CHADRON, Neb. – For the second game in a row, the Chadron State men's basketball team rallied from a 15-plus point deficit in the second half. Unlike the previous game, however, the Eagles' comeback fell just short as Colorado School of Mines survived with a 74-72 win over CSC on Saturday.

Chadron State trailed by 16 points – 59-43 – with just over 10 minutes to go in the game, but the Eagles again showed second-half resilience after their Thursday 21-point comeback against MSU Denver. The Eagles cut the Oredigger lead to a single point on three occasions in the final four minutes, but the final point proved elusive.

CSC's first shot with a chance to take the lead came with three seconds to go, when Isaiah Randolph missed a contested layup and Zach Smith was fouled on the floor while grabbing an offensive rebound. 

With 1.9 seconds left and trailing 73-72, the Eagles had an opportunity at the line to tie or take the lead, but CSC missed the front end of a one-and-one and Mines rebounded to seal it. 

Randolph filled the box score, finishing with 18 points and again shooting over 50 percent from the field (7-13) while adding seven rebounds and a game-high five assists. 

Jadon Cool scored a game-high 19 points on 7-for-18 shooting while Blessing Adesipe and Zach Smith scored 10 points apiece to give CSC four in double figures. Luka Djurovic had two points but made a substantial impact on the defensive end with 10 rebounds and three steals.

The Eagles shot 42.2 percent from the field, 28.6 percent from three (8-28) and only 58.8 percent from the line (10-17), CSC's fourth-lowest FT percentage this season. The Orediggers were marginally better, hitting 44.8 percent from the field, 36 percent from three and 86.7 percent from the line (13-15).

Chadron State outscored Mines 34-28 in the paint despite the Orediggers out-rebounding CSC 44-27. Two Mines players recorded double-doubles – Jonathan Moore (16 pts, 10 rebounds) and Alex Romack (13 pts, 10 rebounds).

The Eagles also took care of the basketball, committing a season-low four turnovers, which is also the fewest in a game that Mines has forced this year. 

Despite the late drama, Mines led wire-to-wire. They jumped out to a 9-0 lead, were up 22-9 after 10 minutes, and led by 13 at halftime. Unlike the MSU Denver game, when Chadron State took control immediately out of the locker room at halftime, Mines continued to extend their lead and were up by as many as 17 with 12:41 left.

The big run for Chadron State came in the final 10 minutes, as the Eagles outscored the Orediggers 29-15 over the final 10:08. Isaiah Randolph and Zach Smith combined for a 7-0 run consisting of a Randolph layup, Smith three off a Randolph assist and Smith fastbreak layup off a Randolph steal to cut the deficit to 59-50.

Another 7-0 run with a Randolph layup and back-to-back Randolph-assisted Jackson Schauer buckets – a layup and a three – cut the deficit to just four at 61-57.

The teams traded baskets as CSC climbed within one at 65-64 and 67-66, but each time, the Orediggers scored so that Chadron State never took possession with a chance to take the lead until the final seconds. 

Blessing Adesipe hit a big three-pointer to bring the Eagles within two at 73-71, but the Eagles would go just 1-for-3 from the line in the final minute. After Mines's rebound with less than a second left, Alex Romack hit the first before intentionally missing the second to effectively end the game. 

The Eagles (6-18, 4-12 RMAC) are on the road next week against Fort Lewis and Adams State.

​Chadron State—Jadon Cool 19, Isaiah Randolph 18, Zach Smith 10, Blessing Adesipe 10, Jackson Schauer 8, Mack Keighran 5, Luka Djurovic 2. Totals: 27-64 FG (8-28 3PT) 10-17 FT. 72points, 27 rebounds, 9 assists, 4 turnovers.

​Colorado School of Mines—Jonathan Moore 16, Alex Romack 13, Trent Minter 12, Shelton Henton 10, Braydon Jacob 8, Kellon Johnson 6, Will Cordonnier 4, Silas McCurnin 3, Derek Lamb 2. Totals: 26-58 FG (9-25 3PT) 13-15 FT. 74 points, 44 rebounds, 14 assists, 13 turnovers.