Colorado State University Athletics
Men's Basketball Preview - Colorado
12/13/2004 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
The Matchup...Colorado State travels to Boulder to meet in-state rival Colorado in a non-conference showdown on Saturday night at 7 p.m. in the Coors Events Center. The Rams suffered a 69-68 setback at Purdue on Saturday night after rallying from a 17-point deficit to take a one-point lead with 29 seconds to play. The Boilermakers knocked down two free throws with under nine seconds left on the clock to seal the win. Seniors Matt Williams and Matt Nelson continue to lead CSU with 14.1 and 11.9 points per game, respectively, while freshman Jason Smith nets 10 points per night. Williams is also the top Ram on the glass with 6.1 boards per game.
About Colorado: Colorado brings a 3-2 overall record into Saturday night?s game with the Rams. The Buffaloes are 2-0 at home this year and claimed a 63-60 win over California on the road on Dec. 7. CU boasts five players in double figures led by freshman guard Richard Roby who tallys 14.8 points and 6.6 rebounds per night. Junior forward Julius Ashby leads Colorado on the glass with 9.6 caroms per night.
CSU Basketball Ticket Information: Tickets to all home games are available by calling 1-800-491-RAMS or online at CSURAMS.com, or at any King Soopers or City Market grocery store location throughout the state of Colorado.
Last Year Against Colorado: Colorado jumped out to a 14-point lead with 10:38 to play in the second half and held on for a 84-78 victory over the Rams in Moby Arena. The Buffaloes got to the free throw line 41 times knocking down 27 charity shots in the win. CSU?s Matt Williams netted 26 points and 10 rebounds for a double-double while David Harrison led CU with 19 points and eight boards on the night.
Rams In December: Colorado State is 19-12 during coach Dale Layer?s tenure in games played in December.
Home Cookin?: CSU has won its last six games in Moby Arena dating back to last season?s home finale against New Mexico and the first three games of 2004-05. Colorado State?s most recent home loss came on Feb. 16, 2004, a 79-73 decision against BYU.
More at Home: The Rams are shooting over 53 percent from the field at Moby Arena and, in contrast, are hitting at a 45 percent clip on the road. At the free throw line, CSU is hitting 70.8 percent of its shots at home and 61.3 percent away from home.
Moby Under Layer: Colorado State enters Saturday night?s game with a 42-18 overall record in home games during Dale Layer?s five seasons.
Season Games Record
2004-05 5 5-0
2003-04 12 8-4
2002-03 18 14-4
2001-02 14 7-7
2000-01 13 10-3
Totals 62 44-18 (.710)
Moby Nonconference Record: The Rams are 30-4 (88.2 percent) in home nonconference games under Dale Layer. Colorado State has won six nonconference home games in a row dating back to a Dec. 10, 2003 loss to Colorado in Moby Arena. The year-by-year nonconference breakdown includes:
Season Record Loss(es)
2004-05 5-0 --
2003-04 4-1 Colorado
2002-03 10-0 --
2001-02 4-2 Colorado, Arkansas-Little Rock
2000-01 7-1 Creighton
Totals 30-4
Since 1902: Colorado State is in the school?s 104th season of intercollegiate competition in 2004-05. Colorado State has a cumulative record of 1,018-1,038 in 2,056 previous games dating back to 1902.
CSU vs. the Big XII: Colorado State has a cumulative 50-117 record against current members of the Big XII, including a 15-76 road/neutral site record. The last road win against a Big XII Conference opponent on the road came against Texas Tech, 60-56 in 1990-91.
Layer vs. the Big XII: Colorado State coach Dale Layer is 0-6 against Big XII Conference members. The Rams are 0-3 under Layer against Big XII teams on the road.
Finals Week: Students at Colorado State undergo fall semester final examinations beginning Monday, Dec. 13, concluding Dec. 17. Practice plans are pending.
Next at Home: Colorado State will return to Moby Arena on Dec. 21 when the Rams square off against Texas State in an 8 p.m. tipoff.
