Colorado State University Athletics
Game notes: CSU travels to face No. 7/7 BYU
2/22/2011 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Feb. 22, 2011
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Colorado State at BYU | Game 27 |
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CSU looks to rebound from its weekend loss to UNLV with an upset at No. 7/7 BYU. The Rams enter Wednesday's game (6 p.m. MT; The Mtn.) looking for their first win at the Marriott Center since a 55-44 win during the 1997-98 season.
About BYU
At 25-2, BYU holds the second best record in the nation, only trailing San Diego State. The Cougars are also paced by the nation's leading scorer in senior Jimmer Fredette. The guard averages 27.2 points a game, and scorerd 42 in the teams' first meeting in January. Fredette also leads the Cougars in minutes played (34.5), field goals made (236), three-point field goals (88) and assists (115). He ranks sixth nationally in three-point field goals per game and 17th with a .897 free-throw percentage. Fellow senior Jackson Emery, sophomore Brandon Davies and junior Noah Hartsock are all key contributors for the Cougars. Emery averages 12.7 points a game, and ranks sixth in the nation with 2.8 steals a game. Davies, who scores 11.3 points a game, leads the team in field-goal percentage (.533) and is second in rebounding (5.9 per game), while Hartsock, 8.8 points, also shoots nearly 50 percent, and leads the team with 42 blocks and 6.1 rebounds a game.
Series vs. the Cougars
The rich history between CSU and BYU goes all the way back to 1937, when the two teams met on the hardwood for the first time. Since then, the Rams have played the Cougars 133 times. BYU leads the overall series, 88-45, including a 55-10 advantage in games played in Provo. CSU's last win at the Marriott Center came during the 1997-98 season, 55-44. In the last two seasons, BYU has beaten CSU on its home court by an average of 39 points. Tim Miles is looking for his first win over the Cougars, after holding them close in last month's meeting at Moby Arena. CSU's last win over BYU came during the 2006-07 season, a 90-78, triumph in Fort Collins. Wednesday's matchup also marks the final regular-season meeting between the long-time foes as MWC rivals.
Senior Travis Franklin scored 21 points in the first meeting of the season between the Rams and Cougars. Over the past two meetings, he has averaged 17.5 points and 3.5 rebounds. Sophomore Wes Eikmeier had a career performance in his first meeting with the Cougars, nailing nine field-goals, including five three-pointers, for 25 points. Senior Andy Ogide has scored in double figures three times vs. BYU, led by a double-double in the most recent meeting (18 points, 10 rebounds). Freshman Dwight Smith, who has seen limited action over the past three games, was used for defensive purposes in the second half last time vs. BYU, slowing the nation's leading scorer, Jimmer Fredette. His brother, Greg Smith, a sophomore, scored 24 combined points in two games vs. the Cougars as a freshman in 2010.
A win over the Cougars...
• Would mark CSU's 19th victory of the season. The squad would become the eighth team in program history to reach the mark, and first since the 2002-03 team went 19-14 and made the program's last trip to the NCAA tourney.
• Would give the Rams a program-record nine Mountain West Conference wins, eclipsing the mark set by Ritchie McKay and the 1999-2000 squad that went 8-6 in the inaugural MWC season.
• Would give the Rams their first win over the Cougars since a 90-78 home win in 2006-07. It would mark CSU's win in Provo since 1997-98, snapping its 11-game road losing streak to BYU.
• Would give CSU a resume-boosting win with its first victory over a ranked opponent since defeating then-No. 25 Air Force, 60-48, in the quarterfinals of the 2003-04 MWC touranment. It would snap a 13-game losing streak against ranked opponents.
• Would be CSU's fifth consecutive road conference victory, setting a program record. The Rams currently have won four consecutive, which has been done one other time in school history.
