Dec. 1, 2004

Denver, Colo. – [box score] Just 24 hours removed from its highest point total of the season (95), the Bemidji State University men's basketball team's offensive attack struggled in a 70-54 loss to Regis University. Wednesday's loss to the Rangers marked the Beavers' fifth consecutive road loss of the season and its seventh straight dating back to March 6th of last season.

The stingy Regis defense held BSU's top top three guns in Derrick Beechum (Davenport, Iowa), Duane Fields (Los Angeles, Calif) and Alvin Muse (South Holland. Ill.) to just 24 points combined as the trio shot 8-of-17 from the field.

BSU got on the board first when Fields sank a jumper to put the Beavers on top 2-0, giving BSU what turned out to be its only lead of the game and a short-lived one at that as RU scored the next five points and 17 of the next 18 sparked by a pair of three-pointers by Logan Garvin to go up by 14 (17-3) 5:40 into the game.

Things would only get worse for the Beavers before it got better as Garvin hit his third trey of the game to put Regis up 15 (23-8) with 11:50 to go in the half. But the Beavers were not done yet. Trailing by 14 (27-13) with 7:43 before the halftime horn, BSU went on a 10-0 run spanning just over three minutes as five BSU players pitched in a bucket a piece to pull to within four points of the Rangers (27-23).

RU powered back to regain the lead and extend it to eight points (36-28) before the end of the half.

During the first ten minutes of the second stanza, the Rangers outscored BSU 19-9 with the Beavers only able to muster a trio of jumpers by Amir Major (Chicago Ill.). RU continued to pour it on hitting 11-of-19 shots in the half to increase its lead to as many as 20 points (70-50) with just 62 seconds to play.

The Rangers shot 58.5 percent (24-41) from the field and 50 percent (7-14) from beyond the arc. While the Beavers were 18-44 (40.9 %) overall and turned in their weakest performance of the season with just 5-of-11 (.455) from outside the three-point line.

Major paced the Beavers posting team-highs with 13 points and six rebounds. Beechum added 10 points while James Roberson (Chicago, Ill.) dished out a team-best three assists.

Austin Christensen led the Rangers with 16 points, five boards an five steals. Julian Biglow added a game-high seven assists.

The loss drops BSU to 3-5 on the season but it travels to Pueblo, Colo. this weekend (Dec. 3-4) with a chance to even its record before returning to Minnesota as it participates in the Chuck Stephens Classic. Friday the Beavers battle the host Colorado State-Pueblo in a 9:00 p.m. (CST) tip and will follow that up with a 5:00 p.m. (CST) tilt versus New Mexico-Highlands to wrap up its four-game Colorado road swing. Tune in to 89.7 FM90 as Josh Harvey broadcasts the final two games of the road trip live.