Road Streak: Colorado State looks to break a 11-game road losing streak in Saturday?s game at Colorado. Colorado State?s last win on the road (excluding neutral site games), came Dec. 22, 2003 at South Florida. F Matt Williams? free throw with less than five seconds to play in the game helped Colorado State to a 66-65 victory in DeLand, Fla.
Taking The Lead: Matt Williams has given the Rams the lead for good in three of their five wins this season. Following is a list of players that gave CSU the lead for good in the 2004-05 season:
Game (Date) Game Scorer Score/Half Time Final Score
Regis (11-20-04) Williams 12-11/1st 9:49 78-49
Northern Colorado (11-22-04) Patterson 50-47/2nd 11:15 76-68
Nebraska-Omaha (11-24-04) M. Morris 40-37/1st 0:00 88-64
Drake (12-4-04) Williams 64-62/2nd 4:24 72-62
Montana State (12-7-04) Williams 6-5/1st 16:33 78-53
Colorado T.V.: The Rams? game with Colorado will be televised live in the Denver-Fort Collins metro region by Fox Sports Network Rocky Mountain. Drew Goodman calls the play-by-play, Marty Fletcher is the analyst, and Sandy Williams is the sideline reporter.
Tall Timber: Colorado State?s roster in 2004-05 will feature three players (C Matt Nelson, C Stuart Creason, F Jason Smith) who are at least seven feet tall, and another (F Stephen Verwers), who is six-feet, 10-inches tall. The lineup ranks among the tallest in the nation.
Ahead and Behind: Following is a comparison of the times that CSU has led, trailed and been tied with its opponents:
Opponent Time Leading Time Trailing Time Tied
Regis 34:33 2:45 2:42
Northern Colorado 16:01 21:04 2:55
Nebraska-Omaha 23:06 12:21 4:33
IUPUI 0:00 39:06 0:54
Auburn 25:20 14:47 4:53
Drake 34:28 2:28 3:04
Montana State 36:48 1:11 2:01
Purdue 1:07 37:08 1:45
Total 171:23 130:50 22:47
Nelson Numbers: C Matt Nelson has scored in double figures in 15 of his last 16 games dating back to last season. Nelson posted a season-high with 17 points against Purdue playing in a season-most 32 minutes. Nelson has played 20 or more minutes in four of his first seven games this year.
Nelson On Career List: Colorado State C Matt Nelson is 7th in career scoring at Colorado State with 1,293 points. Nelson is the 15th player in school history to score 1,000 or more points in his career, and the 4th (Andy Birley, Brian Greene, John Sivesind) to have played under Rams? coach Dale Layer.
Will Power: F Matt Williams enters Saturday?s game ninth on the school?s career field goal percentage list. He has made 270-of-517 career field goals, 52.2 percent. Williams has scored in double figures four times in eight games, including a 23-point night against Drake and has tallied five or more rebounds in seven of eight games this season.
Will at 20: Senior F Matt Williams posted his fifth career 20-point effort against Drake. In his career, Williams has posted 20-point games against Colorado (26), Nebraska-Omaha (25), Drake (23), San Diego State (21) and Regis (20).
More Will Power: Matt Williams has shot better than 50 percent in five of eight games in the 2004-05 season. He has been above 50 percent from the field 56 times in 98 career games. Williams has also recorded five or more rebounds in seven of eight games this year and has surpassed that total 43 times in his career. He had nine rebounds to go along with 23 points in the game against Drake.
20-Point Games: C Matt Nelson (27), F Matt Williams (5), swingman Freddy Robinson (1) and G Micheal Morris (1) have combined for 34 career 20-point scoring games. In 2004-05, F Matt Williams is the only player to score 20 or more points in a game. He has achieved the feat three times: 20 points in the opening game with Regis 25 against Nebraska-Omaha and 23 against Drake.
Big Crease: Redshirt freshman C Stuart Creason has made his presence felt in his first year of competition for the Rams. Creason, a seven-footer from Coppell, Tex., has started in four of the team?s first seven games. At IUPUI he scored a career-most 10 points, then came back at Auburn to surpass that total in the first half with 12 points. He finished the game at Auburn with 17 points, making all seven of his field goals and three free throws, plus adding a career-most 10 rebounds.
