Colorado State University Athletics
Game notes: Rams, Cowboys renew rivalry Saturday night at Moby
2/5/2010 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Feb. 5, 2010
Complete Release in PDF Format 
Game 23: Colorado State vs. Wyoming
Saturday, Feb. 6, 2010 | 7 p.m. MT | Fort Collins, Colo. | Moby Arena (8,745)
Television
Network: The Mtn.
Play-by-Play: Dan Gutowsky
Color Analyst: Marty Fletcher
Channel: Comcast (411), DirecTV (616)
Radio
Network: Colorado State Sports Network
Play-by-Play: Jerry Schemmel
Flagship: KLZ (560 AM)
Online
Live Statistics: CSURams.com
Streaming Audio: CSURams.com/allaccess
Streaming Video: None
Up next
The Colorado State men's basketball team opens the second half of their Mountain West Conference schedule on Saturday, hosting "Border War" rival Wyoming at 7 p.m. MT at Moby Arena (8,745).
The game will be televised live on The Mtn. with Dan Gutowsky (play-by-play) and Marty Fletcher (color analyst) bringing fans all the action from courtside.
The Rams (13-9, 4-4 MWC) are coming off of a 65-50 road victory at Utah on Wednesday. The Cowboys (9-13, 2-6 MWC) suffered their worst home defeat in program history, falling 78-50 against UNLV on Wednesday.
Fans can listen to the game on the Colorado State Sports Network. Jerry Schemmel will call all the action courtside. The game will be carried on flagship KLZ (560 AM) in Denver and on KCOL (600 AM), locally. Rams fans worldwide can listen to the action live streaming audio on CSURams.com/allaccess.
Live statistics are available by clicking the "GameTracker" logo on the men's basketball "Schedule/Results" page on CSURams.com.
Aggies
The Colorado State men's basketball team will pay tribute to the progam's rich history and tradition during Saturday's "Border War" against rival Wyoming.
The Rams will unveil special tribute jerseys featuring the team's original colors of pumpkin and alfalfa, and emblazoned with "Aggies," the university's original mascot, across the chest.
Saturday also marks CSU's second annual Ram Legends weekend, in which the program welcomes back all former players. Last year's event, specifically honoring the 1989 team, drew more than 50 former student-athletes from all eras to Moby Arena. They will be recognized in a ceremony at halftime.
Looking ahead
The Rams head south on I-25 to take on the Air Force Falcons in a rare Tuesday evening conference matchup at Clune Arena. Game time is set for 8 p.m. MT. The game will be televised live on The Mtn.
About Wyoming
Wyoming enters Saturday's Border War with an overall record of 9-13 (2-6 MWC) and has lost two straight and five of their last six games. The Cowboys are also winless in six road games this season.
Wyoming has just one senior, Ryan Dermody, a Loveland native, and uses a young lineup including three freshmen and seven sophomores. The Cowboys' leading scorer, Afam Muojeke with 16.8 points a contest, injured his knee against BYU and will undergo knee surgery, missing the remainder of the season. Taking over Muojeke's role are sophomores Adam Waddell (10.5 point) and A.J. Davis (10 points).
Junior Djibril Thiam shoots a team-best 57.7 percent from the floor and averages 9.8 points. He is one of four international players on Wyoming's roster. Waddell leads the Cowboys with 6.2 rebounds a game.
Series vs. Wyoming
The Border War versus Wyoming is one of the Rams' oldest and most fierce rivalries. Dating all the way back to 1910, the Rams have faced off against the Cowboys 210 times, more than 50 games more than any other opponent. Since the initial meeting, the two teams have met at least once each season, except for during the 1922-23 season.
Wyoming has the upper hand, overall, leading the series 128-82. The Rams have bragging rights from the most recent meeting against the Cowboys, but Wyoming has the series advantage in games played in Fort Collins, 51-45. CSU's last win over Wyoming at Moby Arena came in 2007, 86-68.
Last time vs. Wyoming
Andy Ogide led the Rams with 22 points, securing an 83-73 victory in Laramie. The win gave the Rams a 1-0 conference start for the first time since the 2002-03 season, when they defeated New Mexico and Air Force to begin 2-0. The victory was also the first road win in nearly a year, since Feb. 21, 2009, at Air Force, and just the second road conference victory under Miles.
