Photo Gallery vs. Colorado MesaLAKEWOOD, Colo. – The St. Edward's Men's Basketball team won its sixth-straight season opener with head coach Andre Cook at the helm as they defeated Colorado Mesa, 92-85, Friday evening in the Heartland/Rocky Mountain Conference Tip-Off at the CCU Events Center. The victory was also a repeat of last year's season-opening win over the Mavericks in Austin.
St. Edward's (1-0) opened the game with a 12-5 run over the first four minutes of action.
FRANKIE MGBOLU had six points during the opening spurt, including a steal and fast-break layup to force a timeout by the Colorado Mesa (0-1).
A bucket by Ryan Stephan, along with two three-pointers led the Mavericks back within two, 15-13, with 13:20 remaining in the first half.
That's when the Hilltoppers started to hit from downtown. After junior
JOHN GRAMLICH hit his first three-pointer of the game, sophomore
AUBRIE KING came off of the bench to score 11-straight points for St. Edward's. That included three makes from behind the arc, as the team expanded its lead to 29-17, with 8:39 left before halftime.
After nine-straight points from Colorado Mesa cut the Hilltopper lead to three, St. Edward's had the answer yet again. They would take a 49-35 advantage into the break.
The Hilltoppers were on fire, shooting 68 percent (19-28) from the floor and 54 percent (7-13) from behind the arc in the opening frame.
In the second half, the Hilltoppers kept the lead in double-digits for most of the action. In the final minute, St. Edward's was unlucky at the free-throw stripe, allowing the Mavericks to cut the deficit to five, but two free throws by Mgbolu sealed the deal for the season-opening victory.
"It's always great to start off with a win," Cook said. "I was proud of our guys how they came out of the gate. Mesa is a very good team. Stephan will probably be a problem for everyone on their schedule. I would love to leave Colorado at 2-0."
Gramlich led the Hilltoppers with 21 points on 6-of-9 shooting that included four treys. Mgbolu ended with 16 points, seven rebounds. Both
RAMIR BURTON and King added 14 points each, while
QUINTON LILLEY tallied eight points and 10 rebounds.
ETHAN GILBERT came off of the bench and led the Hilltoppers with five assists.
Stephan led all scorers with 33 points, including a game-high 14 rebounds.
St. Edward's will wrap up the Heartland/Rocky Mountain Tip-Off Challenge Saturday when they take on hosts Colorado Christian. Opening-tip is set for 7 p.m. MST. Live video and stats are available on the Cougar Athletic Website.
