Colorado State University Athletics
Colorado State
28-1, 18-0MW
Air Force
1-28, 1-17MW
Recap: Rams cap off perfect MW season
3/4/2016 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. - With perfection on the line, the Colorado State Rams capped off their historic regular season with an 81-48 win at Air Force to improve to 28-1 on the year and a perfect 18-0 in Mountain West play. The Rams are just the second team ever to go unbeaten in Mountain West play, while their 28 wins tie the Mountain West record for wins in a season (postseason included).
Colorado State improved its win streak to 25 games and its road win streak to 12 games, extending both program records. The 25-game win streak is the second-longest nationally, trailing only UConn, while the 12-game road win streak is the fourth-longest in the nation.
The Rams jumped all over the Falcons early with a quick 9-0 run in the blink of an eye, but extended sloppy play from CSU brought Air Force all the way back into it at 16-16 at the end of the first quarter. CSU showed its poise and clamped down on Air Force in the second quarter, as it has all season to opponents. The Rams exploded for a 24-9 advantage in the second quarter, led by the hot shooting of senior guard Jamie Patrick and the distribution of junior guard Ellen Nystrom.
Patrick scored 16 of her game-high 21 points in the first half, and finished the game with five made 3-pointers to bring her conference total to 57, tied for the most in Mountain West history. Nystrom, meanwhile, tallied 13 points and six assists to move into third place all-time in CSU single-season history with 158 assists. Nystrom also racked up 103 assists in league play alone, good for the fifth-most in Mountain West history.
With a 40-25 lead at halftime, the Rams showed no signs of letting the Falcons back into the game in the second half. CSU pounced on Air Force and, behind some all-around and unselfish play, extending the lead to 61-34 heading into the final quarter and giving valuable extended minutes to the bench unit.
The bench unit capitalized on its extended run in the fourth quarter, outscoring Air Force 20-14 over the final 10 minutes. All 12 players that played for CSU scored, with CSU's bench tallying 25 points, compared to 17 for Air Force. The Rams racked up 19 assists on 31 made field goals and were red-hot from the field, making 56.4 percent of its shots and 10-of-16 from 3-point range.
Junior forward Elin Gustavsson joined Nystrom and Patrick in double figures with 12 points on an efficient 5-of-6 from the field.
IN THEIR WORDS…
Head Coach Ryun Williams
"18-0 is impressive. There is a lot that goes into these five months: travel, tough places to play, some nights you just don't have it, but you still need to find a way to win. I'm really proud of this group. This group is very, very special."
"Everything, what they want the most, is still in front of them. We had a nice non-conference season, that's season number one. Season number two is our Mountain West conference season; we finished that one in style. Now season number three begins. All things are new for all teams; we're going to go in there with a really fresh mentality and attack Vegas. This was a really nice finish to round two, but round three is what we are really excited for."
Senior guard Jamie Patrick
"It's awesome. I don't think when we started that we thought we would go undefeated to the finish like this; it's really hard to do. It's an accomplishment for sure."
"Pretty much the season is starting now. No matter that we went undefeated, if we lose one game then we are out. We have to go into the tournament and be ready to go because everyone is going to be playing their best against us."
STAT OF THE GAME…
• Colorado State finished a perfect 18-0 in Mountain West play. It is CSU's second-ever undefeated season in conference play, and the second-ever undefeated season in Mountain West history. Over the last three years, CSU is 48-6 in Mountain West play (.889).
NOTES…
• With five made 3-pointers, Jamie Patrick ran her total to 57 made 3's in 18 games. The 57 made 3's are tied for the most in Mountain West history (league games only). During conference season, Patrick connected on 44.9 percent of her 3-point attempts.
• Ellen Nystrom also found her way in the record books with her six-assist performance. With 158 assists this season, Nystrom now ranks third all-time in CSU single-season history. Nystrom needs just 16 assists to surpass Becky Hammon's school-record 174 assists in the 1998-99 season.
• Nystrom also finished conference play with 103 assists, the fifth-most in Mountain West history (league games only).
• In their 18 Mountain West games, the Rams outscored their opponents by 17.1 points per contest.
• CSU led from start-to-finish for the 12th time this season.
• The Rams held the Falcons to single digits in both the second and third quarters. CSU has now held its opponents to single digits in 31 quarters this season.
• Air Force was the 14th opponent that didn't reach 50 points in a game.
• CSU's win streak is up to 25 games, while the road streak is up to 12 games. Both are program records.
NEXT UP…
Colorado State now travels to Las Vegas for the Mountain West Tournament. The Rams will be the No. 1 seed in the tournament and will play the winner of San Diego State and Wyoming on Tuesday at 1 p.m. MT. The game will be streamed live on the Mountain West Network and will be broadcasted on the radio on 1410 KIIX.
