DENVER, Colo.-The Rogers State men's basketball team rounded out its road trip with a 75-60 loss to No. 17 University of Colorado Colorado Springs at the Auraria Events Center Saturday night.
 
Trailing by double digits to start the second half, RSU whittled away at the deficit cutting it to two points with 10 minutes to play thanks to a 9-2 run capped by a DesJuan Newton layup. The Mountain Lions responded with a 13-2 run that included a dunk by Alex Welsh to push the UCCS lead to 13 points. The Mountain Lions gripped the double-digit lead for the remainder of the contest, leading by as many as 19 points. 
 
The Hillcats were plagued by 11 first-half turnovers, converting just eight field goals. The Mountain Lions opened the game with a 17-7 lead. RSU answered with an 8-2 run to cut the deficit to four points. The Mountain Lions surged back, leading by as many as 15 points in the stanza and took a 37-24 lead into the locker room at intermission.
 
Frederico Santos led the Hillcats with 12 points and eight rebounds while Donald Moore was the only other Hillcat to reach double digits with 10 points. The Hillcats swiped 10 steals and dominated the boards 34-25 but committed 24 turnovers on the night.
 
UCCS (2-0) was led by the efforts of junior forward Alex Welsh who tallied a career-high 27 points, converting 11-of-13 from the field.
 
Rogers State (0-2) will play its home opener Thursday as the Hillcats host Hillsdale Free Will Baptist at the Claremore Expo with tipoff set for 7 p.m. The game will be streamed live on the Hillcat Network at www.rsuhillcats.com/live.