FORT COLLINS, Colo. — Can you say clutch?
Trailing Nevada by one with 5.3 seconds left on the clock, Isaiah Stevens advanced the ball past midcourt and appeared to be heading hard to the rim. Instead, roughly 12 feet from the hoop, Stevens stopped on a dime and shook Jazz Johnson by going behind the back.
After losing his defender, who is a senior and has played in the NCAA Tournament, a calm Stevens was savvy enough to pause, gather himself and sink the game-winning jumper as time expired (92-91).
“I was trying to put pressure on the defense and then just read and react,” Stevens said postgame.
Stevens explained that getting to the basket for a layup would have been his first option but because Johnson had the angle to cut him off, he knew he had to use a counter move and throw something else at the veteran.
To make this shot on the biggest stage — after Nevada’s Jalen Harris had already knocked down a 3 to retake the lead — was something straight out of a movie scene. Following the game, Stevens even admitted that throwing the final blow felt a little bit sweeter knowing that the Nevada players thought they had the game in the bag.
“I would definitely say so — to say the least,” Stevens said while grinning ear to ear. “Man, that was a great game right there. And you know, we always feel that if there’s time still on the clock, we can make something happen.”
“He’s a walking bucket, that’s all I gotta say,” Adam Thistlewood added. “It’s amazing to see such a young player be this great, and this good so early in his career.”
As exciting as the play was, from a fundamental standpoint it was also an example of Stevens showing growth and learning from a past mistake.
With a few seconds left in the first half of the Air Force victory, Stevens had a chance to take the ball the length of the court and score. On that afternoon, Stevens rushed the play and ended up jacking up a 3-pointer that never had a chance.
Instead of chewing out his young point guard out, head coach Niko Medved put his arm around Stevens and calmly pointed out the error in his ways. “I remember grabbing him and telling him you gotta know this as a point guard,” Medved said.
Obviously, Medved knew what he was doing because roughly two weeks later, Stevens was able to completely redeem himself in an even bigger moment. “I knew he would take his time and at least get into an operating area,” Medved said. “He created some separation and just knocked down a big-time shot.”
Prior to crushing Nevada’s collective spirit at the buzzer, Colorado State trailed by as much as 10 in the second half. Despite shooting 54 percent from the field as a team, the Rams really struggled to slow down Nevada’s offense for most of the game.
Four different UNR players finished with double-digit figures, including Jalen Harris. Harris came into the game as one of the hottest players in the league and he definitely looked like it on Wednesday night, as he totaled a game-high 31 points on 12-of-24 shooting (50 percent) and sunk what almost was a game-winning 3-pointer for the Wolf Pack.
“Jalen Harris was just unreal tonight,” Medved said.
As inconsistent as the defense was on Wednesday night, though, it was a block by David Roddy that really changed the entire feel of the game.
“When he rotated over and blocked that shot, and got out that way, that was a game-changing play,” Medved said.
“You could see it in the fans — (with) how excited they got and (with) how loud that place got — and you know we feed off that,” Thistlewood said. “The more fans we can get (in here), the more we’re going to feed off them and the better we’re going to play.”
Thistlewood finished with a career-high 24 points and did so with only 10 shots from the floor (7-of-10). The sophomore forward from Golden, Colo., was able to make an impact in multiple facets of the game but was particularly impressive on the offensive end. He was consistent from deep, made all seven of his free throws and tied with two other starters for the most minutes played (32).
With a talented UNLV team coming to town on Saturday, the Rams will need guys like Stevens, Thistlewood and Nico Carvacho to continue to play well. The ‘Big Chile’ was as aggressive against the Wolf Pack as we’ve seen him all season, and finished with a respectable double-double (16 points, 15 rebounds).
The Rams will also need the same type of energy from the crowd, though. Wednesday night’s group was nothing compared to the end of the Tim Miles era but it really felt like home court advantage played a serious factor down the stretch.
“The potential of this place is crazy, especially if the students continue to turn out more and more each game,” Stevens said. “Man, I’m excited for it.”
CSU (15-8, 6-4) will host UNLV (11-11, 6-3) on Saturday for the annual ‘Orange Out’. Tipoff is slated for 2:00 p.m. MT.