The Rams never trailed in the contest and led by as many as 12 points, including a seven-point halftime lead.
As a team, the Rams shot 50 percent (29-of-58) from the field, including 60 percent in the second half. Colorado State outrebounded Wyoming 40-33 and committed just four turnovers in the second half after giving up the ball 10 times in the opening frame.
A complete box score from this game can be found on Page
Current Rams vs. Wyoming
The Rams are 2-4 against the Cowboys under Tim Miles, with the two teams splitting the last four meetings. Miles' first win came in the first round of the 2008 MWC Championship tournament. CSU, the No. 9 seed, upset No. 8 Wyoming, 68-63, giving Miles his first win over a conference opponent. In that game, Andre McFarland, then a freshman, posted a team-high 18 points on 6-of-10 shooting. The forward shot 4-of-6 from three-point range. Also tallying double figures was guard Adam Nigon, who scored 10 points. McFarland and Nigon have played in all six contests against Wyoming over the past three seasons.
Junior Andy Ogide is averaging 18 points in three meetings against the Cowboys, including 22 in the most recent game. McFarland went scoreless in January, but in the five prior meetings, averaged 10.3 points. Also with impressive performances against the Cowboys are Dorian Green, who scored 15 points in his only meeting, Travis Franklin, who has averaged 13.5 points in the last two games against Wyoming and Adam Nigon who has scored 7.2 points in six games, including 16 at Wyoming in January.
Going for the sweep
A win Saturday would give the Rams a regular-season sweep over Wyoming. The last time CSU won both regular-season games against the Cowboys was during the 1999-2000 season.
Big win
CSU's 65-50 victory at Utah on Wednesday was the largest margin of victory under Head Coach Tim Miles in MWC play. The double-digit win was the second over a MWC opponent this season (also at Wyoming, 83-73). CSU had just one double-digit conference victory in Miles' first two seasons combined, coming against Air Force on Jan. 20, 2009, 67-56.
Four and Counting
CSU's win over Utah on Wednesday evening moved the Rams to 4-4 in the Mountain West. The four conference wins on the season match the Rams MWC win total from all of last season, with eight games left to play.
Aggressive Defense
For the sixth time this season, the Rams reached double digits in the steals category during Wednesday's victory at Utah. The Rams forced 16 Utes turnovers, including 11 steals. Travis Busch recorded a career-high four steals in the contest.
Green going the distance
For the third time in his brief career at CSU, and the second consecutive game overall, freshman G Dorian Green played an entire game in Wednesday's victory at Utah. Green, who tallied 13 points, played a full 40 minutes. He also accomplished the feat on Jan. 30 vs. SDSU and Nov. 29 vs. San Francisco, playing 50 minutes in the Rams' 91-75 double-overtime victory over the Dons. Green enters Saturday's game vs. Wyoming averaging a team-leading 34.1 minutes per game, second in the MWC behind Air Force's Evan Washington (34.5 mpg).
Home court advantage
CSU looks to reel in its 10th win of the season at Moby Arena on Saturday. The last time the Rams had 10 wins on their home court was in 2006-07 when the team went 10-4.
The Rams are 9-2 at Moby Arena in 2009-10, with the lone losses coming vs. UNLV (80-72) on Jan. 20 and vs. San Diego State (64-52) on Jan. 30.
CSU opened the season with eight consecutive home victories, inlcuding wins over in-state rivals Denver (64-59) and Colorado (77-62) on Dec. 5 and Dec. 10, respectively. The Rams have also captured MWC home victories over Air Force (70-48) on Jan. 9, and TCU (63-57) on Jan. 27.
With an all-time 70 percent (443-190) winning percentage at Moby Arena, a win on Saturday would give the Rams a double-digit season win total for the 23rd time in the arena's history.
Rams on the road
Wednesday's 65-50 victory at Utah marked Colorado State's second road victory of the season. The Rams are now 2-7 on the road this season, with the other road victory coming Jan. 6 at Wyoming (83-73).
