Park University Gilbert men's basketball coach Gordon Stubblefield has never been afraid to schedule games against top tier competition. After competing well in the first half against NCAA Division II Colorado School of Mines, the Buccaneers fell behind in a sluggish second half and lost, 75-46.
Down just 10 points and well within striking distance at halftime, it looked like the Buccaneers had a real chance to keep things close. But the Orediggers had different ideas and went on a 16-0 run 4:55 into the second half. Trail Bates's layup stopped the bleeding, but the Orediggers' lead never dropped below 23 points and ballooned to as high as 39 points.
In the second half, the Bucs were limited to just 18 shots overall and shot 2-15 from beyond the arc. They finished with 46 points total- the second lowest total in program history.
The Bucs did a solid job defensively in the first half- limiting the Orediggers to just 35 points and forcing seven turnovers. With Craig Mueller's free throws, they were down just five with a little over a minute to go, but the Orediggers began swinging the momentum their way with five quick points to end the period. But with just four assists in the whole game, the Bucs were unable to generate any offensive momentum.
Bates had another solid performance off the bench with 13 points (5-8). The only other Buccaneer to reach double-digits was Erik Palmer with 10 points, three rebounds, two steals and a block.
The Buccaneers' Colorado road trip does not get any easier tomorrow, as they look ahead to take another DII opponent- Colorado Christian. That game will take place at 5 p.m. Arizona time from the CCU Events Center in Lakewood, Colo.
