Colorado State University Athletics

Saturday, February 15
Fort Collins, CO
2 PM MT

Colorado State

11-14,5-9Mounta

40
vs
43

Wyoming

12-11,8-6Mounta

1
2
3
4
F
Wyoming
9
9
11
14
43
Colorado State
2
11
15
12
40
UCHealth Patients Standing in Front of Their Paired Student-Athlete

Heartfelt Effort Comes Up Short for Rams in Border War, 43-40

2/15/2020 4:57:00 PM | Women's Basketball

Colorado State Falls to Wyoming to Split the Season Series.

FORT COLLINS, Colo. – Friday, as part of the hallmark holiday, was the day of love. Saturday wasn't – it was for the fighters.
 
As part of their partnership with UCHealth, Colorado State's women's basketball donned the last names of cancer patients instead of their own. Their efforts, backed by the warriors they played for, resulted in a 43-40 loss to the visiting Wyoming Cowgirls at Moby Arena.
 
The on-court fight for the Rams, similar to several of their past games, was against themselves. They were tense early on and it showed.
 
The Rams fell to 11-14 on the season and 5-9 among the Mountain West, while Wyoming improved to 21-11 and 8-6 in the MW. The Border War series comes to a close for the season at 51-51 all time unless the two meet in the conference tournament.
 
"That's a really cool thing – to honor and support the people who have a much greater fight in front of them than what we had today," head coach Ryun Williams said. "I think our kids took a really prideful approach to represent well. Sometimes we made it too emotional – you can make things too emotional and it makes you tight." 
 
In the third quarter's waning moments, it finally looked like the Rams cleared the hurdle. A three-point play from Liah Davis gave the host's their first lead since Annie Brady's opening jumper.
 
The make was part of a 6-0 run which would've given the Rams momentum heading into the game's final minutes. Instead, Wyoming's Jaye Johnson launched a contested 3-pointer at the buzzer – a shot which clanged off the backboard and in to cede the lead right back.
 
"Sometimes you get good luck, sometimes you get bad luck," Williams said. "It wasn't overly deflating, you still have an entire quarter in front of you, but it just seemed like we were climbing a tough mountain all day. We just could not get into any rhythm." 
 
The swift score change left its mark in the first 8:44 of the final quarter, as the Rams failed to make any of their 14 attempts during that span. Their lowest scoring effort of the year was buoyed by several dry spells including their 1-for-17 start to the game.
 
Last game, the Rams nailed a season-high 15 3-pointers.
 
"A lot of times, you have cold games," Jamie Bonnarens said. "You just have to keep shooting and trust the practice you're put in." 
 
The inconsistency has been the biggest opponent for the Rams all year. Their shooting woes took hold Saturday, but as soon as next game they could reverse course in Williams' eyes. In five games this year, including the loss, they've shot less than 30 percent. Conversely, they've shot better than 50 percent three times.
 
As the season draws to a close, the Rams need every win they can muster for seeding in the tournament. Defense has been their calling card all year – the second best in the conference. Recently, the prowess hasn't been enough as they've lost four of five.
 
The Rams are back in action Wednesday against UNLV for a 7 p.m. tip inside Moby Arena.
 
For More on Colorado State Women's Basketball follow: Twitter – CSUWBasketball | Instagram – csuwbasketball | Facebook – @CSUWBasketball
 
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