GUNNISON, Colo. --- The Western Colorado men's basketball team hits the road to take on CSU Pueblo 6 p.m. Tuesday in the first of two games this week against the ThunderWolves. This contest is making up for a game that was postponed earlier this season due to COVID-19 protocols.

MOUNTAINEERS HEADING INTO THE WEEK | SEASON STATS
Western is coming off a 103-82 loss to No. 1 Colorado School of Mines on Saturday at Paul Wright Gym. The Mountaineers - who were down to eight players due to injury and other reasons - led 47-46 at the half before being outscored by 22 in the second half. Matthew Ragsdale led five Western players with 20 points while Avery Rembao had 17 points.

The Mountaineers are eighth in the RMAC in scoring at 75.1 points per game thanks to making 10.3 3-pointers per game at a 39.7 percent clip - both second in the RMAC.

Ragsdale is 10th in the RMAC in scoring at 17.5 points per game and leads the Mountaineers followed by Cole Sienknecht (13.2) and Avery Rembao (12.7). Elijah Davidson leads non-injured players in rebounding at 5.9 rebounds per game while Grant Wilkinson (3.5) and Cole Sienknecht lead the team in assists, Wilkinson (1.2) and Davidson (1.1) lead the team in steals and Davidson is averaging a team-best 1.2 blocks (third in the RMAC).

CSU PUEBLO HEADING INTO THIS WEEK | SEASON STATS
The ThunderWolves - who play at MSU Denver on Monday night - are coming off a week where they defeated Fort Lewis 84-77 last Monday led by 27 points from David Simental before falling to Westminster in overtime 106-103 with Simental scoring 48 points.

CSU Pueblo is fifth in the RMAC in scoring at 77.7 points per game while allowing 80.8 per game - 12th in the RMAC. 

Simental is seventh in the RMAC in scoring at 19.1 points per game while he's shooting 63 percent from teh field, 44.8 percent from 3-point range and 89.7 percent from the free throw line. Tre Brown is averaging 14.3 points per game followed by Lian Ramiro (12.0) and Tristan Hurdle (10.4). Ramiro leads the team in assists (3.8) and De'Shaun Cooper leads the team in rebounds (4.7) and blcoks (0.9).

LAST SEASON VS CSU PUEBLO
Western lost to CSU Pueblo 79-71 in Gunnison on Jan. 10, 2020, in the teams' only meeting. Monroe Porter led the Mountaineers with 16 points while Simental led CSU Pueblo with 21 points.
 

WESTERN COLORADO NOTES

- SIENKNECHT CHASING ALL-TIME 3-POINT TOP-7 AT WESTERN, 1,000-POINT MARK
While just a junior, Cole Sienknecht has a chance to reach the top seven in 3-pointers made in Western history - even in this COVID-shortened season. The Colorado Springs product has 146 career 3-pointers up to this point, 11 behind the No. 7 spot on the Western all-time list by Mike Legg (157 from 1994-99). The all-time mark is 307 set by Wil Pierce from 1992-96. The No. 2 spot you ask? Current Western assistant coach Ben Beauchamp with 209 (2015-18).

Sienknecht is also looking to hit the 1,000-point mark in his career as he sits with 895 points in 67 career games (13.2 points per contest). 

- RAGSDALE NAMED RMAC OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK (FEB. 1, 2021) (FULL STORY)
Matthew Ragsdale on Monday was named the RMAC Offensive Player of the Week for the second time this season.

The sophomore averaged 22.5 points, shot 51.6 percent from the field, was 8-for-19 (42.1 percent) from 3-point range and was a perfect 5-for-5 from the free throw line in helping the Mountaineers go 2-0 on the weekend - including a win over No. 6 and previously undefeated Colorado Mesa. In the win over the Mavericks on Saturday, Ragsdale had a game-high 24 points - going 9-for-17 from the field and 4-for-9 from 3-point range. In a victory over Westminster on Thursday, Ragsdale scored 21 points and was 7-for-14 from the field and 4-for-10 from 3-point range.

