SALT LAKE CITY – The Westminster men's basketball team suffered through its worst shooting performance of the season and fell to Adams State, 79-60, in Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference play on Friday night in the Behnken Field House.
 
Westminster (8-6, 4-6 RMAC) made just 25 of 71 field goal attempts and finished at a season low 35.2 percent. After Zerrion Payton made the team's first 3-point attempt of the night, they would then miss 19 straight and finish 2 of 22 overall.
 
Adams State (7-8, 6-4) took advantage of the Griffins struggles early with a 21-6 run that had them leading 23-11 midway through the first half. The visitors would put the game away with a 13-2 spurt that featured threes on three consecutive trips to open a 53-30 lead with 15:34 to play.
 
Payton led the Westminster effort with 18 points while adding nine rebounds, four steals, and two assists. Brandon Warr notched his second double-double of the year with 14 points and 10 rebounds. Casey Evans added 10 points.
 
The Griffins grabbed 16 of their 44 rebounds on the offensive end and converted them into 13 points. They were hurt by the 44.8 percent shooting and 21 fast break points from the Grizzlies.
 
Shakir Smith led ASU with 24 points on 10 of 18 shooting with four 3-pointers.
 
Westminster will look to end its three-game home losing streak on Saturday when they welcome No. 18 Fort Lewis to the Behnken Field House at 7:30 p.m. MT. Tickets for the game are available by visiting WestminsterGriffins.com/tickets.