Friday, March 6, 2026
The CSC Eagle Newspaper – Chadron, NE
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The CSC Eagle Newspaper – Chadron, NE
BasketballSports

Eagles soar past Griffins, fall to Colorado Mesa

Preston Goehring

After a five-game losing streak, the Eagles finally put another win in the column against Westminster College, Salt Lake City, with a final score of 69-62. The following night, the Eagles struggled to contain the RMAC’s leading scorer Ryan Stephan, of Colorado Mesa University, Grand Junction, who led the Mavericks to an 85-72 victory.

Jordan Green (23), of Rochelle, New York takes it straight to the hoop during the Colorado Mesa game Saturday night at the Chicoine Events Center.—Photo by Shontell Roseberry
Jordan Green (23), of Rochelle, New York takes it straight to the hoop during the Colorado Mesa game Saturday night at the Chicoine Events Center.—Photo by Shontell Roseberry

In just the second meeting with Westminster College in school history, Sharif Black, sophomore of Detroit, led the team with 22 points. It was Black’s third game in a row with over 20 points. Davante McCallam, senior of Miami, added a double-double with 17 points and 11 rebounds.

As a team, the cold shooting continued, especially from long range. After the first half, the Eagles only sank 8 of 34 shots, 0 of 11 from behind the 3-point line. However in the second half, the Eagles improved to 46 percent from the field and four 3-pointers. Solid free-throw shooting helped CSC cruise to victory, sinking 25 of 34.

Against the Mavericks, CMU’s Stephan, senior of Lakewood, Colorado, and Preseason RMAC Player of the Year, dropped 42 points and pulled down 14 rebounds. The rest of his team only scored 43. He scored 22 points in the first half, which helped the Mavs pull out to a 42-35 lead at halftime.

The second half, Stephan was stuck with four fouls, leaving him on the bench at the eight-minute mark. With just over five minutes remaining, the Eagles pulled within four points. However, the comeback was stuffed after Stephan stepped back on the court. The Mavs pulled away after several failed 3-point attempts from CSC.

CSC shot considerably better from the field, shooting nearly 40 percent from the field but just five threes, all of which were in the first half. Warren Gordon, junior of Indianapolis, led the Eagles with 16 points while Billy Johnson, junior of Cedar Hill, Texas, added 14.

The Eagles will be on the road again this weekend, traveling to Adams State University, Alamosa, Colorado, and Fort Lewis College, Durango, Colorado. Fort Lewis currently leads the RMAC with a record of 15-3, 0-3 in conference while the Grizzlies are 8-10 overall, and 7-6 in conference. CSC is in last place in the Rocky Division with a 6-11 record, 4-9 in the RMAC.

Tipoff for both games is set for 7:30 p.m., Friday and Saturday.