The Boat: Sophomore G Dwight Boatner leads the team in assists with 25 and has been the team?s top player in that category in each of the past six games. Boatner, who is averaging 6.6 points per game, closed the 2003-04 season with a flurry. Boatner scored in double figures eight of the team?s final 11 games and sparked the Rams? 60-48 win over nationally-ranked Air Force - the MWC regular-season champion - by scoring 11 points.
Rak Rack: G Jon Rakiecki is among the Mountain West?s top guards. So far in 2004-05, he has hit 16-of-40 three-pointers, 40 percent, and scored a season-most 15 points going 4-of-8 from long range at Purdue. The senior is the Mountain West?s leader in assist/turnover ratio making four assists for every turnover.
P.T.: Sophomore F Phillip Thomasson, along with teammate F Matt Williams, are the only two players on the team who have started all eight games. Thomasson is averaging 4.3 points per game, and is second behind Williams with a 4.4 per-game rebounding average.
Morris Magic: Michael Morris, whose younger brother Sean is a freshman member of the team, is seventh on the school?s career list with 93 blocked shots. He has led the team in blocked shots in each of the past two seasons. Twenty-two times in 64 career games, Morris has dished out five or more assists in a game.
Verwers Word: C Stephen Verwers made his presence felt in his third start of the year with a career-high 11-rebound performance against Montana State on Dec. 7. In that game, Verwers also posted a season-best six points.
Smith?s Scoring: Freshman F Jason Smith led the Rams with a career-best 18 points and seven rebounds agasint Purdue. Smith, from nearby Kersey, Colo., has scored in double figures five times in eight games and is third on the team with a 10.0 per game scoring average. He has made 63 percent of his field goals, and also averages 4.1 rebounds per game.
At Home: Colorado State finished the 2003-04 season with a 9-4 home record and began its 2004-05 season with a 5-0 mark.
On the Road: Colorado State was 3-10 on the road a year ago, winning games at Drake, Stetson and South Florida. In 2004-05 the Rams have started 0-3 on the road.
In Moby: Colorado State won nine of 13 home games in 2004 and averaged 4,877 fans per game, a 25-percent increase from 2003 when the team averaged 3,917 fans per game. It is the highest per-game average since 1998.
Rams On Boards: Colorado State has outrebounded six of eight opponents in 2004-05. The Rams are 3-3 when collecting more boards than their opposition.
Balanced Scoring: Prior to their loss against Purdue, the Rams had five double figure scorers in each of their last two games. Against Purdue, they had just three in double figures.
Center Scoring: C Matt Nelson ranks third in school history in career scoring by a center:
Career Scoring By A Center
1. Bill Green, 1961-63 1,682
2. Rich Strong, 1983-86 1,555
3. Matt Nelson, 2002-04 1,293
Foes Under 40: Colorado State is 4-2 this season when holding an opponent to less than 40 percent shooting from the floor including the following games:
Date Game FG-A Pct.
Nov. 20 Regis (W) 17-49 .347
Nov. 24 Neb.-Omaha (W) 17-48 .354
Nov. 30 at Auburn (L) 29-78 .382
Dec. 4 Drake (W) 21-59 .356
Dec. 7 Montana State (W) 21-60 .350
Dec. 11 Purdue (L) 22-56 .393
Rams Plus 50: Colorado State has shot above 50 percent from the floor in four games this season. The Rams hold a record of 4-0 when eclipsing the 50 percent mark including:
Date Game FG-A Pct.
Nov. 20 Regis (W) 26-46 .565
Nov. 24 Neb.-Omaha (W) 27-48 .563
Dec. 4 Drake (W) 24-41 .585
Dec. 7 Montana State (W) 25-46 .543
More on Television:The Colorado State Rams will appear on national or regional television 15 times in the 2004-05 season. These dates include:
Date Opponent Network
Dec. 11 at Purdue ESPN+Plus
Dec. 18 at Colorado Fox Sports Net
Dec. 30 vs. Denver Fox Sports Net
Jan. 8 at Air Force ESPN+Plus
Jan. 15 vs. BYU ESPN+Plus
Jan. 17 vs. Utah Fox Sports Net
Jan. 24 at San Diego State ESPN
Jan. 29 at Wyoming ESPN+Plus
Feb. 5 vs. New Mexico Fox Sports Net
Feb. 7 vs. Air Force ESPN
Feb. 12 at Utah KJZZ
Feb. 14 at BYU SportsWest
Feb. 21 vs. UNLV Fox Sports Net
Feb. 21 vs. UNLV ESPN+Plus
Feb. 26 vs. Wyoming Fox Sports Net
Double-Figure Leads: Colorado State has held a double-figure lead in five of its eight contests and in four of five wins.
