Colorado State University Athletics
Tuesday, November 14
Fort Collins, Colo.
7 pm MT
Colorado State
2-0
80
vs
76
Winthrop
0-2
1
2
F
Winthrop
39
37
76
Colorado State
32
48
80
Rams Overcome 14-Point Deficit For 80-76 Win Over Winthrop
11/14/2017 11:16:00 PM | Men's Basketball
CSU has five score in double-figures to defeat defending Big South Conference champs
FORT COLLINS, Colo. – The Colorado State men's basketball team rallied from a 14-point second-half deficit and came away with a thrilling 80-76 win over defending Big South Conference champion Winthrop, Nov. 14. In its first game of the 2017 Jamaica Classic, the Rams improved to 2-0 on the year, while the Eagles fell to 0-2.
With 15:06 remaining in the contest, the visitors built their biggest lead of the game at 50-36 on a pair of free throws by Nych Smith. CSU went on an 8-0 run over the next 2:12 on buckets by four different Rams to trim the margin to six. The teams battled for the next six minutes before CSU took the lead for good with six minutes remaining on a put-back bucket by redshirt-sophomore Nico Carvacho to go up 69-68. From that point, the Rams led by as many as seven before junior guard Prentiss Nixon's free throw with 15 seconds left sealed the victory.
The first half was a similar to two heavyweights going at it early, with seven ties and a pair of lead changes. The Rams led by as many as four, but the Eagles never trailed again in the first half after taking a 24-22 lead with just under seven minutes to go and built it into a 39-32 halftime advantage behind seven three-pointers.
CSU finished the game shooting 46.2 percent from the field (30-of-65), including a stellar 51.5 percent (17-of-33) in the second half. Winthrop shot 41.3 percent (26-of-63) from the floor, but were even better from the three-point arc in almost getting the win, shooting 41.7 percent (15-of-36). The Rams hit 13-of-19 at the free throw line, compared to just 9-of-14 for the Eagles.
Junior guard Prentiss Nixon led five Rams in double figures with 16 points along with six assists and five rebounds. Junior Deion James chipped in 14 points and five boards off the bench, while redshirt-sophomore Nico Carvacho had a double-double with 11 points and a career-high 20 rebounds. Redshirt-sophomore Raquan Mitchell and redshirt-junior J.D. Paige added 11 and 10, respectively. Winthrop was led by Anders Broman's 22 points, as Xavier Cooks, a preseason All-Big South selection, was held to 11 points on 5-of-17 shooting, and nine rebounds.
IN THEIR WORDS
CSU Head Coach Larry Eustachy
"The biggest factor, and it probably went unnoticed, was JD took Cooks on defense, and we really stifled Cooks, their returning all-league- player. After his first three, JD really shut him down. Our game plan never changed, it was implemented better at the start of second half. They (the Rams) answered, and give Winthrop credit. You could see them beating a big name team later this season. But you saw a lot of comradery out there – it was a total team effort."
Colorado State guard Prentiss Nixon
(Thoughts on changes in offense for final 15 minutes)
"My job as the point guard is to get everyone involved, and in the first half, I think I did a poor job of doing that. In the second half, we started to moving the ball better and finding open people. Once we start making shots, everyone feeds off the energy. I take responsibility of the lack of offense in the first half, and I knew I needed to make a change for the second half.
Colorado State center Nico Carvacho
(Thoughts on rebounding performance through first two games)
"At practice for the first hour, it is just straight rebounding, so that helps me get in the rhythm of rebounding. In the past with Tiel (Daniels) and Emmanuel (Omogbo), working with them has helped me by watching how they got their rebounds. I knew if I didn't get in foul trouble, I could get 20 or more and that's my goal every game."
STAT OF THE GAME
- The Rams outrebounded the Eagles, 51-29, including 17 offensive rebounds for CSU that translated to a 16-8 advantage in second-chance points
NOTES
- This was the first-ever meeting between the two programs and the Rams are now 4-1 all-time (4-0 at home) against current Big South Conference teams.
- Carvacho's 20 rebounds were the most since Emmanuel Omogbo had 20 boards in a double-overtime loss to UTEP on Nov. 28, 2015
- This was the first time CSU has had five players score in double figures since a win against San Jose State on Jan. 25, 2017
- Nixon's six assists were just one off his career best of 7 against Utah State last season
- The Rams are now 48-6 under head coach Larry Eustachy when scoring 80 or more points and 30-4 in the month of November.
- Also under Eustachy, CSU is 65-6 when shooting 45 percent or better from the field
UP NEXT
The Colorado State men's basketball team will travel to Montego Bay, Jamaica for two games in the 2017 Jamaica Classic, starting with Tulane, Nov. 17. The game is scheduled to tip at 12 pm MT (2 pm ET) and will be televised on CBS Sports Network.
