Colorado State University Athletics
Tuesday, February 4
Fresno, Calif. / Save Mart Center
7 p.m. MT
Colorado State
17-8, 8-4MW
80
at
70
Fresno State
8-15, 4-8MW
1
2
F
Colorado State
42
38
80
Fresno State
30
40
70
Redshirt-senior Nico Carvacho had his 46th career double-double in the victory
Photo by: Emma Montie
Rams Earn Third-Ever Win At Fresno State, 80-70
2/4/2020 9:30:00 PM | Men's Basketball
CSU picks up its eighth win in nine tries as Nico Carvacho sets a MW double-double record
FRESNO, Calif. – Colorado State battled a pesky Fresno State squad and eventually pulled out an 80-70 victory at the Save Mart Center Tuesday night. With their eighth win in the last nine Mountain West games, the Rams improved to 17-8 overall and 8-4 in the conference, while the Bulldogs had their two-game win streak snapped and fell to 8-15 and 4-8 in the conference.
The two teams had four lead changes in the early going before the visitors took the lead for good on a triple by sophomore Adam Thistlewood to go up 9-7 and spark 15-4 run that pushed the lead out to 10 midway through the first half at 21-11. The margin fell back to 23-19 on six straight points by Fresno State, but threes by sophomore Kendle Moore and Thistlewood made it another 10-point lead and the Rams eventually went into the break with a 12-point lead, 42-30.
The lead grew to as many as 18 early in the second half, but Fresno State, sparked by their freshmen off the bench, did cut it to six with three minutes to play. However, senior Kris Martin got a contested layup and freshman David Roddy connected on two free throws to push it back to 10 for CSU, making the lead insurmountable in the final minutes.
Colorado State finished at 41.3 percent (26-of-63) from the floor and an even better 42.9 percent (12-of-28) from the arc. Fresno State shot 44.3 percent (27-of-61) from the floor and just 29.6 percent (8-of-27) from the arc. The free throw line was a difference, as CSU was 16-of-21, while FS was just 8-of-18. The Rams won the boards 43-37 and forced 13 Bulldog turnovers that were turned into 18 points.
The Rams had five players finish in double figures, led by redshirt-senior Nico Carvacho with 17 points and a game-high 16 rebounds. Freshman Isaiah Stevens had 13 points and eight assists, with Moore and Thistlewood adding 12 points each. Freshman David Roddy chipped in 11 points and eight rebounds. Fresno State was led by Niven Hart with 29 off the bench.
STAT OF THE GAME
• CSU canned 12 3-pointers in the game, the seventh time this year the Rams have 10 or more triples.
NOTES
• The Rams swept the season series and now have a 20-18 advantage, but just the third win for CSU in 16 tries in Fresno.
• CSU has secured an overall winning season for the first time since 2016-17.
• Carvacho recorded his 46th career double-double in the game, becoming the Mountain West's all-time leader in the category, passing Jordan Caroline of Nevada.
• Carvacho has passed NBA retired veterans Dale Davis (Clemson) and Shaquille O'Neal (LSU) tonight in career rebounds, now with 1221 (when has 16)
• The Rams are now 13-2 this year when leading at halftime.
NEXT UP
• The Rams will have the rest of the week off before returning home to host Utah State for the annual State Pride game on Tuesday, Feb. 11.
• The game will be broadcast on CBS Sports Network at 7:30 p.m. MT.
• The audio will be on the Colorado State Sports Radio Network (along with online at CSURams.com), with Brian Roth and Adam Nigon on the call.
• CSU Sports Network broadcasts can be also accessed on mobile devices through the TuneIn app (free on all Apple, Android, Windows, Blackberry and Amazon Kindle devices) – once downloaded, search "Colorado St. Rams Sports Network" in the app for the games and coaches' show broadcasts.
The two teams had four lead changes in the early going before the visitors took the lead for good on a triple by sophomore Adam Thistlewood to go up 9-7 and spark 15-4 run that pushed the lead out to 10 midway through the first half at 21-11. The margin fell back to 23-19 on six straight points by Fresno State, but threes by sophomore Kendle Moore and Thistlewood made it another 10-point lead and the Rams eventually went into the break with a 12-point lead, 42-30.
The lead grew to as many as 18 early in the second half, but Fresno State, sparked by their freshmen off the bench, did cut it to six with three minutes to play. However, senior Kris Martin got a contested layup and freshman David Roddy connected on two free throws to push it back to 10 for CSU, making the lead insurmountable in the final minutes.
Colorado State finished at 41.3 percent (26-of-63) from the floor and an even better 42.9 percent (12-of-28) from the arc. Fresno State shot 44.3 percent (27-of-61) from the floor and just 29.6 percent (8-of-27) from the arc. The free throw line was a difference, as CSU was 16-of-21, while FS was just 8-of-18. The Rams won the boards 43-37 and forced 13 Bulldog turnovers that were turned into 18 points.
The Rams had five players finish in double figures, led by redshirt-senior Nico Carvacho with 17 points and a game-high 16 rebounds. Freshman Isaiah Stevens had 13 points and eight assists, with Moore and Thistlewood adding 12 points each. Freshman David Roddy chipped in 11 points and eight rebounds. Fresno State was led by Niven Hart with 29 off the bench.
STAT OF THE GAME
• CSU canned 12 3-pointers in the game, the seventh time this year the Rams have 10 or more triples.
NOTES
• The Rams swept the season series and now have a 20-18 advantage, but just the third win for CSU in 16 tries in Fresno.
• CSU has secured an overall winning season for the first time since 2016-17.
• Carvacho recorded his 46th career double-double in the game, becoming the Mountain West's all-time leader in the category, passing Jordan Caroline of Nevada.
• Carvacho has passed NBA retired veterans Dale Davis (Clemson) and Shaquille O'Neal (LSU) tonight in career rebounds, now with 1221 (when has 16)
• The Rams are now 13-2 this year when leading at halftime.
NEXT UP
• The Rams will have the rest of the week off before returning home to host Utah State for the annual State Pride game on Tuesday, Feb. 11.
• The game will be broadcast on CBS Sports Network at 7:30 p.m. MT.
• The audio will be on the Colorado State Sports Radio Network (along with online at CSURams.com), with Brian Roth and Adam Nigon on the call.
• CSU Sports Network broadcasts can be also accessed on mobile devices through the TuneIn app (free on all Apple, Android, Windows, Blackberry and Amazon Kindle devices) – once downloaded, search "Colorado St. Rams Sports Network" in the app for the games and coaches' show broadcasts.
Team Stats
CSU
FS
FG%
.413
.443
3FG%
.429
.296
FT%
.762
.444
RB
43
37
TO
10
13
STL
10
6
Game Leaders
Pts
17
FGM
7
3FGM
0
FTM
3
Pts
13
FGM
4
3FGM
0
FTM
5
Pts
12
FGM
4
3FGM
4
FTM
0
Pts
12
FGM
3
3FGM
3
FTM
3
Players Mentioned
F/C
/ Men's Basketball
G
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's Basketball
G/F
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's BasketballF
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