RAPID CITY, S.D. --- The South Dakota School of Mines men's basketball team went toe-to-toe against the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference top team and No. 21 ranked Fort Lewis College Saturday evening at the King Center in Rapid City, S.D., but the Hardrockers just ran out of time as the Skyhawks escaped with a 73-68 win.

Fort Lewis looked determined to start the game and overwhelmed the home team, jumping out to an early double-digit 13-point lead. It didn't take long for the Hardrockers to regroup and cut into the deficit and before halftime trailed by just four points, 37-33.

That proved to be the main difference in the game, as FLC held off a late Hardrocker rally. The visitors narrowly bettered SD Mines over the final 20 minutes, 36-35.

The 'Rockers shot 45.1 percent from the field making good on 23-51 attempts. They connected on 5-17 from the three-point line and converted 17-24 from the free throw line. SD Mines came down with 28 rebounds, recorded 12 assists and five steals.

The Skyhawks (14-3, 10-2) cashed in on 28-54 basketball to shoot 51.9 percent from the field and hit 4-12 from three-point range and netted 13-21 from the foul line. The visitors collected 35 boards, had 14 assists, seven steals and five blocked shots.

The Hardrockers were led in scoring by sophomore Logan Elers with 24 points, six rebounds, three assists and three steals. Senior Brian Orr tacked on 12 markers and two rebounds. Freshman Troy Brady contributed with nine points while freshman Wilfred Dickson and junior Jacob Anastasi both posted seven points.

Fort Lewis was paced by Rasmus Bach with 24 points while DJ Miles and Marquel Beasley both put up 11 points.

The loss drops SD Mines to 6-10 on the season and fall to 3-8 in the RMAC. Next up, the Hardrockers travel up to Spearfish, S.D., for a rivalry game against Black Hills State in a 7:30 p.m. bout.