Cowboys take on top-seeded Black Hills State in RMAC Tourney opener

LAS VEGAS, N.M. --- The New Mexico Highlands men's basketball team after a year hiatus due to the pandemic has qualified for the RMAC Tournament as the No. 8 seed and will take on No. 1-seed Black Hills State 7 p.m. Tuesday in Spearfish, South Dakota.

It's been quite the turnaround for the Cowboys to make the tournament, starting 1-10 in RMAC play before going 9-2 to shoot up to the No. 8 spot.

THIS SEASON AGAINST THE YELLOW JACKETS
The Cowboys, who won the 2019 RMAC Tournament as the No. 7 seed - beating BHSU in the championship game 79-66, lost to Black Hills State during its 1-10 start to conference play 91-69 in Spearfish on Dec. 18. The Cowboys trailed just 42-40 at the half before going cold in the second half in a game whewre it played without top scorer Sammy Barnes-Thompkins.

Desmond Carpenter led NMHU with 22 points and five rebounds while Marcus Brown had 19 points, four rebounds and four assists.

Joel Scott led BHSU with 38 points and 15 rebounds while Sindou Cisse had 26 points.

COWBOYS HEADING INTO THE TOURNAMENT | 2021-22 STATISTICS
NMHU has won nine of its last 11, however dropped its season finale at home to South Dakota Mines, 88-83, as the Cowboys went cold in the second half - going 0-for-12 from 3-point range over the final 20 minutes.

Barnes-Thompkins leads the Cowboys and is fourth in the RMAC in scoring at 20.0 points per game while averaging 4.2 rebounds and a team-best 3.4 assists per game. Carpenter is second on the team in scoring at 15.4 points per game while he's tops in the RMAC and seventh in the nation in steals at 2.6 per game. Marcus Brown is averaging 13.8 points, 3.3 reboudns, 2.7 assists and 1.4 steals per game while Andre Adams is at 11.5 points and 6.8 rebounds per game while ranking first in the RMAC and fifth in the nation in field goal percentage at 69.3 percent.

As a team, the Cowboys are averaging 82.2 points per game - third in the conference and 35th in the nation.

BLACK HILLS STATE HEADING INTO THE TOURNAMENT | 2021-22 STATISTICS
The Yellow Jackets have won three in a row heading into the tournament after winning the RMAC regular season title - including beating Colorado Christian 90-81 in overtime at home on Friday and MSU Denver 80-75 on Saturday.

The Yellow Jackets are led by Joel Scott as he led the RMAC in scoring at 22.8 points per game (ninth in the nation) while finishing second in the RMAC and 11th in the nation in rebounding at 10.8 boards per game. Adam Moussa is second on the team in scoring at 14.5 points per game while leading the team in assists (4.5) and steals (1.6). Sindou Cisse is third on the team in scoring at 14.3 points per game while averaging 5.3 rebounds per contest.

As a team, BHSU leads the conference and is 12th in the nation in fiel goal percentage at 49.7 percent.