Colorado State University Athletics
Wednesday, January 27
Boise, ID
2 PM MT
Colorado State
11-2,7-2Mountai
71
at
51
Boise State
8-4,5-4Mountain
1
2
3
4
F
Colorado State
19
8
21
23
71
Boise St.
14
2
22
13
51
Dominate Fourth Quarter Fuels Rams’ Win at Boise State, 71-51
1/27/2021 5:20:00 PM | Women's Basketball
Colorado State Defeats Broncos for First Time Since 2017
BOISE, Id. – A statement is what the Colorado State women's basketball team delivered with a 71-51 victory over Boise State Wednesday afternoon at the ExtraMile Arena.
Eight unanswered points to start the fourth quarter ballooned the Rams' lead to 18 points and let the air out of the Broncos' sails in a comeback attempt. The win halted Boise State's seven-game win streak against the Rams dating back to Feb. 1, 2017 in Boise. In terms of this season, it was a matchup of two top-4 teams in the Mountain West. Head coach Ryun Williams will be the first to say it is too early to look at the standings, but the Rams (11-2 overall) are in the driver's seat at 7-2 atop of the league, while the Broncos (8-4 overall) dropped to 5-4 in league play.
"Defensively, we were outstanding from the git-go," Williams said. "We got them slowed down and bogged down offensively and rebounded early which got [Mallory] McGwire into foul trouble. We might have been cold early, but we were getting incredible shots, so on the bench we liked what we were seeing. It was a big game – a rivalry game – so you must settle down your emotions and once our players did that, we were outstanding. The toughness aspect on the glass and the every-changing defensive execution was exception."
Youth led the Rams with the freshmen duo of Ellie Boni and Cali Clark combining for 29 points and 17 rebounds. Boni narrowly missed her first-career double-double with 19 points and nine rebounds – both team highs and career-highs for the Spokane Valley, Wash. native. Clark, of Centennial, Colo., chipped in 10 points and eight boards including four on the offensive end. The 6-foot-3 forward is starting to get comfortable on the court as this marks her fourth-straight game with at least eight points and rebounds. Twenty-three of the 29 points came in the second half for the two.
"Boise plays with such of an aggressiveness that disrupted us at times, but it also plays into Ellie [Boni]," Williams added. "She likes to play tight defensively and drive to the basket. She accepted that challenge head-on and she was outstanding in both those areas. Both freshmen really extended the lead for us. Cali [Clark] played really well around the basket. She went right at [Mallory] McGwire, bringing toughness and rebounding."
To balance the youth, the wily veterans Lore Devos and Jamie Bonnarens added 13 and 10 points, respectively, while Karly Murphy corralled seven rebounds. The conference's leader in assists, McKenna Hofschild, handed out eight assists for her fourth game with at least as many this season.
At the half, the Rams led 27-16 in a rather forgetful opening two quarters. The first frame featured 10-point runs from both teams, while neither reached 10 points in the second frame. CSU held Boise to its lowest output in a half and in a quarter, but also the Rams recorded their lowest scoring half of the season.
Coming out of the break was a different narrative. The Broncos went on a 16-9 run, shrinking the margin to four points. The Rams stretched it out to double digits only to Boise to pull within four again, but then the Rams finished the quarter on a 6-0 run with four from the free-throw line. That 6-0 run turned into 14 unanswered paired with the opening eight in the fourth. From there the Rams did not let the margin dip below 16 and cruised to secure the win in game one of the series.
Defensively, the Rams held Boise to 28.2% shooting and 51 points – both season lows for opponents against CSU and for Boise State. One overwhelming difference in the contest was the performance at the free throw line. The Broncos were 8-of-10 from the free throw line, while the Rams were a perfect 16-for-16.
"My defensive has been a great impact to the team," Boni said. "We have McKenna, Tori, and Lore as our offensive scorers, so I know that my role is mostly defense and stopping the other team's best perimeter player. I made sure I did my role today, and usually defense leads to offense, so that is usually how I play."
The Rams will look for their first sweep against Boise State since 2016 on Friday with a 1 p.m. MT tip.