Defending the Fort
Colorado State won its first eight home games of the season before suffering an 80-72 loss vs. visiting UNLV on Jan. 20. The eight-game streak marked the longest home winning streak for the Rams since the team rattled off nine straight at Moby between the 2004-05 and 2005-06 seasons.
The Rams enter Saturday's game against Wyoming with a 9-2 mark at Moby Arena this season.
Through the years, Moby Arena has been a tough environment for opposing teams. CSU has won 70 percent (437-189) of its games at Moby Arena. Since the 2002-03 season, the Rams have had several winning streaks to start their home season: 2002-03, 13 consecutive; 2004-05, 9; 2005-06, 8; and 2006-07, 6.
Rams' 20-point games
Freshman G Dorian Green scored a team-leading 20 points in the Rams' loss to UNLV on Jan. 20. It marked his second 20 -point game in his first 18 contests at CSU. He tallied a personal-best 21 points in the Rams' 77-62 victory over Colorado on Dec. 10.
Green's 20-point scoring effort marked the eighth such game by a Rams player this season. The following is a list of CSU's 20-point scoring games for 2009-10:
• Andy Ogide (24), vs. UC Davis (11-13-09)
• Andre McFarland (20), vs. UC Davis (11-13-09)
• Travis Franklin (24), vs. San Francisco (11-29-09)
• Travis Franklin (22), vs. Colorado (12-10-09)
• Dorian Green (21), vs. Colorado (12-10-09)
• Travis Franklin (22), vs. Northern Arizona (12-20-09)
• Andy Ogide (22), at Wyoming (1-6-10)
• Dorian Green (20), vs. UNLV (1-20-10)
Block Party
Led by senior Mame Bocar Ba's two blocks, the Rams swatted away a season-high five shots against TCU on Jan. 27. It was the most blocked shots since CSU recorded five against Air Force on Jan. 20, 2009. The Rams also blocked a half dozen shots twice last year.
Strong Freshman Class
The Rams have a talented trio of freshmen that have turned many heads during their first year of collegiate basketball. These freshmen are eying several categories in CSU's freshman record book.
Dorian Green not only leads the team but ranks No. 8 in the MWC with 13.0 points per game. His current average would go down as third all-time among freshmen. Additionally, his 22 starts in 22 games currently ranks No. 6, with the potential to keep moving up depending on how many games the Rams play this season.
Pierce Hornung has been great on the glass, averaging 4.9 rebounds a contest. His current average is fifth all-time behind Matt Nelson.
Greg Smith has turned his play up a notch over the past few weeks. During the last six games, the freshman is averaging 10.0 points a game and 4.7 rebounds, second on the team in both categories during that stretch.
Busch in the starting lineup
Senior forward Travis Busch made his first start in a Rams uniform on Jan. 23 at New Mexico, tallying a career-high-tying seven points in 25 minutes. Busch remained in the starting lineup for the second consecutive game in the Rams' victory over TCU on Jan. 27, once again tying his career-high at CSU with seven points again the Horned Frogs in 20 minutes of action. Busch also earned the start on Saturday vs. SDSU, his third straight start entering Wednesday's game at Utah.
Smith hitting his stride
Over his last four games, entering Saturday's contest against San Diego State, freshman F Greg Smith has shown steady improvement for the Rams and has seen his production, and minutes, rise steadily in MWC play.
Smith posted his best performance vs. TCU. He recorded career highs in minutes (29) and points (15), leading CSU to a victory over the Horned Frogs on Jan. 27.
That performance capped a four-game stretch in which Smith averaged 11.8 points and 4.5 rebounds per contest, while hitting 81.5 percent (22-for-27) from the free-throw line during one of the Rams' toughest stretches on their schedule.
Smith was a bright spot during a three-game losing streak for the Rams. He posted a then-career-high and team-leading 13 points at BYU on Jan. 16, and matched that effort and tied for team-high honors with another 13-point effort at New Mexico on Jan. 23. Smith also tallied six points and four rebounds in a tough home loss to UNLV on Jan. 20.
