Rams pull away late in 63-48 win over San Jose State

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FORT COLLINS, Colo. – The Colorado State women's basketball team closed the 2017 calendar year with a 63-48 victory over the San Jose State Spartans on Saturday afternoon from Moby Arena.

Three Rams scored in double figures, including senior guard Hannah Tvrdy, who added 10 rebounds to her total for her second double-double of the season. Senior guard Stine Austgulen led all scorers with 17 points, while freshman guard Grace Colaivalu scored 15 points. Junior forward Annie Brady finished just shy of a double-double, tallying nine points with 12 rebounds.

Eight lead changes and five tied scores highlighted the first half, as neither of Colorado State (9-4, 1-1 MW) or San Jose State (4-9, 1-1 MW) could gain much separation. The final of those eight lead changes came at the very end of the first half, as Tvrdy hit a buzzer-beating three to send the Rams to halftime with a 28-26 lead.

Colorado State never trailed again after that Tvrdy three, finishing the game with a total lead time of 31:21. CSU led by five through three quarters, a lead that the Rams held until midway through the fourth quarter. From that point, the Rams scored on their next three possessions, taking a 58-46 lead with three minutes to play on Colaivalu and Tvrdy layups and an Austgulen three-pointer. Austgulen added the final dagger 1:30 later, sinking another three to give the Rams their final 63-48 advantage.

IN THEIR WORDS
Colorado State head coach Ryun Williams
"Good win on a short turnaround. Obviously both teams get a one day rest. We were fortunate we didn't have to travel but San Jose State is always a difficult team to play. They put a lot of penetration on the floor, they really stretch you, they all shoot the three. So I thought our efforts, really in that second half especially, were quite outstanding defensively. They average 73 points, we hold them to 48. I thought once we got our legs underneath us we played some good basketball. Really pleased with this victory, again, off the one day turnaround."

On the team finishing plays:
"There is so much good execution but we don't finish. You know we have so many opportunities to finish a play whether it be maybe just one more pass or a lot of easy stuff at the rim tonight. Our standard is that we need to finish those. I told them in a timeout some of our fans were saying, 'that's still good offense.' It's only good offense if you make the play. These kids are too good to leave a lot of points off that scoreboard. Just some awareness things - we got a couple of offensive rebounds where we were right there. We could just finish a layup but yet we dribble out. You could see it's close, and I'm going to grind these kids until they get it. We have a good basketball team here but once they get that final touch I think we'll be even tougher to beat."

Senior guard Stine Austgulen
On the team finding consistency:
"I think we (the team) talked a lot about it. You know there's a lot of ups and downs still and we're trying to limit the downs and be more consistent. It's going to come. You know it's still early in the season so I think we'll be good as we get going."

NOTES
- Colorado State has won six consecutive games over San Jose State.
- CSU is now 9-2 against San Jose State under sixth-year head coach Ryun Williams.
- The Rams have won four of their past five games.
- The Rams have won three of their last four home contests.
- Senior guard Stine Austgulen matched her career high with 17 points on Saturday. She previously has scored 17 points twice, most recently at San Diego State on Feb. 25, 2017.
- Senor guard Hannah Tvrdy recorded her second career double-double on Saturday. Her only previous double-double came against Gonzaga on Nov. 13.

UP NEXT
The Colorado State women's basketball team returns to action on Wednesday, Jan. 3, 2018 for a Mountain West matchup at San Diego State. Opening tip is slated for 7:30 p.m. MT/6:30 p.m. PT.

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