For More on Colorado State Women's Basketball follow: Twitter – CSUWBasketball | Instagram – csuwbasketball | Facebook – @CSUWBasketball
Eight unanswered points to start the fourth quarter ballooned the Rams' lead to 18 points and let the air out of the Broncos' sails in a comeback attempt. The win halted Boise State's seven-game win streak against the Rams dating back to Feb. 1, 2017 in Boise. In terms of this season, it was a matchup of two top-4 teams in the Mountain West. Head coach Ryun Williams will be the first to say it is too early to look at the standings, but the Rams (11-2 overall) are in the driver's seat at 7-2 atop of the league, while the Broncos (8-4 overall) dropped to 5-4 in league play.
"Defensively, we were outstanding from the git-go," Williams said. "We got them slowed down and bogged down offensively and rebounded early which got [Mallory] McGwire into foul trouble. We might have been cold early, but we were getting incredible shots, so on the bench we liked what we were seeing. It was a big game – a rivalry game – so you must settle down your emotions and once our players did that, we were outstanding. The toughness aspect on the glass and the every-changing defensive execution was exception."
Youth led the Rams with the freshmen duo of Ellie Boni and Cali Clark combining for 29 points and 17 rebounds. Boni narrowly missed her first-career double-double with 19 points and nine rebounds – both team highs and career-highs for the Spokane Valley, Wash. native. Clark, of Centennial, Colo., chipped in 10 points and eight boards including four on the offensive end. The 6-foot-3 forward is starting to get comfortable on the court as this marks her fourth-straight game with at least eight points and rebounds. Twenty-three of the 29 points came in the second half for the two.
"Boise plays with such of an aggressiveness that disrupted us at times, but it also plays into Ellie [Boni]," Williams added. "She likes to play tight defensively and drive to the basket. She accepted that challenge head-on and she was outstanding in both those areas. Both freshmen really extended the lead for us. Cali [Clark] played really well around the basket. She went right at [Mallory] McGwire, bringing toughness and rebounding."
To balance the youth, the wily veterans Lore Devos and Jamie Bonnarens added 13 and 10 points, respectively, while Karly Murphy corralled seven rebounds. The conference's leader in assists, McKenna Hofschild, handed out eight assists for her fourth game with at least as many this season.
At the half, the Rams led 27-16 in a rather forgetful opening two quarters. The first frame featured 10-point runs from both teams, while neither reached 10 points in the second frame. CSU held Boise to its lowest output in a half and in a quarter, but also the Rams recorded their lowest scoring half of the season.
Coming out of the break was a different narrative. The Broncos went on a 16-9 run, shrinking the margin to four points. The Rams stretched it out to double digits only to Boise to pull within four again, but then the Rams finished the quarter on a 6-0 run with four from the free-throw line. That 6-0 run turned into 14 unanswered paired with the opening eight in the fourth. From there the Rams did not let the margin dip below 16 and cruised to secure the win in game one of the series.
Defensively, the Rams held Boise to 28.2% shooting and 51 points – both season lows for opponents against CSU and for Boise State. One overwhelming difference in the contest was the performance at the free throw line. The Broncos were 8-of-10 from the free throw line, while the Rams were a perfect 16-for-16.
"My defensive has been a great impact to the team," Boni said. "We have McKenna, Tori, and Lore as our offensive scorers, so I know that my role is mostly defense and stopping the other team's best perimeter player. I made sure I did my role today, and usually defense leads to offense, so that is usually how I play."
The Rams will look for their first sweep against Boise State since 2016 on Friday with a 1 p.m. MT tip.
For More on Colorado State Women's Basketball follow: Twitter – CSUWBasketball | Instagram – csuwbasketball | Facebook – @CSUWBasketball
- CSURams.com -
Team Stats
CSU
BOISE
FG%
.369
.282
3FG%
.350
.176
FT%
1.000
.800
RB
46
46
TO
12
14
STL
5
5
Game Leaders
Pts
19
FGM
7
3FGM
1
FTM
4
Pts
13
FGM
4
3FGM
1
FTM
4
Pts
10
FGM
4
3FGM
2
FTM
0
Pts
10
FGM
4
3FGM
0
FTM
2
Players Mentioned
G
/ Women's BasketballG/F
/ Women's BasketballF
/ Women's BasketballG
/ Women's Basketball
G
/ Women's Basketball
F
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