DURANGO, Colo. – A tough first half was too much for Western State Colorado University men's basketball to overcome Tuesday night. Facing the No. 21 Fort Lewis College Skyhawks, the Mountaineers were unable to extend their postseason run, falling in the quarterfinals of the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference Tournament 88-73.
 
It was a tale of two halves for Western (13-16, 11-11 RMAC). The Mountaineers shot 31 percent (9-of-29) from the field in the first half, scoring 26 points. In the second half, Western scored 47 points and shot 56.3 percent (18-of-32).
 
The Mountaineers got off to a rocky start in their first Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference Tournament game since 2012. Midway through the first half, Western trailed Fort Lewis by 10 points, 21-11.
 
At halftime, the Mountaineers were behind 13 points, 39-26.
 
However, Western wasn't throwing in the towel and started a second half comeback. Over the first 3:56 of the second stanza, the Mountaineers went on a 13-7 run to cut the Skyhawk lead to just five points, 39-44.
 
Fort Lewis responded with a run of their own, and pushed the lead to 16 points at the 7:54 mark.
 
Western cut the Skyhawk lead back down to single digits by the 6:09 mark and trailed by just seven points with 4:57 left.
 
Despite the constant pressure by the Mountaineers, every time Western seemed within striking distance, the Skyhawks would pull away and extend their lead back over 10 points.
 
In his final career game as a Mountaineer, Ben Beauchamp led Western in scoring with 17 points. Teammate and fellow senior, Collin Smith added 13 points, while Brady Subart scored 11 and Monroe Porter chipped-in 10 points.
 
Porter also grabbed 13 rebounds to record his third double-double of the season.
 
FLC's Marquel Beasley led all players with 36 points.
 
Despite the loss, Western finished with the most wins since the 2011-12 season.