Josh Pascarelli is a flamethrower from 3-point range. The junior guard is shooting 53 percent from deep through the first nine games of the season and dropped 26 points in Colorado State’s 91-86 win over Colorado on Saturday afternoon.
After going 8-of-8 from beyond the arc in CSU’s neutral site win over South Florida, Pascarelli went 8-of-10 from 3-point range against the Buffs.
When asked about what’s going through his mind when he’s out there raining threes, Pascarelli said that he didn’t even realize how many he had hit in the win. If the shot is open, though, he’s going to take it.
Kyle Jorgensen, who continues to put up numbers himself and scored 21 points against CU, reiterated what he said in the preseason — that Pascarelli is one of the best shooters that he’s ever seen.
“You know, there’s no better feeling than when someone hits a three, and then hits another one and another one. It just hurts, man,” Jorgensen said. “I know when he’s hot and I know that when he’s hot, I just want to feed him the ball as much as possible.”
Ali Farokhmanesh, like Pascarelli, smiled and said that he didn’t realize that his guard hit eight from deep on 80 percent shooting. “The last time he made eight threes, I didn’t even realize it,” he said.
“Every time he shoots it, I just assume that it’s going in. So I’m surprised he missed two. What is he? 16 for his last 18? That’s decent.”
Pascarelli has shown that he’s capable of getting molten hot from the perimeter. It’s a small sample size, however, he’s probably already in the conversation for one of the best pure 3-point shooters to ever wear the Green & Gold. What I loved most about is performance was that when the game was tight late, and the Rams desperately needed a bucket to withstand a relentless effort from their in-state rivals, the savvy guard showed just how heady he truly is. After getting the defender to bite, thinking that he’d put another three up, Pascarelli drove and sunk a jump shot in the lane to put CSU up 3 points with just 33 seconds to go (88-85).
Pascarelli admitted postgame that he was looking to get another 3-point attempt up, but really he was just trying to create a high-quality shot.
“At first, I was trying to get a three, not gonna lie,” The former Marist guard said. “But he bit, and it was like, alright, keep going and play basketball. And, I mean, it was just a good look. So I just took it.”
Farokhmanesh praised Pascarelli’s mentality postgame, explaining how he was hurting after missing game-winning attempts against Denver and Virginia Tech, so seeing the way that he’s been able to bounce back has been rewarding.
“He was thinking three, I’m sure,” Farokhmanesh said of Pascarelli’s game-sealing shot.
“And for him to just make the right read, that’s what we always talk about. Whatever the game requires of you, that’s the only decision to make. And in that moment, they were sitting on his three, and he made a nice hesitation move. He’s been working on it, I’ve seen him do it, and for him to make that read and make that play — that’s what it’s about. It’s fun. It’s fun to see guys evolving their game in the middle of the season too.”
Pascarelli has been everything that the Rams could have hoped for after the departure of Kyan Evans to North Carolina in the offseason. He now has six double-digit scoring outputs, including three games of 20+ points in the non-conference slate. He’s also hit at least three 3-pointers in six games so far. Coincidentally, or not, the only games the Rams have lost this year have been the two matchups in which he didn’t make multiple threes.
It might not be sustainable to expect him to keep this current pace. Going 16-of-18 over two games is reminiscent of Steph Curry or Jamal Murray when he gets in the zone. But it’s been pretty remarkable to see how quickly he’s been able to hit the ground running since arriving in Fort Collins. It’s been even more impressive to witness the resolve he’s displayed in a couple of must-win scenarios for the Rams to keep their hopes of an at-large bid alive.
There were high hopes when Pascarelli was tabbed a top 5 shooting guard in the portal this past spring cycle. What he did in a rivalry win this weekend, though, will go down as one of the best performances we’ve ever seen in this in-state matchup.
The atmosphere was electric and the game was a track meet from the opening tip. That was a monster performance from a highly talented individual. It was the type of game that you are thankful to have been able to witness in person.