- ELEVATED RECORD AT THE HIGHEST COLLEGIATE GYM IN THE WORLD IN 2019-20
The Mountaineers since the start of last season are 14-5 at Paul Wright Gym - the highest collegiate gym in the world at 7,723 feet. 

- RAGSDALE NAMED RMAC OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK (JAN. 11, 2021) (FULL STORY)
Matthew Ragsdale was named RMAC Offensive Player of the Week on Jan. 11 after the sophomore averaged 25.5 points and shot 45 percent from 3-point range during the week in helping the Mountaineers win a pair of games. The Monument, Colorado, product scored a career-high 32 points against South Dakota Mines on Tuesday - hitting seven 3-pointers, tied for the second most 3-pointers in a game in Mountaineer history. Ragsdale followed it up by scoring 19 points in a 102-87 win over Colorado Christian - the first time Western hit the 100-point mark since 2018. Overall, Ragsdale went 9-for-20 from 3-point range during the wins over the Hardrockers and Cougars.

This is Ragsdale's first RMAC Player of the Week honor and it's the second time a Mountaineer has won a conference player of the week award this season as Jackson Ehrlin was named the RMAC Defensive Player of the Week on Dec. 9. Ragsdale is the first Mountaineer to win RMAC Offensive Player of the Week since current Mountaineer assistant coach Ben Beauchamp won the honor Nov. 20, 2017.

- RAGSDALE'S SEVEN 3-POINTERS VS SOUTH DAKOTA MINES ONE OFF SCHOOL RECORD
Sophomore Matthew Ragsdale just missed tying a school record as he drained seven 3-pointers against South Dakota Mines on Jan. 5 at Paul Wright Gym. It's the second time Ragsdale has drained seven 3-pointers in a game for the Mountaineers, doing it his freshman year against Regis on Feb. 14, 2020. A Mountaineer has hit seven 3-pointers in a game 17 times in program history with five players doing it twice. The record is eight 3-pointers hit by Nate Allen against Fort Lewis during the 1995-96 season.

- EHRLIN NAMED RMAC DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK (DEC. 9, 2020) (FULL STORY)
Western Colorado forward Jackson Ehrlin was named RMAC Defensive Player after the 6-foot-9 senior averaged 11 rebounds and 2.5 blocks per game for the Mountaineers in their two games - grabbing 11 rebounds in each contest while setting a career high with four blocks against Fort Lewis. Ehrlin also averaged 13 points and 2.5 assists per game. It is Ehrlin's first RMAC Player of the Week Honor and the third time in the last two seasons a Western player has earned RMAC Defensive Player of the Week with Monroe Porter earning the honor twice during the 2019-20 campaign.

- MOUNTAINEERS PICKED TO FINISH 10TH IN THE RMAC (FULL STORY)
The Western Colorado men's basketball team was selected tied for 10th in the RMAC's Preseason Men's Basketball Coaches poll. The Mountaineers are tied with Westminster for the 10th spot with 91 points, seven points behind No. 9 CSU Pueblo and 37 points ahead of No. 12 South Dakota Mines. Colorado School of Mines was picked to win the conference with 13 of the 15 first-place votes and 195 points while Black Hills State was picked second with two first-place votes and 172 points followed by UCCS, Colorado Mesa and Fort Lewis in the top five.

- WESTERN IN SEASON OPENERS SINCE 2009
The Mountaineers are now 2-10 in season openers since 2009.

• 2020-21 - L, 89-69 at Fort Lewis
• 2019-20 - L, 96-85 at UTPB
• 2018-19 - W, 77-72 vs. #4 West Texas A&M
• 2017-18 - L, 84-77 at #11 UTPB
• 2016-17 - L, 89-78 vs. Wayland Baptist
• 2015-16 - L, 92-68 at Arkansas-Fort Smith
• 2014-15 - L, 77-63 vs. Midwestern State (in Pueblo, Colo.)
• 2013-14 - L, 75-65 at Hawaii Pacific
• 2012-13 - L, 62-42 at Wyoming
• 2011-12 - L, 78-39 at Wyoming
• 2010-11 - L, 78-52 at Boise State
• 2009-10 - W, 94-79 vs. Northern New Mexico