Colorado State University Athletics
Tuesday, November 26
Fort Collins, CO
7 PM MT
Colorado State
4-3,0-0Mountain
75
vs
47
Incarnate Word
2-3,0-0Southlan
1
2
3
4
F
Incarnate Word
13
13
2
19
47
Colorado St.
17
17
24
17
75
Snow Day Win for Rams over Cardinals, 75-47
11/26/2019 9:17:00 PM | Women's Basketball
FORT COLLINS, Colo. – For a college campus, where promotions are king, this one seemed out of place.
For Tuesday night's women's basketball game at Moby Arena, Colorado State offered up "Fans Don't Come Night," presented by Mother Nature. There were no T-shirts fired out of cannons by mascots, no free pizza to be found. There was plenty of snow, however, courtesy of 20-plus inches which covered parts of Northern Colorado the day before and continued for nearly a full cycle of the absent sun.
The university considered the safety of its fan base, and trying to navigate the roads didn't fit into the equation. So instead of coming Tuesday, fans can exchange their tickets for two complimentary seats at any other game on the schedule.
But Incarnate Word was already in town – the Cardinals had been since Monday – and there was a game to be played, one CSU coach Ryun Williams said his team needed.
So in front of university staff, friends and family – and a few folks who didn't get the memo and were led to the court by athletic director Joe Parker – the game went on as scheduled.
After a tight first half, the Rams shook loose of their guests behind a 24-2 advantage in the third quarter on the way to a 75-47 victory, improving their mark to 4-3.
"I just think this group needs games," said Williams, who thanked the university facilities staff for making it possible. "We've been growing as a basketball team, and it's hard to simulate that stuff in practice. We only get 30 nights. As a competitor, don't take one away. I don't care if there are people in the stands or not, don't take one away."
As he continued, it was a chance to grow, an opportunity for some to get on track. The Rams were stellar from behind the 3-point arc in the game, hitting 14-of-29 attempts, and Jamie Bonnarens hit four of them in the first half alone on her way to 12 points. It was her best shooting night as a Ram, and it was the product of great ball movement, leading to a season-best 22 assists.
"I think we all just came in ready to play," Bonnarens said. "I mean, it was a weird night, it was a weird situation, but we knew we had to get better. More than half of us, probably, have been working this whole summer to try to play, and we only get 30, so we're trying to do our thing. Honestly, my teammates and my coaches said look for shots, hunt down your shots because they're going to fall. I believed that, and that's what happened."
At the midpoint, Andrea Brady already had a double-double, her first of the season, closing out with matching 14s in points and rebounds. Still, the Rams only led by eight at the break, which was concerning.
The third quarter erased all the drama.
The Rams dominated the frame 24-2, exactly what Williams asked for and what the players craved. They were still hitting 3s as the offense was still flowing, but the defense picked up the pace.
"There was just a lot of one-on-one play in the first half by Incarnate, and they won a lot of those battles," Williams said. "A lot of just driving by us and getting to the rim. We work too hard in practice, and it's just a huge emphasis of keeping that ball in front, and in the second half, just much, much better. The kids were just a little more locked in, a little more intent behind their duties and performed them nicely."
Taylor Mole hit four 3s of her own, all in the second half to finish with a career-best 12 points, and Megan Jacobs joined her teammates in doubles figures with 12, adding five assists, as did Katie Stamatelopoulos.
The trick, Williams felt, was creating their own energy without a raucous crowd. Remember, this was a group who played a game earlier with more than 2,500 screaming youngsters from the Poudre School District, a crowd so loud they couldn't hear Williams' orders. Tuesday, everybody could hear every word Williams said, so he was trying to be cautious.
While Bonnarens felt it was a bit odd, Brady said she enjoyed the evening, small crowd or not.
"I don't know why these two keep saying it's weird; I kinda liked it," Brady said. "It reminded me of our scrimmage at the beginning of the year. It's just the gym and you have a game to play. It's nice to have the fans, and we had some family members and fans tonight, but honestly, when it comes down to it, it's just us trying to create our own energy no matter where we're playing or how many fans we have. I kinda liked it tonight."
