DENVER, COLO. - No. 23 Metro State College recovered from a slow first half to hold off Colorado School of Mines 67-56 at the Auraria Event Center in downtown Denver on Friday night. Metro State, ranked second in the Central Region, improves to 19-3 overall and 13-1 in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference, while Colorado Mines drops to 11-11 overall and 6-8 in the RMAC.

Jesse Wagstaff scored a game-high 22 points with 18 of those coming in the second half. Marquise Carrington scored 11, followed by Donte Nicholas with 10. Wagstaff hit 13-of-14 free throws and also pulled down a team-high eight rebounds. Carrington led both teams with four assists.

Both teams struggled to find a rhythm in the first half, stumbling to a 26-26 tie at the half. Neither team led by more than four at any point during the first period. Colorado Mines had 12 turnovers at the intermission, while Metro State had nine.

The Roadrunners opened the second half on a 9-2 run in the first 5:10 to take a lead they would not relinquish. Metro State stretched its lead to 12, its largest of the night, at 48-36 with 9:17 left in the game as Wagstaff hit his only three-pointer of the night. In a physical second half that saw 14 fouls called on the Orediggers and nine called on the Roadrunners, Metro State capitalized by hitting 18-of-21 from the foul line, after connecting on just 4-of-8 in the first. It also enjoyed a 24-17 rebounding edge during the final half after getting out-rebounded 17-13 in the first half.

Metro State will host Colorado Christian on Saturday once again in the Auraria Event Center at 1 p.m. The game will be nationally televised LIVE on CBS CollegeSports and is also Fan Appreciation Day. Saturday's events will begin at 11 a.m. with a tailgating party in the lobby of the Auraria Event Center with food, prizes, and giveaways.