away at the early lead held by the Mountaineers, eventually tying the game at 14 with 3:18 remaining in the half. The Grizzlies entered halftime trailing 21-17 despite converting only 6 of 31 attempted shots in the first half, good for a 19.4 percent rate of success. However, the Mountaineers were only marginally better, shooting the ball at a dreadful 22.2 percent, making only 6 of 27 attempted shots in the first half.
The Grizzlies opened the second half with a pair of free throws by Hanzlik and a layup by senior swingman Forrest Becker to tie the score at 21. The teams traded baskets for the next several minutes, with the Grizzlies taking the lead 28-25, their largest lead of the game, at the 16:16 mark of the second half following a layup by junior forward Seth Heinbaugh.
The Mountaineers came back with three point play by senior forward Dan Biber to tie the score at 28. The Grizzlies answered with a dunk by senior forward Eric Miller before Biber made what would end up being the final statement for the Mountaineers, dialing it up from long distance to change the lead for the last time in the game with 14:05 remaining.
Freshman forward Tyler Miller added a three pointer of his own for the Mountaineers, sparking a 20-8 run that built a 48-38 lead with just over six minutes remaining.
Hanzlik put up one of his best games of the season as one of the few bright spots for the Grizzlies, scoring 16 points and pulling down a career-high 10 rebounds to register his first double-double of the season. No other Grizzlies scored in double figures.
Likewise, Biber was the only Mountaineer to score in double figures, finishing with 13 points.
The Grizzlies had 13 offensive rebounds for the game, but added only six second chance points. In comparison, the Mountaineers had eight offensive rebounds, and had eight second chance points for the game.
The Grizzlies were also able to control the ball much better than they have for most of the season, recording only 10 turnovers.
It was the eighth consecutive loss for the Grizzlies, dropping their overall record to 4-16 and 1-11 in the RMAC.
The Mountaineers now stand at 5-14 overall and 2-10 in the RMAC. It was their third straight victory of the Grizzlies, dating back to the 2008-09 season.
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