FORT COLLINS, Colo. — While it was a disappointing Saturday night for Colorado State football (4-6), the men’s basketball team advanced to 3-1 on the season with a 74-64 victory over Loyola Marymount University.
Down seven at halftime, the Rams were able to rally with an impressive shooting performance down the stretch to steal the road win. Over the final 20 minutes, CSU outscored LMU by a margin of 46-29 and shot 56 percent from the field in the process. The Rams also forced 10 turnovers and outscored the Lions by 10 in fast break opportunities (13-3) in the second half.
For the game, CSU finished 43 percent from the field (21-of-49) and 33 percent from 3-point range (8-of-24). A big key, though, was CSU’s ability to get to the free throw line and convert. In the 10-point road win, the Rams knocked down 24-of-32 attempts from the charity stripe. Comparatively, LMU only made six free throws all night and finished the loss with 13 attempts.
Pacing the Rams in scoring was freshman point guard Isaiah Stevens. The first-year starter had 21 points on 62.5 percent shooting from the field (5-of-8). Stevens also picked up five rebounds and dished out five assists as he really did a little bit of everything in the victory. Perhaps the most impressive aspect of his showing, was that in a team-high 35 minutes on the floor, Stevens only recorded one foul and one turnover.
Right behind Stevens was Nico Carvacho with 17 points and seven rebounds. The senior center was efficient from the floor, finishing the night 5-of-8 from the field (62.5 percent). Even more encouraging was his showing at the free throw line (7-of-11). If the big man can continue to make opposing teams pay for hacking him down low, Carvacho will easily score 20+ points on an almost-nightly basis this season.
Finally, Kris Martin was able to finish the night with double-digit scoring figures as well. The senior guard was 4-of-16 from the field and ultimately scored 11 points in 30 minutes of action.
After beating Nebraska Omaha earlier in the week, the Rams are now undefeated at home and .500 on the road. Obviously, the season is still young but if CSU continues to play quality defense, this is going to be a team that is capable of really making some noise in league play. Playing a quality non-conference slate is only going to prepare them for them for the Mountain West — not to mention the Rams already have a pair of wins over quality mid-major opponents, which could benefit them down the line.
CSU will look to officially go on a winning streak when Arkansas State comes to Moby Arena on Wednesday. So far this season, the Red Wolves are also 3-1 but their one loss was the only other game they’ve played on the road.
