DENVER, Colo. — The St. Mary's University Men's Basketball team took care of the ball in the season opener, turning it over only eight times in a 76-65 victory at Regis on Friday evening.
The game began two-and-a-half hours early due to extreme weather in the Denver metro area and throughout much of the state. The earlier start time didn't seem to affect either team, though the crowd was sparser than normal.
Senior forward
Lachlan Bofinger (Sydney, Australia) picked up where he left off last season, recording a double-double with 13 points and a game-high 14 rebounds. Bofinger ranked seventh nationally with 14 double-doubles a year ago, and he grabbed 10 of the caroms in the first half.
Junior guard
Damani Claxton (Bronx, N.Y.) led the game with 18 points and led the team with four assists and three steals. He was also a perfect 5-for-5 at the free throw line. Joining him in double digits in the scoring column were junior
Wayne Wiggins (Mansfield, Texas) with 12 and junior
Eman Lawal (Mississauga, Ontario, Canada) with 10.
The Rattlers and Rangers went back-and-forth early in the game. At the 7:30 mark of the first half, Claxton nailed a jumper to make the score 25-24, and the Rattlers never trailed again. The largest lead of the game was the final score, 76-65.
St. Mary's continually worked the ball inside, scoring 50 of the 76 points in the paint and sinking 16-of-21 from the free throw line. In addition to Claxton, Wiggins (4-for-4) and senior
Diego Gonzalez (Arecibo, Puerto Rico) (2-for-2) were also perfect at the stripe.Â
The Rattlers' defense limited the Rangers to four points off turnovers and two second-chance points, winning the battle of the boards, 39-to-30.
At press time, the Colorado School of Mines game is still slated for 7 p.m. on Saturday in Golden. Due to extreme winter weather in Colorado, the timing could change, though the game will still be available on the RMAC Network regardless of the start time.
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