Colorado School of Mines at New Mexico Highlands
Thursday, January 5, 2006 - 8:00 pm
Las Vegas, N.M.

Colorado School of Mines at UC-Colorado Springs
Saturday, January 7, 2006 - 8:00 pm
Colorado Springs, Colo.

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THE HEAD COACH: Pryor Orser is in his fifth year as the head coach of the Colorado School of Mines men’s basketball team. He claims an overall record of 52-69, including a 30-50 mark in Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference games. In 2004-05, he guided the squad to a 16-12 record (10-9 RMAC) and a berth in the RMAC Tournament. In addition, Orser guided CSM to a 74-71 upset of then No. 1-ranked Metro State on Jan. 22 in Volk Gym. He was instrumental in helping senior guard Stephen Bahl earn First Team All-RMAC, First Team All Region and Third Team All-American honors. In addition, he was also named the North Central Region Player of the Year. Orser has coached a total of 11 All-Conference players at CSM, including three Freshmen of the Year, most recently Ben Mohr a season ago.
Orser received his Bachelor of Science in Business Administration with minors in Economics and History in 1990 from Eastern Montana College and his Masters of Education in 1995 from Montana State University-Billings. His previous coaching experience includes a four-year tenure at Northwest College in Wyo., where he worked as the head coach of the women’s basketball program and an assistant to the men’s basketball program. He also served a two-year stint as the assistant men’s coach at Carroll College in Helena, Mont., and a three-year stint as the men’s assistant at Montana State University at Billings.

No. Probable Starters Pos Ht. Yr. Hometown PPG RPG APG
10 Travis Test PG 5-11 Sr. Pierce, Neb. 9.6 2.8 3.8
3 Kyle Pape SG 6-2 Fr. Honolulu, Hawaii 13.0 3.4 2.7
23 Franklin Ryk SF 6-4 Jr. Fort Collins, Colo. 9.7 4.8 1.6
52 Davey Iverson PF 6-6 Jr. Winnett, Mont. 7.2 5.8 1.5
44 Ian Elseth C 6-8 Jr. Grants Pass, Ore. 12.2 5.7 1.4

No. Off the Bench Pos Ht. Yr. Hometown PPG RPG APG
5 Casey O’Hayre G 5-11 Fr. Littleton, Colo. 0.0 0.5 0.0
11 Troy Sandley G 6-4 Fr. Eltham, Austrailia 1.6 0.4 0.2
20 Alex Hayman G 6-4 So. Sydney, Austrailia 2.6 1.7 0.8
22 Bill Hadley G 6-0 Sr. Littleton, Colo. 1.4 1.0 0.9
30 Matt Witwer F 6-5 So. Minot, N.D. 0.5 0.3 0.5
31 Grant Gunhus G 6-3 Fr. Fargo, N.D. 1.2 1.1 0.1
32 Ryan McKay F 6-8 So. Halstead, Kan. 0.4 0.4 0.4
33 Clayton Moores C 6-8 Jr. Denver, Colo. 4.7 3.8 1.0
40 Cody Clickner F 6-8 RFR Denver, Colo. 0.5 1.0 0.0
42 Ben Mohr F 6-6 So. Colo. Springs, Colo. 8.0 3.6 1.4

CSM PICKED FIFTH IN RMAC PRESEASON POLL: The Colorado School of Mines men’s basketball team was picked fifth in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference East Division Preseason Poll with 62 total points. Metro State was tabbed No. 1 with 21 points and seven first place votes to narrowly edge Nebraska-Kearney who received 22 points and six first place votes. They were followed by Fort Hays State (34 points and one first place vote), Regis (50), Colorado School of Mines (62), Chadron State (70) and Colorado Christian (85).

UP NEXT: CSM will return to action on Jan. 14 when it hosts CSU-Pueblo at 8:00 pm in Volk Gymnasium.

LAST WEEK: CSM split a pair of games in the CSM/Metro State New Year’s Classic. On Dec. 29, the Orediggers picked up a 74-64 win over the University of Mary at Metro State, but fell at home to North Dakota, 76-71, the following night.

AGAINST MARY (12/29): The Colorado School of Mines men’s basketball team improved to 6-5 overall with a 74-64 win over the University of Mary in the first game of the CSM/Metro State New Year’s Classic at the Auraria Events Center. CSM was led by freshman guard Kyle Pape who totaled 23 points, six assists and five boards. Senior guard Travis Test added 15 points, six boards and four dimes, while junior forward Davey Iverson chipped in 14 points and seven rebounds.

AGAINST NORTH DAKOTA (12/30): Colorado School of Mines freshman guard Kyle Pape scored a career-high 29 points and junior center Ian Elseth added 22 points and seven boards, but it was not enough as the Orediggers fell to North Dakota, 76-71, in the final game on the CSM/Metro State New Year’s Classic in Volk Gym. UND extended a 30-25 halftime lead to as many as 14 points (53-39) with 11:17 to play. However, the Orediggers cut the deficit to 67-64 on a pair of free throws from Elseth with 1:21 to play. But CSM could get no closer as UND hit 9-of-13 free throws in the final minute.

ABOUT NEW MEXICO HIGHLANDS: The Cowboys enter the week at 5-6 overall and 1-3 in the RMAC. NMHU has lost three straight, including a 75-61 setback at West Texas A&M in its most recent game on Dec. 30. Robert Franklin is averaging a double-double and leads the team in scoring (19.9 ppg) and rebounding (11.1 rpg). Jeremy Lopez (11.7 ppg), Brandon Weaver (11.6 ppg) and Gene Gonzales (10.5 ppg) also average double digits. As a team, the Cowboys shoot 49 percent from the field, 29 percent from three-point land and 67 percent from the foul line.

