SILVER CITY, N.M. – Having entered as one of the top teams in the nation, Fort Lewis College did nothing to dispute that fact on Saturday as they rolled past the Western New Mexico University men's basketball team taking the 97-61 Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference victory.

FLC (23-3, 18-3 RMAC) came in ranked No. 9 in the latest NABC Poll and No. 7 in the D2SIDA Media Poll. The Skyhawks began to warm up midway through the first half and didn't look back.

WNMU (1-25, 1-20 RMAC) did their best to combat the solid shooting, but it was just too much from FLC. The Skyhawks connected on 61 percent (17-28) from the field in the first half, including a 7-13 (54) clip from long range.

Senior Adam Kesler (Silver City, NM/Silver) came out on fire hitting back-to-back threes giving the Mustangs the early 6-0 advantage. Following a run by FLC to take their first lead, WNMU responded with Kesler draining another three, which he turned into a four-point play and then senior Makhtar Fall (Morocco/Ecole Al Jabr) finished the break with a dunk to move WNMU to a 14-10 lead with 15:48 to go in the first half.

The Skyhawks used their hot shooting over the next few minutes to regain the lead and not look back. Freshman Willie McCray (Clovis, NM/Clovis/Westwind Prep Academy ) had the Mustangs back to within five just past the 10-minute media timeout, but that would be as close as they could get the rest of the way.

FLC went on a 27-13 run to finish the half and take a 49-30 lead into the locker rooms.

The Skyhawks continued with the pressure into the second half opening on a 13-0 run to put the game out of reach.

FLC shot a remarkable 31-57 (54) from the field, 14-28 (50) from long range and 21-27 (78) at the foul line. WNMU went 22-69 (32), 5-19 (26) from three and 12-16 (75) at the charity stripe.

FLC had six players score in double-figures led by 17 from Kade Closter. Austin Haldorson grabbed a team-best 11 rebounds.

Freshman Jordan Enriquez (El Paso, TX/Bel Air ) had a strong game for the Mustangs leading the way with 15 points. Junior Steven Loucks (Yuma, AZ/Cibola) added 12 and Kesler with 10. The 15 points by Enriquez tied a career-high he also set against New Mexico Highlands back on Dec. 5.

WNMU will close the regular season this coming Friday when they will host in-state rival New Mexico Highlands starting at 7:30 p.m.