With 15:06 remaining in the contest, the visitors built their biggest lead of the game at 50-36 on a pair of free throws by Nych Smith. CSU went on an 8-0 run over the next 2:12 on buckets by four different Rams to trim the margin to six. The teams battled for the next six minutes before CSU took the lead for good with six minutes remaining on a put-back bucket by redshirt-sophomore Nico Carvacho to go up 69-68. From that point, the Rams led by as many as seven before junior guard Prentiss Nixon's free throw with 15 seconds left sealed the victory.
The first half was a similar to two heavyweights going at it early, with seven ties and a pair of lead changes. The Rams led by as many as four, but the Eagles never trailed again in the first half after taking a 24-22 lead with just under seven minutes to go and built it into a 39-32 halftime advantage behind seven three-pointers.
CSU finished the game shooting 46.2 percent from the field (30-of-65), including a stellar 51.5 percent (17-of-33) in the second half. Winthrop shot 41.3 percent (26-of-63) from the floor, but were even better from the three-point arc in almost getting the win, shooting 41.7 percent (15-of-36). The Rams hit 13-of-19 at the free throw line, compared to just 9-of-14 for the Eagles.
Junior guard Prentiss Nixon led five Rams in double figures with 16 points along with six assists and five rebounds. Junior Deion James chipped in 14 points and five boards off the bench, while redshirt-sophomore Nico Carvacho had a double-double with 11 points and a career-high 20 rebounds. Redshirt-sophomore Raquan Mitchell and redshirt-junior J.D. Paige added 11 and 10, respectively. Winthrop was led by Anders Broman's 22 points, as Xavier Cooks, a preseason All-Big South selection, was held to 11 points on 5-of-17 shooting, and nine rebounds.
IN THEIR WORDS
CSU Head Coach Larry Eustachy
"The biggest factor, and it probably went unnoticed, was JD took Cooks on defense, and we really stifled Cooks, their returning all-league- player. After his first three, JD really shut him down. Our game plan never changed, it was implemented better at the start of second half. They (the Rams) answered, and give Winthrop credit. You could see them beating a big name team later this season. But you saw a lot of comradery out there – it was a total team effort."
Colorado State guard Prentiss Nixon
(Thoughts on changes in offense for final 15 minutes)
"My job as the point guard is to get everyone involved, and in the first half, I think I did a poor job of doing that. In the second half, we started to moving the ball better and finding open people. Once we start making shots, everyone feeds off the energy. I take responsibility of the lack of offense in the first half, and I knew I needed to make a change for the second half.
Colorado State center Nico Carvacho
(Thoughts on rebounding performance through first two games)
"At practice for the first hour, it is just straight rebounding, so that helps me get in the rhythm of rebounding. In the past with Tiel (Daniels) and Emmanuel (Omogbo), working with them has helped me by watching how they got their rebounds. I knew if I didn't get in foul trouble, I could get 20 or more and that's my goal every game."
STAT OF THE GAME
- The Rams outrebounded the Eagles, 51-29, including 17 offensive rebounds for CSU that translated to a 16-8 advantage in second-chance points
NOTES
- This was the first-ever meeting between the two programs and the Rams are now 4-1 all-time (4-0 at home) against current Big South Conference teams.
- Carvacho's 20 rebounds were the most since Emmanuel Omogbo had 20 boards in a double-overtime loss to UTEP on Nov. 28, 2015
- This was the first time CSU has had five players score in double figures since a win against San Jose State on Jan. 25, 2017
- Nixon's six assists were just one off his career best of 7 against Utah State last season
- The Rams are now 48-6 under head coach Larry Eustachy when scoring 80 or more points and 30-4 in the month of November.
- Also under Eustachy, CSU is 65-6 when shooting 45 percent or better from the field
UP NEXT
The Colorado State men's basketball team will travel to Montego Bay, Jamaica for two games in the 2017 Jamaica Classic, starting with Tulane, Nov. 17. The game is scheduled to tip at 12 pm MT (2 pm ET) and will be televised on CBS Sports Network.
Team Stats
WINTHROP
CSU
FG%
.413
.462
3FG%
.417
.368
FT%
.643
.684
RB
29
51
TO
10
18
STL
8
5
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
16
FGM
5
3FGM
3
FTM
3
Pts
14
FGM
7
3FGM
0
FTM
0
Pts
11
FGM
5
3FGM
1
FTM
0
Pts
11
FGM
4
3FGM
0
FTM
3
Players Mentioned
F/C
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