Late comeback dooms ThunderWolves at Metro

Metro State 79, CSU-Pueblo 69

DENVER, Colo. - The ThunderWolves made ever the slightest of stumbles vs. Metro State Friday, watching a slim lead melt away in the closing minutes as the Pack fell 79-69 to the homestanding Roadrunners.

In a pair of seemingly identical halves, the ThunderWolves held the advantage for the early parts of both the first and second halves before Metro State, relying on great ball control and a great transition defense, stymied the Pack just enough to hold the upper hand.

The Pack held a five-point advantage, 60-55, ten minutes through the second half, when Metro State began to make their surge.

The Roadrunners went on a 11-0 run to seize the lead, cashing in on unchararacteristic misses by the ThunderWolves, which were shooting around 50 percent at the time of Metro's comeback.

The Pack would get only as close as three points away, 69-66 with 1:50 remaining, before Metro kept the ThunderWolves from making a late strike.

The Pack got a double-double from Jake Trahern (Sr., Kit Carson, Colo.), who scored a team-high 20 points and took down 10 boards.  Rome Smith (Sr., Denver, Colo.) saw his 20-point game streak come to a close, halting a three games after a 13-point performance.

The ThunderWolves' loss drops them to 6-8 overall and 3-3 in RMAC play.  The Pack will try to right the course Saturday when they travel to Regis.