DENVER – The Westminster men's basketball team used a big second half to escape the Regis Fieldhouse with a 70-55 win over Regis University on Saturday night in Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference action.
 
With the win, Westminster (7-6, 7-4 RMAC) sweeps a RMAC weekend road trip for the first time this season and just the second since rejoining the conference last season.
 
The Griffins were able to shoot 47.9 percent from the field on the night and they used 21 of 27 shooting at the foul line to help overcome the 3 of 11 from beyond the arc. They held Regis (12-4, 6-4) RMAC to 34.9 percent shooting in snapping the Rangers' six-game winning streak.
 
"I am really proud of the way the guys locked in on defense tonight," Westminster assistant coach Kyle Hodgson said after the game. "We really focused on rebounding this week and it paid off tonight. Our effort on that end of the floor turned into points on the offensive end"
 
Westminster used a 13-0 run in the later stages of the first half to open up a 29-22 lead with 1:57 before the break. Zerrion Payton and Dayon Goodman combined to scored 11 points during the run. Regis countered with a 16-5 spurt that had them leading 38-34 with 17:39 to play in the game.
 
That is when the Griffins took the game over as Goodman and Travis Devashrayee scored five points apiece during a 16-0 run that blew the game open. Devashrayee capped the run with a three at the 11:48 mark and the Griffins in front 50-38.
 
The game-deciding burst from the Griffins eventually extended out to 22-4 over a 9-minutes span of time and had the lead up to 14. Regis would get within nine with 5:44 to play before Devashrayee added another five points during a 9-2 run that sealed the win.
 
Goodman finished 11 of 13 at the foul line to lead the Griffins with 19 points. Devashrayee was 7 of 10 from the field and 3 of 5 from beyond the arc to score a career-high 18 points.
 
Westminster had a 37-31 edge on the boards and they only committed 10 fouls and gave up just six free throws. They forced Regis into 12 turnovers and converted them into 12 points.
 
Payton added 14 points while Casey Evans scored 12 for the Griffins. Goodman led the team with eight rebounds and he blocked three shots.
 
Noah King led the Rangers with 18 points behind a 5 f 6 effort from three.
 
The Griffins will now return home to host a pair of RMAC games next weekend in the Behnken Field House. They open the second half of conference play against South Dakota Mines on Friday at 7:30 p.m. MST with tickets available at WestminsterGriffins.com/tickets.