Hot Skyhawks bury ThunderWolves

Fort Lewis 69, CSU-Pueblo 54

DURANGO, Colo. - Fort Lewis shot better than 60 percent from the field, turning a moderate advatange into a huge one as the ThunderWolves fell 69-54 to the Skyhawks in Durango Friday.

The ThunderWolves trailed 31-22 at halftime as both teams shot worse than 40 percent from the field.  But the Pack came out much hotter in the second half, eventually shooting 46 percent from the field in the half.  But an 0-for-4 beginning for the Pack in the second half was enough to fuel a 22-3 run by Fort Lewis to open the half as the Skyhawks led by as many as 27.

By the time the Pack's shot finally got hot, it was too late.  The ThunderWolves put out an 18-7 run to close the game, but it barely made a dent in the Skyhawks' lead, keeping the advantage at double-digits.

The Pack was led by Rome Smith (Sr., Denver, Colo.), who scored 14 points.  Mario Balinton (Sr., San Francisco, Calif.) got the start for the ThunderWolves in place of injured Marc Williams (Jr., Seattle, Wash.), scoring nine points.

CSU-Pueblo will look to salvage a weekend split when it heads to Alamosa to take on Adams State.