ABOUT UC-COLO. SPRINGS: The Mountain Lions are 1-9 overall and 1-3 in RMAC play this season. UCCS has lost five straight, including a 77-76 setback at Colorado Christian on Dec. 30 in its most recent game. Patrick Hannaway leads the team in scoring (19.2 ppg) and rebounding (8.3 rpg), while Bly McGuire posts 11.8 points per night and Bryan Snyder averages 10.5 points per game. As a team, UCCS is shooting 40 percent from the field, 29 percent from three-point land and 71 percent from the charity stripe.

HOME SWEET HOME: Prior to this year, CSM had been close to unbeatable at home as it was 19-1 over its 20 home games entering this season. CSM is 4-3 at Volk Gymnasium this season and has lost three in a row at home. Prior to losing to Fort Lewis on Dec. 16, the Orediggers had won seven straight home games.

ROAD WOES: In contrast, CSM has not fared as well on the road as it is just 2-12 over its last 14 road games. CSM broke a 10 game road losing streak with a 68-52 win at Western State on Dec. 10. Prior to that win, the Orediggers had not won on the road since Dec. 20, 2004, an 82-74 win at Adams State.

BATTLE TESTED: Senior point guard Travis Test has been very productive in running the show for CSM this season as he is fourth on the team at 9.6 points per game and has dished out a team-best 46 assists compared to only 23 turnovers. Test has scored in double figures in five of the last nine games, including a career high 16 points in a Dec. 10 win at Western State. He is sixth in the RMAC in assists (3.8 apg) and 12th in steals (1.6 spg).
LESS IS NOT MOHR: Sophomore forward Ben Mohr returns after earning RMAC Freshman of the Year honors last season. It marked the third time in the last four seasons that a player from CSM had won the award as Mohr joined Stephen Bahl (2001-02) and Kevin Wagstaff (2002-03). Mohr is providing a spark off the CSM bench this season averaging 8.0 points and 3.6 rebounds per night.

IF I COULD BE LIKE RYK: Junior guard Franklin Ryk is the top returning scorer for CSM as he averaged 8.3 points per game last season. This season, Ryk is third on the team in scoring at 9.7 points per game. He has missed out on his first career double-double on two occasions this season as he came up a rebound short each time.

HE’S NOT ALLEN, BUT: Junior forward Davey Iverson is back for his third year at CSM. The 6-foot-6 Iverson has played in all 67 games during his career and has averaged 6.6 points and 5.7 rebounds per game. He started all but one game as a freshman, came off the bench in all but one game last season and has started 10 of the 12 games this season.

WE WANT MOORES: Junior center Clayton Moores has given the Orediggers a spark off the bench as he is averaging 4.7 points and 3.8 rebounds per game off the bench.

BLOCK PARTY: Juniors Davey Iverson and Clayton Moores are making it tough for opponents to come into the paint as each ranks in the top-5 of the RMAC in blocked shots. Iverson is second with 22 blocks (1.8 bpg), while Moores is fifth with 15 blocked shots (1.3 bpg). As a team, CSM is ranked first in the RMAC in blocked shots with 48 (4.0 bpg).

KYLE HAS STYLE: Freshman guard Kyle Pape has made big strides early in the season. After scoring just 18 points in the first four games, Pape is averaging 17.3 points over the last eight games (138 total), including seven in double figures. Over the last three games, he is posting 25.3 points per game, which includes a career-high 29 points in a loss to North Dakota on Dec. 30. Pape is leading the team in scoring at 13.0 points per game, which puts him 14th in the RMAC. In addition to his scoring, he is averaging 4.1 rebounds and 2.9 assists over the last eight games.

HELP FROM THE NORTHWEST: Junior center Ian Elseth, who played at Snow Junior College last season and at Oregon State in 2001-02, is currently second on the team in scoring (12.2 ppg) and rebounding (5.7 rpg). He has led the team in scoring four times and has eight double digit scoring games. Elseth ranks second in the RMAC in field goal percentage (.636) as he has hit 49-of-77 shots.

GOOD COMPANY: In high school, Elseth was named to the Oregon All-State First Team along with former Arizona standout Salim Stoudamire, currently with the Atlanta Hawks in the NBA, and former Kansas stars Aaron Miles and Michael Lee. Miles is currently playing with the Golden State Warriors in the NBA.

THE AUSTRALIAN DUO: The CSM roster features a pair of student-athletes from Australia. Sophomore guard Alex Hayman is from Sydney, while freshman guard Troy Sandley is from Eltham.

CASEY ON THE COURT: Freshman guard Casey O’Hayre made his first appearance of the season in the Dec. 17 loss to Adams State. He was pulled out of his redshirt season and will play the rest of the year.

CLOSE CALLS: CSM has played its share of close games this year, but has also been involved in its share of blowouts. The Orediggers are 4-2 in games decided by 11 points or more and just 2-4 in games decided by 10 points or less. CSM has lost games by two points to St. Martin’s, two points in overtime to Fort Lewis, five points to Adams State and five points to North Dakota.

STARTING TEAM USA: The five probable starters for CSM all hail from different states; Colorado, Hawaii, Nebraska, Montana and Oregon.