Franklin a force for the Rams
Despite struggling from the free-throw line (3-for-14 FTs) in the Rams' 80-72 loss vs. UNLV on Jan. 20, junior F Travis Franklin turned in one of the best single-game performances by a CSU player this season. Franklin poured in 17 points, while pulling down a game-high-tying nine rebounds and dishing out a team-leading five assists. It marked just the second time this season that a CSU player had scored in double-figures, and led the team in both rebounds and assists. Franklin also accomplished the feat when he tallied 10 points and added 10 rebounds, while dishing out a pair of assists at Northern Colorado on Dec. 1., a 70-63 CSU loss. Freshman Greg Smith also accomplished the feat at New Mexico on Jan. 23 with 13 points, seven rebounds and three assists.
Rams in conference openers
Colorado State's 83-73 victory at Wyoming on Jan. 6 marked just the second time that CSU has opened its MWC schedule with a victory. The last time was the 2002-03 season, also CSU's last appearance in the NCAA tournament. That season the Rams began their MWC schedule with back-to-back home victories over New Mexico (74-58) and Air Force (51-49). The Rams finished that season with a 5-9 overall record in the MWC but capped the season with a memorable run to the MWC championship and a first-round matchup with the Duke Blue Devils in the Salt Lake City Regional of the NCAA tourney. Since the formation of the MWC in the 1999-2000 season, the Rams are now 2-9 in conference openers.
Scoring for the Rams
Freshman G Dorian Green, junior F Andy Ogide and junior F Travis Franklin rank 1-2-3 for the Rams in terms of scoring through 21 games this season. Green (13.0 ppg.) has scored in double figures in 13 of his first 21 collegiate contests as a true freshman, while Franklin (11.0 ppg.) has reached double-figure scoring in 11 of his last 16 games. Ogide (11.3 ppg.) has led CSU in scoring in six games this season, including the Rams' first two MWC victories, at Wyoming (22 points) and vs. Air Force (13 points), and Saturday's loss vs. SDSU (13 points).
Entering Wednesday's game at Utah, Green ranks ninth in the MWC in scoring, and first among freshmen. Ogide is 18th and Franklin is 19th.
Putting it on the line
CSU has become one of the top teams in the Mountain West Conference when it comes to getting to the free throw line this season. Entering Wednesday's contest at Utah, CSU is averaging 26.6 free throw attempts per game as a team. This ranks third in the MWC behind Wyoming (29.9 per game) and the New Mexico (27.6 per game).
This season, the Rams are 11-1 when attempting more free-throws than an opponent. The Rams are 11-0 when making more free-throws than an opponent.
Defense to offense
Over a three-game stretch from Dec. 31-Jan. 9 that included victories over Yale, Wyoming and Air Force, Colorado State scored 65 point off of opponents' turnovers. During that stretch, the Rams forced opponents into more than 15 turnovers per game.
McFarland climbing the three-point charts
For his career at Colorado State, McFarland has hit 119 three-pointers, just one shy of cracking the program's top-10 list. David Turcotte (1984-88) currently holds the 10th spot with 120 career three-pointers. McFarland's career three-point percentage of .420 is currently ninth, just behind Turcotte (.426), in the Rams' record book.
Nigon heating up
Junior Adam Nigon entered the season averaging 2.87 points per contest through two seasons. This year, the guard is averaging 8.4 points. Nigon is shooting 40.4 percent from the floor and 38.3 percent from three-point range. During a five-game stretch from Nov. 29 to Dec. 12, he averaged 11.6 points, including a career-high 17 against Montana, helping the Rams to a 4-1 record during that stretch.
Entering Wednesday's contest vs. Utah, Nigon has hit a three pointer in eight consecutive games, the longest active streak among players on the CSU roster, and the longest streak of his career in a Rams' uniform.
Seeing double
Junior F Travis Franklin recorded his second career double-double performance in the Rams' victory over rival Colorado (Dec. 10). Franklin tallied 22 points, his second 20-point effort of the season, and capped off the double-double performance with 10 rebounds to help CSU to the 77-62 victory. Franklin shot 7-for-9 from the field and 8-for-10 from the free-throw line, while adding a block and two steals against the Buffs. Franklin also recorded a double-double (10 points, 10 rebounds) nine days earlier in the Rams' 70-63 loss at Northern Colorado (Dec.1).
