David Roddy proves why he should remain in the starting lineup with a big-time performance in the Border War

FORT COLLINS, Colo. — David Roddy may be a true freshman but he doesn’t look like one on the court. The 6-foot-5 forward out of Breck High School in Minneapolis, Minn., was an absolute force in Saturday’s 72-61 win over Wyoming.

Making his fourth start overall and third consecutive start in place of Adam Thistlewood, who is still recovering from a high ankle sprain suffered in the win over Tulsa, Roddy did a little bit of everything for the Rams on Saturday.

From the opening tip, Roddy was locked in on both ends of the floor. The first-year player scored CSU’s first seven points of the game and pulled down a pair of offensive rebounds within the opening minutes as well. What’s more, though, that intensity never wavered throughout the game.

“David Roddy really got us going on the offensive glass and really exerted his will on the game, which was great to see,” head coach Niko Medved said postgame.

Whether it was on offense or defense, Roddy was all effort and found a way to make a massive impact. For instance, on two different occasions in the first half, Roddy was able to block a Wyoming jump shot without fouling — not a layup or duck attempt but a pair of mid-range attempts — which is much harder to pull off.

With the Cowboys already struggling to score, Roddy’s high-effort plays on defense only helped the Rams demoralize Wyoming that much more.

In total, Roddy finished with a career-high 19 points on 7-of-11 shooting from the field (64 percent). He also pulled down 13 rebounds and made all five of his free throw attempts in 33 minutes of action.

Moving forward, it’s no surprise that Medved intends to keep Roddy in the starting lineup when Thistlewood returns. Roddy did not begin the year as a starter but it’s clear that he is always one of the most impactful players on the floor.

“We put David into the starting lineup for that game against Tulsa and obviously, that’s kinda the way that we’ll go when Adam comes back,” Medved said. “David has got to continue to grow but we’ve been a better team when he’s been on the court in these games.”

Since joining the starting lineup against Tulsa on Dec. 21, the young forward has finished with point totals of 17, 17, 17 and now 19. With how productive he has been on both ends,  Medved knows taking him out of the starting rotation would be a mistake, especially with how his confidence is growing by the game.

“Getting comfortable in the starting lineup helped, and then the atmosphere of the Border War definitely helped,” Roddy said of his confidence growing with each start.

With Roddy staying in the starting rotation, it means that someone else will have to come off the bench, and according to Medved that will once again be Kris Martin.

Martin came off the bench against Tulsa and was frequently a sixth man in 2018-19 so it’s not as if the role will be foreign to him. More importantly, though, Medved believes the senior guard is mature enough to handle a different job and that Martin will embrace the situation with a team-first mindset.

Medved explained that when he told Martin that he would be coming off the bench against Tulsa, the veteran ball-handling guard understood and accepted the role well. “He’s been all in as a team guy,” Medved said. “Kris is working hard and has kept a great attitude.”

While Martin may be disappointed to no longer be in the starting lineup, the Rams should benefit from having a pair of seniors coming off of the bench to run the second unit. Hyron Edwards Jr. has been running the reserve unite all season and already has established chemistry with Martin in the backcourt. If the young guns ever have a slow game, being able to turn to a pair of veterans should give Medved some peace of mind.

Regardless of what the starting lineup ends up looking like at the end of the season, the one thing that is extremely clear is that Roddy is a superstar in the making. After a slow start against the league, maybe his presence in the starting lineup will be the difference this team needs to make a run.