Already leading the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference in rebounding, the Chadron State College men’s basketball team out-boarded the Regis Rangers 45 to 30 and converted 16 of their offensive rebounds into 19 points while winning a 74-64 verdict in Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference action Monday afternoon in Denver.
The win was the Eagles’ eighth in their last nine games, and improved their RMAC record to 5-1.
Four CSC players scored in double digits, led by Isaiah Wyatt with 19 points to go with his game-high 10 rebounds for his third double-double of the season.
The Eagles also got a big boost from MJ Foust, who came off the bench to make 7 of 10 field goal shots while tallying a season-best 15 points and collecting seven rebounds.
Both Porter Anderson and Josh Robinson added 10 points and combined for 13 additional rebounds.
Coach Shane Paben was thrilled with the road victory. He said the Eagles were strong defensively, finished well on offense and played smart basketball.
“We’re getting better,” Paben said. “I’m excited for the guys because I know we can play better offensively. We’re a great rebounding team that focuses on offensive rebounding. That really paid off today. We also like to rebound on defense. We don’t want to give the other team second chances.”
The game was close much of the way. There were 12 lead changes and seven ties. The Rangers led 35-31 at halftime, but Chadron State outscored them 43-29 in the second half.
The Eagles took the lead for keeps 49-48 on Wyatt’s three-pointer with 11:23 to play. They eventually led by 11. Regis rallied to cut the margin to six with two minutes left, but 12 seconds later Foust took a pass from Bryce Latimer and dunked the ball to pretty well seal the verdict.
Wyatt and the team’s senior citizen, Marcus Jefferson, made both of their free throws after they were fouled to stop the clock in the final minute.
Regis, now 5-7 overall and 2-4 in the RMAC, was paced by guard David Simental with 19 points. Jesdeep Singh hit four of six three-point shots while contributing 14 points and Eddy Egun added 11, but shot just 25% from the field.
The game was originally scheduled for Dec. 16, but the Eagles were snowbound and could not make the trip. CSC also was slated to visit Colorado-Colorado Springs the next day, but that game also had to be postponed. So, the Eagles will visit the Mountain Lions Tuesday afternoon.
Both Chadron State teams also will play at Colorado Mesa in Grand Junction and the Westminster Griffins in Salt Lake City this weekend. Porter Anderson, the Eagles’ gregarious center, said he considers the busy schedule “lots of fun.”
Chadron State—Isaiah Wyatt 19, MJ Foust 15, Josh Robinson 10, Porter Anderson 10, Marcus Jefferson 8, Pat McLachlan 6, Jarrett Taylor 3, Bryce Latimer 3. Total: 28-63 (7-18) 11-17 74 points, 45 rebounds, 12 turnovers.
Regis—David Simental 19, Jesdeep Singh 14, Eddy Egun 11, Chase Mayo Harmon 6, CJ Reed 5, Vojin Mastilovic 3, Aaron Ofstun 2, Aaron Bokol 2, Brayden Carter 2. Totals: 21-58 (10-25) 12-13 64 points, 30 rebounds, 13 turnovers.
Chadron State 31 43 —74
Regis 35 29 —64
3-pointers: CSC—Wyatt 2, Jefferson 2, McLachlan 2, Taylor 1. Regis—Singh 4, Simental 3, Egun 1, Mastilovic 1, Reed 1.