Seeing double, part two
Freshman F Greg Smith recorded his first career double-double on Dec. 20 in the Rams' victory over Northern Arizona. Smith, playing in just the seventh game of his career at CSU, tallied 10 points and 10 rebounds to help the Rams to the 64-56 victory.
Seeing double, part three
Senior F Andy Ogide became the third player this season to record a double-double for the Rams, joining classmate Travis Franklin and freshman Greg Smith. Ogide recorded 14 points and a game-high 10 rebounds in the Rams 63-57 victory over TCU on Wednesday. It marked Ogide's fifth career double-double, but his first since Jan. 17, 2009 at Utah (19 points, 10 rebounds). The Rams are 3-2 all-time when Ogide records a double-double.
McFarland back in action
Sidelined by back stiffness, junior Andre McFarland missed four straight games for the Rams after playing in every game of his career at CSU to that point. McFarland missed victories over CU (77-62), Montana (62-61) and Northern Arizona (64-56), and was unable to go in the Rams' loss at UCLA (75-63). McFarland returned to the court for the Rams at Fresno State, tallying three points and one rebound in 12 minutes of action, and played in five consecutive games between Dec. 28 and Jan. 16, before missing the Rams' home game vs. UNLV on Jan. 20. McFarland returned to the CSU lineup at New Mexico on Saturday, knocking down a pair of three-pointers and finishing with eight points, his highest scoring effort since a nine-point game vs. Yale. The junior missed his seventh game of the season on Saturday, in the Rams' loss vs. San Diego State.
Draining the three
After shooting just 1-for-13 from three-point range at BYU (Jan. 16), the Rams got back on track from behind the arc against UNLV on Jan. 20, hitting 8-of-20 attempts for 40 percent. The Rams followed up that performance shooting 6-for-16 at New Mexico on Jan. 23.
Colorado State ranks among the top schools in the Mountain West in terms of three-point shooting percentage this season. The Rams are shooting 34.5 percent from long range, which ranks third in the league behind nationally ranked programs from BYU (.419) and New Mexico (.373).
Balanced rebounding attack
Despite only having five 10-plus rebounding efforts this season, the Rams have three players - Andy Ogide, Travis Franklin and Pierce Hornung - ranked in the top 14 in the MWC in rebounding average: Ogide (5.6), eighth; Franklin (5.6), ninth; and Hornung (5.0), 14th. As a team, Colorado State ranks fifth in the MWC pulling down 35.8 boards per game. The Rams' are outrebounding opponents by 3.0 per game, the fourth-highest rebounding margin in the league (SDSU, +7.7; BYU, +5.3; and New Mexico, +5.1).
Green means go
Entering Wednesday's game at Utah, freshman G Dorian Green, the Rams leading scorer at 13.0 points per game, has reached double-digits scoring in a team-leading 13 games this season. His scoring average ranks ninth overall in the MWC and first among freshmen.
BYU freshman Tyler Haws (12.3 ppg.), SDSU's Kawhi Leonard (11.7 ppg.), and Utah's Marshall Henderson (11.5 ppg.), rank 11th, 14th and 15th, respectively, in the MWC in scoring, and are the only other freshmen to appear in the top 20.
If I can be frank
Junior F Travis Franklin has started 20 of CSU's 21 contests this season; he came off the bench against DU (Dec. 5). Franklin has left his mark at both ends of the court for the Rams. The Baton Rouge, La., native ranks second on the team in rebounding (5.6 rebounds per game) and third in scoring (11.0 points per game), while leading the team in offensive rebounds (50), and free-throw attempts (159). He enters Wednesday's game vs. Utah ranking in the MWC in a number of categories, including 19th in scoring, ninth in rebounding and sixth in offensive rebounding (2.4 per game).
Starting lineups
Tim Miles used four different starting lineups in five games, between Dec. 1 and Dec. 20. The Rams posted a 4-1 record in those contests. Overall on the season, Miles has used seven different lineups, with guards Dorian Green and Adam Nigon the only players to have started all of the Rams' games entering Wednesday's game at Utah. More info on CSU's starting lineups is available at the bottom of Page 8 of this release.
