Box Score How It Happened
A dominant third period run sparked a 62-47 victory for Colorado School of Mines (2-2) over Western Oregon University in the final game of the Orediggers Thanksgiving Classic on Saturday, November 28 in Lockridge Arena.
After a slow start, Mines outscored WOU 31-16 over the second and third periods and shot a sizzling 50% from the field in the second half to put away a pesky Wolves squad.
The opening half was a tight defensive affair as the Orediggers held Western Oregon to only 20.9% shooting. Mines got out a to a period-high seven points on redshirt-freshman Mikaela Moore's layup with 2:56 remaining.
After only leading by three at the end of the first (15-12), Mines finally got its first double-digit lead with 3:02 left in the half on redshirt-sophomore Caitlyn Smith's layup. CSM essentially held that lead the rest of the half as they traded baskets with WOU. Junior Katie Kuhn cemented Mines' 11-point lead when she grooved a jumper with 40 seconds left – meaning Orediggers took a 29-18 lead into the break.
The third period is when Mines took its game up another notch. With a 36-26 advantage and 3:38 left in the period, the Orediggers went a 10-0 run over the next three minutes-plus to essentially put the game away. The defining run was jump started by a three-ball from sophomore Paige Husa and finished off by a pair of free throws from Moore.
After the big run, it was fairly academic as Mines did what they had to over the final 10 minutes to finish perfect on the weekend with a 62-47 victory over the visitors from Oregon.
Notables
- As mentioned above, Mines rebounded from a poor shooting performance in the opening half to shoot exactly 50% in the last one.
- The one constant for CSM was its defense as they outrebounded WOU 45-33 and swatted four shots.
- Junior Laura Tyree has Mines' best all-around game with 12 points, eight rebounds and three assists.
- While dealing with foul trouble, senior Courtney Martin still let her presence be felt with six points, nine rebounds and two blocks.
- Mikaela Moore benefited from Martin's limited minutes as she scored 11 of 5-7 shooting and six boards.
- Redshirt-freshman Emily Bailey gave the Orediggers a solid 10 points.
Up Next
Mines kicks off RMAC play a week from tonight as they head over to nearby rival Colorado Christian on December 5 at 5 p.m.
