FORT COLLINS – Until Gian Clavell returns, Colorado State will have to score by committee. Wednesday night belonged to Che Bob and Emmanuel Omogbo, who each put up 20 points as the Rams knocked off Fort Lewis 84-75 in Moby Arena.
CSU once again struggled to make open shots in the first half, allowing the Skyhawks to jump out to an early advantage. Fort Lewis led for all but about 20 seconds despite shooting just 32 percent.
The Rams shot 37 percent, but connected on just one of their nine three-point attempts. Fort Lewis also out-reounbded the green and gold 25-23 before halftime.
“I just feel like we’re playing a little tentative out there in the first half,” said Emmanuel Omogbo. “We’re just not getting any stops. Coach told us coming in this team was really good. But we didn’t really listen. They gave us a fight and I’m proud of my teammates. We wound up grinding it out.”
The action picked up in the second half thanks to the trio of Che Bob, Emmanuel Omogbo and J.D. Paige. CSU scored 54 of their 84 points after the break. Much of that could be attributed to the Rams hitting 22-of-25 free throws.
“I feel like we’re coming along,” Omogbo said. “Guys are going to start hitting shots. It’s the first two games of the season and we’re still coming along. But right now, we’re living at the free throw line, we’ve got to do the same thing every night and we’ve got to grind out wins.”
Bob and Omogbo finished with monster games. The 6-foot-6 Bob recorded 20 points and seven rebounds off the bench while the 6-foot-8 Omogbo totaled 20 points and 15 rebounds in a team-leading 37 minutes.
Prentiss Nixon also got into double figures with 12 points and Paige ended with 11 points, as well as a perfect 6-of-6 from the charity stripe.
It wasn’t until the final minutes that CSU pulled away, much like in the exhibition last week against Regis. By game’s end, the Skyhawks actually spent more time with the lead than the Rams.
Nevertheless, a win’s a win for coach Larry Eustachy.
“It’s the exact game we needed,” Eustachy said. “And that game could have gone the other way too.”
PLAYER OF THE GAME
Che Bob – You could argue Omogbo was equally deserving, but the game really changed in the second half with the spark that Bob provided. Eustachy praised the forward after the game, saying “You could just see him from the deer in the headlights against Regis to the last two games, he’s playing with a lot of confidence. I mean when he stole the ball with a dribble, when have we had a player like that who has that kind of skill and speed to explode like that?”
QUOTE OF THE GAME
“It’s going to take time. Time is the only thing that will get this team better and better.” – Eustachy
WHAT’S NEXT
The Rams head away from the friendly confines of Moby Arena when they play at Stanford on Sunday afternoon. Tipoff is set for 4 p.m.
