A Finish to Bragg About

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Mar 9

8:30 p.m.

Women's Basketball

vs SF vs. No. 2 UNLV

All it takes is 10 minutes to erase 30 minutes of ugly – with the final 3.8 seconds proving to be quite the emotional journey.

Madelyn Bragg hit a bank-shot at the buzzer, capping a furious fourth-quarter comeback, delivering Colorado State a 61-59 victory over Grand Canyon in the quarterfinal round of the Mountain West Tournament and avoiding a second-straight gut-punch at the Thomas & Mack Center.

The Rams trailed 44-36 entering the final quarter, a team which owned just one win under those same circumstances – way back on the road against Gonzaga. The situation called for a hero and Colorado State passed the hat.

It started with a Kloe Froebe 3, and she fueled the 25-point fourth-quarter surge by scoring nine of her 15 in the frame. Lexus Bargesser started to pick up steam as the stanza progressed, adding nine of her team-leading 19 in the fourth.

Trailing by 12 at one point in the third quarter, the Rams had not only come all the way back, they had moved ahead of a game Grand Canyon squad coming off an impressive win the evening prior. CSU had even built a four-point lead, but the Lopes started continued to counter punch.

With 3.8 remaining, a perfect inbound lob from the sideline to Julianna LaMendola forged a 59-all tie between the two, leading to an immediate timeout by Colorado State coach Ryun Williams with 2.2 on the clock. He had so many options to choose from considering Bargesser had become hot and so was Froebe, not to mention Brooke Carlson, whose drives to the basket were generating points for her and chances for teammates.

The answer was obvious.

Bragg – who had hit her first two shots of the game in the first quarter and had missed her next three, one in the fourth.

"I was really excited, yeah. I mean, she's a good player for a freshman (Norah Moo), but I mean, I just have so much experience over her," Bragg said. "I don't really get super nervous. I was a little more nervous than usual this time just because of the way I performed up until that point, but I knew that my coaches were trusting me, and I knew that they drew that play up for a reason, so just go out and execute."

She collected the pass from Bargesser, set up a shield to protect the shot and kissed it off the glass, the ball leaving her hand in plenty of time. Naturally, the play was reviewed, but the outcome was clear, with Bragg dancing a happy shuffle until the basket was confirmed.

It went so well, as if the Rams had done it before.

If only they had.

"I think that's the first time all year that we ran it right out of the huddle," Bargesser said. "I mean, what better time to do it, so..."

Taking the opening, Williams chimed with, "We might be undefeated if they ran some of that stuff right."

At least the Rams didn't walk away heartbroken.

Nobody around the program wanted to bring up the subject, but deep into Sunday evening, they were all thinking it.

Déjà vu.

Back to a year prior, when Colorado State, the No. 3 seed in the field struggled through one of the worst shooting nights of the season and fell to sixth-seeded Fresno State. One-and-done and stunned.

"Totally. Totally. I mean, yeah, same flipping bench," Williams said. "I mean, everything. It seemed that way. Just our kids were pressing. They just needed to find a breath, and they did that in that fourth quarter. You know, the grit kind of combined with just settling the game down in their minds was critical.

"But, yeah, to answer your question, yes."

The Rams were playing their typical defense, making life tough for the Lopes offensively, but they were also leaving the door cracked. Giving up nine offensive rebounds led to 11 GCU points, and the Lopes used 13 CSU turnovers to score nine more. While they weren't shooting well, they did get to the line (19-of-23 in the game).

All the while, Colorado State was flustered by the Lopes' switching from man to zone defense, particularly in the first half. Williams was flummoxed as to why. So were the players.

"We knew it was going to take a moment to really get locked in on the game and get our feels out of the way. It took a little longer than we expected, but going into the fourth quarter, the message was we have nothing to lose," Bargesser said. "We were playing scared … No, we just needed to go out and be ourselves and toughen up and go win the game."

Every hero needs a dependable sidekick, and Bragg was quick to point out the importance of what Froebe did to get the team's heartbeat pumping and advance the team to a semifinal matchup with UNLV on Monday (8:30 p.m.)

It wasn't just the deep ball to start; it was her willingness to battle inside and finish at the rim. To meet muscle with muscle and do so with determination.

"It's huge. That's what Kloe does," Bragg said. "She's a scrapper. We've seen it all year. She does the right thing when it's needed. I'm really proud of her. I'm really proud of our guards honestly because I don't get in the position to make that shot if our guards don't go on the run to go down the stretch when it really mattered."

And when it really mattered, Bragg delivered the final blow, the first time she's done so since early last year at her previous school. And in doing so, she did the one thing which comes naturally on a basketball court in March.

She danced.

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Lexus Bargesser

Kloe Froebe

Brooke Carlson

Madelyn Bragg

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Lexus Bargesser

Madelyn Bragg

Brooke Carlson

Kloe Froebe

Players Mentioned

Lexus Bargesser

Madelyn Bragg

Brooke Carlson

Kloe Froebe

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