By: Paxton Ritchie
CSC Sports Information Director
CHADRON, Neb. – Despite Chadron State men's basketball getting a game-high 21 points from Isaiah Randolph, a 10-0 run in the final five minutes helped put some distance between the Eagles and No. 19-ranked Black Hills State, who defeated CSC 77-59 on Tuesday evening in the Chicoine Center.
Randolph made four threes and seven total field goals for the Eagles (4-15, 2-9 RMAC), but the Yellow Jackets (16-3, 9-2 RMAC) had four players in double figures.
Behind Randolph, Mack Keighran scored 15 points on 5 of 9 shooting while Jadon Cool chipped in nine. Blessing Adesipe had a game-high nine rebounds plus a block and a steal while Collin Nick had two blocks.
Both teams started slow offensively and heated up in the second half, but Black Hills State was a little bit better in both periods. The visiting Yellow Jackets shot 39 percent from the field in the first half and 52 percent from the floor in the second half to tally 45 percent for the game. Chadron State shot just 29 percent in the first half and improved to 48 percent in the second half, shooting 38 percent from the field overall.
The Eagles were marginally better from three-point range (making 8 of 24 compared to BHSU's 8 of 25) and excelled at the free throw line (making 13 of 15 attempts for 87 percent while BHSU made 15 of 21). Cool, Adesipe, Keighran and Ethan Russell made one three-pointer apiece for CSC in addition to Randolph's four.
Black Hills State outrebounded CSC 38-28, a total that included 10 offensive rebounds for the Yellow Jackets compared to just two for the Eagles. Black Hills State outscored the home team 19-2 in second chance points and also had more points in the paint (36-18) and bench points (32 to 20).
Chadron State led 3-0 after a three-pointer from Randolph on its first possession, but Black Hills State answered by scoring the next seven points and never trailed again. As first-half baskets proved hard to come by across the board, the Yellow Jackets never led by more than six at any point during the first half, but led by double digits for the majority of the final 11 minutes.
Jackson Seale, a 6-foot-10 transfer from Division I Eastern Washington, scored a career-high 16 points along with a team-high seven rebounds and three blocks to lead the Yellow Jackets.
Chadron State will play its fourth game in eight days on Thursday when the Eagles face South Dakota Mines (9-9, 6-4 RMAC) at 7:30 p.m. in Rapid City.
Chadron State—Isaiah Randolph 21, Mack Keighran 15, Jadon Cool 9, Blessing Adesipe 5, Ethan Russell 3, Zach Smith 2, Luka Djurovic 2, Collin Nick 2. Totals: 19-50 FG (8-24 3PT) 13-15 FT. 59 points, 28 rebounds, 10 assists, 12 turnovers.