For Tuesday night's women's basketball game at Moby Arena, Colorado State offered up "Fans Don't Come Night," presented by Mother Nature. There were no T-shirts fired out of cannons by mascots, no free pizza to be found. There was plenty of snow, however, courtesy of 20-plus inches which covered parts of Northern Colorado the day before and continued for nearly a full cycle of the absent sun.
The university considered the safety of its fan base, and trying to navigate the roads didn't fit into the equation. So instead of coming Tuesday, fans can exchange their tickets for two complimentary seats at any other game on the schedule.
But Incarnate Word was already in town – the Cardinals had been since Monday – and there was a game to be played, one CSU coach Ryun Williams said his team needed.
So in front of university staff, friends and family – and a few folks who didn't get the memo and were led to the court by athletic director Joe Parker – the game went on as scheduled.
After a tight first half, the Rams shook loose of their guests behind a 24-2 advantage in the third quarter on the way to a 75-47 victory, improving their mark to 4-3.
"I just think this group needs games," said Williams, who thanked the university facilities staff for making it possible. "We've been growing as a basketball team, and it's hard to simulate that stuff in practice. We only get 30 nights. As a competitor, don't take one away. I don't care if there are people in the stands or not, don't take one away."
As he continued, it was a chance to grow, an opportunity for some to get on track. The Rams were stellar from behind the 3-point arc in the game, hitting 14-of-29 attempts, and Jamie Bonnarens hit four of them in the first half alone on her way to 12 points. It was her best shooting night as a Ram, and it was the product of great ball movement, leading to a season-best 22 assists.
"I think we all just came in ready to play," Bonnarens said. "I mean, it was a weird night, it was a weird situation, but we knew we had to get better. More than half of us, probably, have been working this whole summer to try to play, and we only get 30, so we're trying to do our thing. Honestly, my teammates and my coaches said look for shots, hunt down your shots because they're going to fall. I believed that, and that's what happened."
At the midpoint, Andrea Brady already had a double-double, her first of the season, closing out with matching 14s in points and rebounds. Still, the Rams only led by eight at the break, which was concerning.
The third quarter erased all the drama.
The Rams dominated the frame 24-2, exactly what Williams asked for and what the players craved. They were still hitting 3s as the offense was still flowing, but the defense picked up the pace.
"There was just a lot of one-on-one play in the first half by Incarnate, and they won a lot of those battles," Williams said. "A lot of just driving by us and getting to the rim. We work too hard in practice, and it's just a huge emphasis of keeping that ball in front, and in the second half, just much, much better. The kids were just a little more locked in, a little more intent behind their duties and performed them nicely."
Taylor Mole hit four 3s of her own, all in the second half to finish with a career-best 12 points, and Megan Jacobs joined her teammates in doubles figures with 12, adding five assists, as did Katie Stamatelopoulos.
The trick, Williams felt, was creating their own energy without a raucous crowd. Remember, this was a group who played a game earlier with more than 2,500 screaming youngsters from the Poudre School District, a crowd so loud they couldn't hear Williams' orders. Tuesday, everybody could hear every word Williams said, so he was trying to be cautious.
While Bonnarens felt it was a bit odd, Brady said she enjoyed the evening, small crowd or not.
"I don't know why these two keep saying it's weird; I kinda liked it," Brady said. "It reminded me of our scrimmage at the beginning of the year. It's just the gym and you have a game to play. It's nice to have the fans, and we had some family members and fans tonight, but honestly, when it comes down to it, it's just us trying to create our own energy no matter where we're playing or how many fans we have. I kinda liked it tonight."
Team Stats
UIW
CSU
FG%
.288
.529
3FG%
.400
.483
FT%
.714
.875
RB
25
41
TO
5
11
STL
5
5
Game Leaders
Pts
14
FGM
6
3FGM
0
FTM
2
Pts
12
FGM
4
3FGM
4
FTM
0
Pts
12
FGM
4
3FGM
3
FTM
1
Pts
12
FGM
4
3FGM
4
FTM
0
Players Mentioned
G/F
/ Women's BasketballF
/ Women's BasketballG/F
/ Women's BasketballG/F
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