GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. – MSU Denver did not go down without a fight, battling RMAC Tournament No. 1 seed and nationally-ranked Colorado Mesa to the finish Tuesday before falling 82-72 in a first-round matchup.
 
"The guys competed and played their hearts out," MSU Denver coach Dan Ficke said. "I can't fault their effort. They came ready to play, competed and never gave in. You know in a game like this that there are going to be runs, and you could fall behind, but we gave ourselves a chance to be in it and a chance to win it at the end."
 
Tyrei Randall capped his stellar collegiate career with 18 points and Caleb McGill also added 18 for the Roadrunners.
 
"Tyrei played really well, especially in the first half when he carried us offensively," Ficke said. "His effort and leadership were there like they have been all season."
 
MSU Denver shot 56.0 percent from the field for the game (28 of 50), including 62.6 percent (18 of 29) in the first half.
 
Randall scored five points in the first 47 seconds of the second half to give the Roadrunners a 43-41 lead, and they were still within 49-46 after a pair of Jaden Kennis free throws with 16:32 to go.
 
The Mavericks pushed their lead out to 56-46, but the Roadrunners were able to stay within six to nine points before a pair of Yaw Reneer free throws cut the deficit to 69-64 at the 5:29 mark.
 
Then baskets by Brayden Maldonado and Randall got MSU Denver within 71-68 with 3:09 to play, but Mesa responded with three 3-pointers in the next 1:56 to put the game pretty much out of reach at 80-70 with 60 seconds remaining.
 
Despite the strong shooting, MSU Denver also had 16 turnovers that led to 23 points for Mesa. The Mavericks also had a 21-4 advantage in fast-break points.
 
"We had a couple big turnovers, and turnovers and guarding the 3-point line was really the story of the second half," Ficke said. "We gave them too many easy buckets in transition. We might have survived the 3s if we could've taken better care of the ball."
 
Chandler Bevans, MSU Denver's other senior, had five points and two rebounds.
 
"I'm really proud of our two seniors, and I'm grateful I had the chance to coach them," said Ficke, whose team finished 12-17 in his first season as MSU Denver's head coach. "They gave us their heart and soul. The first thing we did in the locker room after the game was to thank them for their effort and leadership and for buying in to what my staff and I are trying to do."
 
MSU Denver guards Maldonado and Quave Propst-Allison finished their fine true freshman seasons with 11 points and 10 points, respectively. Another true freshman, Reneer, had six points, four rebounds and four assists.
 
"There's a lot of positives to take from this one," Ficke said. "It was a great experience for our young guys coming back. They got to play in a high-intensity game. Our young core of guys know what it's like now, and we expect to not only be back but to be back as one of the higher seeds next year."