DENVER – If you measure progress by pointspread, then MSU Denver is definitely trending in the right direction.
 
Because even though Tuesday's final margin against national top-10 opponent Colorado School of Mines was 15 points (70-55), it was a much closer game than that – the Roadrunners had two possessions with the ball and a one-point deficit with just under eight minutes to play.
 
And however you look at it, it's much better than the 106-70 loss the Roadrunners took at Mines exactly one month earlier on Dec. 17.
 
"We're so young," MSU Denver coach Dan Ficke said. "Everyone other than Tyrei (Randall) and Chandler (Bevans) is either new to the league or is a freshman or sophomore. And we went toe to toe with them. We've seen our potential, but we just haven't been able to realize it for a full 40 minutes too often.
 
"You say, 'Hey, that's what you're capable of, and now you've got to do that against everybody so you don't drop the games against teams that are on the same level.' Mines and Black Hills (State) are obviously a step above us right now, and we're trying to get back to that level. But the teams who are even with us, we've got to put that 40 minutes together – and I think we'll win some games if we do."
 
Said forward Caleb McGill: "Obviously it's still a loss and we're not happy with it, but there's a lot to take away from this game, and just the way that we've competed since we got back from winter break. We didn't even show up the last game (at Mines), to be honest. Knowing that we can compete with these dudes – they're one of the best teams in the RMAC and one of the best teams in all of Division II – that gives us a little confidence. We just need to start putting it all together for 40 minutes and coming out with some wins."
 
MSU Denver (6-11 overall, 3-8 Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference) had a number of promising indicators in this one.
 
The Roadrunners held Mines, 14^th nationally in field goal percentage coming into the game at 50.3 percent, to 44.2 percent shooting. They forced 16 turnovers and held the Orediggers to 3 of 14 shooting from 3-point range … until Ben Boone (two) and Brendan Sullivan (one) combined to make three straight 3s in a span of 1:25 to take Mines' 55-50 lead to 64-50 with 3:21 to go.
 
"Credit to them, they worked through it and made big shots late," Ficke said. "But we had a chance. Even with as poorly as we shot, we had a chance to take the lead in the final six minutes. That's a credit to how hard our guys competed and how locked in they were to the gameplan, and how well they executed the defensive gameplan."
 
The fact that MSU Denver was still close that late is impressive considering the Roadrunners shot just 18.2 percent from the field (4 of 22) in the second half.
 
"Competing that hard, guarding that hard – they're so good offensively that you've got to be locked in for every possession, for the whole possession, for the whole game – and we're not quite mature enough yet to be able to do both (execute at a high level both offensively and defensively), to guard the way we did for 37 minutes and still make shots," Ficke said.
 
McGill, a 6-foot-8 sophomore, scored nine of his 13 points in the first half – Mines double-teamed him in the post in the second half and limited his opportunities.
 
"We got to the line really well, but we struggled finishing plays at the rim," McGill said. "They're a tall, big team."
 
Jaden Kennis scored 11 points and grabbed a team-high six rebounds, while Quave Propst-Allison scored nine points while making all three of his field goal tries (including a 3) and both of his free throws. Brayden Maldonado added eight.
 
Kennis, Propst-Allison and Maldonado are all freshman guards.
 
"They're a tough, veteran team," McGill said. "They're very experienced everywhere on the floor and they aren't going to make a lot of mistakes. We had to take them out of their rhythm, and for the most part, for most of the game, I think we did. But offensive execution has been a little bit of a weakness for us throughout the season and it came back to bite us at the end of the game."
 
Said Ficke: "They've got great size at every position. They're long at every position. And they're just solid. They don't gamble. They don't take chances. They stay in their gaps and guard stuff they way they're supposed to.
 
"There's a lesson in there for us – being solid is good enough … if you can make a couple of shots along the way."