Defending the 3: On the season, the Rams have held opponents to a three-point percentage of just .251. In seven of eight games, Ram opponents have shot less than 30 percent from long range.
From the Bench: Against Purdue, the Rams? bench scored 52 of the team?s 68 points. This season CSU?s bench has outscored its opponent?s 294-110. The bench has scored a total of 48.8 percent of Colorado State?s points this year.
Plus 80: Colorado State is 29-2 all-time under Dale Layer in games the Rams scored 80 or more points in a game.
Ram Rally Thwarted by Purdue:
Purdue?s Xavier Price knocked down two free throws with 8.9 seconds to go in the game followed by a stingy Boilermaker defense preventing a ?Miracle in Mackey? as Purdue pulled of a 69-68 victory in West Lafayette, Ind. on Saturday afternoon.
The Rams, who trailed by as many as 17 in the second half, fought back into the ball game on an 8-0 run late in the contest capped by a Jon Rakiecki three that gave the Rams their first lead since 4-3 with 29 seconds to play.
Purdue took the ball to the other end drawing a foul that sent Price to the charity stripe for the game-winning shots.
Colorado State trailed 53-36 with 12:22 left in the game before going on a 32-14 run prior to Price?s free throws.
Freshman Jason Smith paced the Rams with a career-best 18 points on 7-of-10 from the floor. The Kersey, Colo. native, also gathered a team-high seven rebounds in the contest.
Seniors Matt Nelson and Jon Rakiecki each put up season-high numbers with 17 and 15 points, respectively on the day.
David Teague led the homestanding Boilermakers with 23 points including six shots from three-point range. Carl Landry added 16 points while Brandon McKnight chipped in 10 to round out the top scorers for Purdue.
As a team, CSU hit 24-of-49 shots from the floor (49 percent) while holding Purdue to a 39 percent day (22-of-56).
Rams Sign Four: Colorado State signed four players to National Letters of Intent, including:
C.J. Clark, a 6-7, 200-pound forward from Houston, Tex. (Cypress Springs HS), was a first team all-district selection averaging 13 points, six rebounds and six assists per game for Cypress Springs High School in 2003-04. Clark was a high honorable mention pick by Street & Smith?s and was selected as the 211th recruit in the nation by Hoopscoop.
Stephan Gilling, a 6-3, 185-pound guard from Chino Hills, Calif. (Ayala HS), was a first team all-league selection and team MVP for Ayala High School. As a junior, he averaged 13.5 points, five rebounds and three assists per game and his seven consecutive three-point field goals in a half during the year. He was rated as an honorable mention selection by Street & Smith?s and was the 288th recruit in the nation by Hoopscoop. He was ranked as on of the top ten shooters on the West Coast by Insiders.com.
Michael Harrison, a 6-10, 200-pound forward from Aurora, Colo. (Northeastern JC), averaged 12 points and nine rebounds as a freshman at Northeastern Junior College in Sterling, Colo. Harrison shot over 56 percent from the field and had the ninth-best single season rebound total in NJC?s history and is considered a preseason Junior College All-American by Street & Smith?s and is the seventh-ranked Junior College player in the nation by Hoopscoop. At Aurora Central High School, he averaged 22 points, eight rebounds and five blocked shots per game and was a second team all-state pick as a senior.
Corey Lewis, a 6-0, 180-pound point guard from Lafayette, La. (Dodge City CC), is averaging 13 points, five assists and four rebounds per game at Dodge City Community College. Lindy?s basketball magazine ranks Lewis as the sixth-best point guard in the country.
