DENVER – After a two-week break, and then another unwanted extra week without a game, the MSU Denver men's basketball team is set to return to action with a Thursday home game against Adams State.
The Roadrunners were ready to play the Grizzlies last Saturday before learning during shootaround that their COVID-19 tests hadn't been returned. The situation also led to Sunday's game with CSU-Pueblo being postponed in a similar fashion.
"It wasn't great, but it's amazing what you can adapt to," MSU Denver coach
Michael Bahl said. "We're just glad that our guys are all safe and healthy, because the most important thing is their health. That's always the priority. Everyone is feeling good and is excited to play."
The 6 p.m. game at the Auraria Event Center will be closed to the public due to COVID-19 protocols. All MSU Denver games are
streamed live and are available on demand on RoadrunnnersTV.
COVID-19 at least prepared the Roadrunners for the disappointment of learning on a game day that they wouldn't be able to play. Twice they had pre-season scrimmages called off at the last minute, once when they were in the parking lot to play an opponent on the road.
"They were disappointed, but they got over it pretty quick," Bahl said. "They understood what happened and why we moved the games. We assured them that we were doing everything in our power to play, and we haven't lost the games, we've just moved them around."
The Roadrunners were on a roll heading into the holiday break, with three wins in six days to improve to 3-3 overall and 3-2 in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference.
"We've had some good practices," Bahl said. "If you ask any coach in the country, the first couple of practices after some extended time off you expect that they won't be crisp or sharp. But our effort level was where it needed to be. We made some mistakes, but you can handle that because of the effort. We're excited to compete and play again, and we'll see how we bounce back. But I fully expect to pick up where we left off."
Adams State is also 3-2 in league play prior to a Wednesday night game at CSU-Pueblo, putting the Grizzlies in a tie with MSU Denver and Westminster for third place in the league.
"Adams is a team that has dealt with some tough injuries," Bahl said. "They are 3-0 with a full roster. We expect them to have everyone back healthy and to come in at full strength. They are a team wants to get up and down and they are the top scoring team in the league (83.4 points per game). They'll test our defense and our ability to get our defense set out of transition."
MSU Denver has been led the rebounding prowess of
Laolu Oke, who leads the RMAC in offensive rebounds per game (6.5), rebounds per game (11.7) and total rebounds (70), ranking first, fourth and fourth nationally in those categories.
But the Roadrunners also feature a balanced offensive attack with five players averaging at least 8.0 points, led by
Mavrick Gildyard at 13.5.
After the Adams State game, the Roadrunners have two days to prepare for Sunday's 4 p.m. game at Fort Lewis, which is 2-3 overall and 1-3 in the RMAC prior to a Friday game against Colorado Christian.
Schedules were altered this season in anticipation of a 15-team league (New Mexico Highlands has since opted out of the season), and then rescheduling due to COVID-19 ramifications has made the schedule even more fluid. The typical Friday-Saturday schedule is currently lined up for just four more weekends this season.
"It's probably a little easier," Bahl said. "It's tough to have those back-to-backs, but I understand why we have them. But how it's worked out, breaking up the week like this, the players like it. There aren't a ton of systematic adjustments that teams are going to make, so the players can get more rest and are more ready to play."
