Colorado State University Athletics
Saturday, February 3
Fort Collins, Colo.
6 pm MT
Colorado State
10-15, 3-9MW
67
vs
76
Nevada
20-4, 9-1MW
1
2
F
Nevada
37
39
76
Colorado State
35
32
67
CSU Falls To League-Leader Nevada, 76-67
2/3/2018 10:02:00 PM | Men's Basketball
FORT COLLINS, Colo. - Colorado State went back and forth with league-leader Nevada but came out on the short end of a 76-67 loss, Feb. 3. The loss marks CSU's sixth in a row, dropping the Rams to 10-15 overall and 3-9 in Mountain West play. With the win, Nevada improves to 20-4 and a conference-best 9-1 record in MW action.
CSU and Nevada traded triples to open the game and battled in a tight first half that experienced four lead changes and five ties. Nevada held the largest lead of the half at six at 27-21 with 9:08 remaining in the half, utilizing a perfect 15-of-15 at the free throw line in the opening half. However, the lead would get no larger, as CSU eventually tied the game at 35 on a pair of redshirt-sophomore Nico Carvacho free throws. Nevada hit two free throws in the final minute to take a 37-35 advantage into the halftime break.
The Rams grabbed their only lead of the second half when junior forward Deion James hit the second of back-to-back threes to put CSU up 41-40 with 17:32 to play. However, Nevada went on 11-2 run over the next 5:28 to take an eight-point lead at 51-43. CSU battled through the rest of the 20 minutes, cutting the margin to as few as two on two occasions and within one possession at 65-62 with 2:58 remaining. The Wolf Pack put the game away, as it hit their last three field goal and four free throw attempts to seal the victory.
The two teams were comparable on both ends, as CSU shot 38.2 percent (21-of-55), including 30.8 percent (8-of-26) from the three-point line. Nevada was 36.2 percent (21-of-58) from the floor and 29.6 percent (8-fo-27) behind the arc. CSU had a slight edge on the boards, 39-38, with the Rams holding a 9-4 advantage on second-chance points. Both teams had 12 turnovers, but Nevada held an 11-2 edge in fast-break points.
The Rams had four players in double digits, with senior forward Che Bob and redshirt-sophomore guard Anthony Bonner each posting 13 points. Junior forward Deion James had 12 points and added eight rebounds, while redshirt-sophomore guard Raquan Mitchell chipped in 11 points and a game-high four assists. Redshirt-sophomore Nico Carvacho led the Rams in rebounding with 10 boards. Forward Caleb Martin led the Wolf Pack effort with 26 points.
Stat of the Game
The free-throw line was the difference maker in the contest, as the Wolf Pack outscored the Rams by nine at the stripe, going 26-of-32 (81.3 percent) while the hosts were 17-of-23 (73.9 percent).
Notes:
•   Steve Barnes took over as interim head coach for CSU for the Nevada game in place of Larry Eustachy, who is on administrative leave.
•   CSU's all-time record against Nevada is 9-11 including a 5-3 all-time record at Moby Arena
•   Carvacho's 10 boards on the night marked his ninth straight game tallying double digits off the glass. He has averaged 14.0 boards a contest during that stretch.
•   This is the first game back for CSU's leading scorer Prentiss Nixon since playing against Air Force on Jan. 17. He finished with four points in 18 minutes of play.
Up Next:
•   Colorado State is back on the road in-state, traveling to Colorado Springs to take on Air Force, Tuesday, Feb. 6 at 7 p.m.
•   The contest between the Rams and Falcons will be televised on AT&T SportsNet.
•   The game will air across the Colorado State Sports Network (along with online at CSURams.com), with Brian Roth and Adam Nigon on the call.
Â
Â
Â
Â
Â
CSU and Nevada traded triples to open the game and battled in a tight first half that experienced four lead changes and five ties. Nevada held the largest lead of the half at six at 27-21 with 9:08 remaining in the half, utilizing a perfect 15-of-15 at the free throw line in the opening half. However, the lead would get no larger, as CSU eventually tied the game at 35 on a pair of redshirt-sophomore Nico Carvacho free throws. Nevada hit two free throws in the final minute to take a 37-35 advantage into the halftime break.
The Rams grabbed their only lead of the second half when junior forward Deion James hit the second of back-to-back threes to put CSU up 41-40 with 17:32 to play. However, Nevada went on 11-2 run over the next 5:28 to take an eight-point lead at 51-43. CSU battled through the rest of the 20 minutes, cutting the margin to as few as two on two occasions and within one possession at 65-62 with 2:58 remaining. The Wolf Pack put the game away, as it hit their last three field goal and four free throw attempts to seal the victory.
The two teams were comparable on both ends, as CSU shot 38.2 percent (21-of-55), including 30.8 percent (8-of-26) from the three-point line. Nevada was 36.2 percent (21-of-58) from the floor and 29.6 percent (8-fo-27) behind the arc. CSU had a slight edge on the boards, 39-38, with the Rams holding a 9-4 advantage on second-chance points. Both teams had 12 turnovers, but Nevada held an 11-2 edge in fast-break points.
The Rams had four players in double digits, with senior forward Che Bob and redshirt-sophomore guard Anthony Bonner each posting 13 points. Junior forward Deion James had 12 points and added eight rebounds, while redshirt-sophomore guard Raquan Mitchell chipped in 11 points and a game-high four assists. Redshirt-sophomore Nico Carvacho led the Rams in rebounding with 10 boards. Forward Caleb Martin led the Wolf Pack effort with 26 points.
Stat of the Game
The free-throw line was the difference maker in the contest, as the Wolf Pack outscored the Rams by nine at the stripe, going 26-of-32 (81.3 percent) while the hosts were 17-of-23 (73.9 percent).
Notes:
•   Steve Barnes took over as interim head coach for CSU for the Nevada game in place of Larry Eustachy, who is on administrative leave.
•   CSU's all-time record against Nevada is 9-11 including a 5-3 all-time record at Moby Arena
•   Carvacho's 10 boards on the night marked his ninth straight game tallying double digits off the glass. He has averaged 14.0 boards a contest during that stretch.
•   This is the first game back for CSU's leading scorer Prentiss Nixon since playing against Air Force on Jan. 17. He finished with four points in 18 minutes of play.
Up Next:
•   Colorado State is back on the road in-state, traveling to Colorado Springs to take on Air Force, Tuesday, Feb. 6 at 7 p.m.
•   The contest between the Rams and Falcons will be televised on AT&T SportsNet.
•   The game will air across the Colorado State Sports Network (along with online at CSURams.com), with Brian Roth and Adam Nigon on the call.
Â
Â
Â
Â
Â
Team Stats
NV
CSU
FG%
.362
.382
3FG%
.296
.308
FT%
.813
.739
RB
38
39
TO
12
12
STL
4
2
Game Leaders
Pts
13
FGM
4
3FGM
1
FTM
4
Pts
12
FGM
3
3FGM
2
FTM
4
Pts
11
FGM
5
3FGM
1
FTM
0
Players Mentioned
F/C
/ Men's BasketballF
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's Basketball
G
/ Men's BasketballColorado State Basketball (M): Season 1 - Ep. 1
Sunday, August 10
Ramily - CSU Men's Basketball
Tuesday, August 05
Ram Line - Shoot Around with Josh Pascarelli & Darnez Slater (MBB)
Monday, August 04
Behind the White Board - Ken DeWeese
Monday, August 04