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Roadrunners heating up as RMAC playoffs loom

By Zac Taylor
ztaylor2@mscd.edu

Revenge was paid to Metro men’s basketball Feb. 8 after they toppled rival Regis 73-55 at Regis Fieldhouse. The following night, they trounced CU-Colorado Springs 109-80 to gain a winning record and third place in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference East Division.

After losing 75-59 to Regis Jan. 26, breaking a 13-game winning streak for the Roadrunners in the series, Metro took Friday’s matchup as a must win game. With a 6-7 conference record going into the game, the ‘Runners needed every win they could get down the stretch to stay in the conference playoff race.

“We’re trying to make it to the RMAC tournament,” Metro guard Terrell Burgess said. “We’re on the edge right now, and we’re playing like we ain’t got nothing to lose.”

The game in Denver highlighted the improvement Metro has made in just the past few weeks. They dominated the boards, taking 40 rebounds to Regis’ 27, including 11 by Metro forward Jesse Wagstaff.

“Big emphasis coming into the game was rebounding,” Wagstaff said. “I think we did well on that night.”

Wagstaff also led the Roadrunners in scoring with 21 points to net his fourth double-double of the season. In close support was Burgess who notched 20 points on the night.

By halftime, Metro had already secured a 10-point lead, which would only expand until the final whistle. The Roadrunners played stifling defense, allowing only 30 second-half points to a team that, just weeks earlier, buried Metro with 48 points in the final 18 minutes.

This time the ‘Runners drove the lane often for easy layups fouls, and then converted 25-of-32 from the foul line. They also kept hold of the ball, allowing just nine turnovers throughout the contest.

“The guards did a great job of knowing when to attack, shoot or kick it inside,” coach Brannon Hays said of the backcourt offense. On the defensive end, Metro held Regis’ leading scorer, forward Geremey Gibson, to just seven points, less than half his normal output.

The lack of success forced fellow Rangers forward James Bullock into the leading role, but he shot only 6-of-16 from the floor, all but one coming from behind the 3-point line. Roadrunner’s big men Lawrence Billings and Wagstaff dominated the paint, keeping Regis from any easy buckets.

“We really executed our game plan,” Hays said. “Our guys stepped up on the rebounding effort.”

The success on the frontcourt highlights the increased presence and discipline of Metro’s post game. After losing two big men from last year’s squad, including 6-foot-8 inch center Moussa Coulibaly and all-RMAC forward Michael Bahl, the success of Metro’s interior game rested in the hands of Wagstaff and junior college transfer Billings.

Wagstaff has proved up to the task as the leading rebounder and scorer on the team, while center Billings has overcome a slow start to post career days in scoring and rebounding down the stretch, including a double-double against the Mountain Lions.

“He’s been steadily getting better,” Hays said on Billings. “We’ve been working him hard, and he’s been responding.”

Billings’ 20 points led the Roadrunners in scoring the following night in the easy victory over last place UC Colorado Springs. Metro guard Giusseppe Ciancio added 19 points, and fellow guard Marquise Carrington betrayed his 5-foot-11 inch height to grab eight rebounds as well as 14 points in the 109-80 win.

With the win, the Roadrunners post an 8-7-conference record, and the team starts a four-game homestand to conclude the regular season, including matchups against the top two teams in the East Division, starting with rival Nebraska-Kearney Feb. 15.

“Every game right now is a playoff game,” Wagstaff said.