Colorado State University Athletics
Monday, November 15
Fort Collins, CO
6:00 PM
Colorado State
3-0,0-0Mountain West
71
vs
56
Oral Roberts
0-2,0-0Summit League
1
2
3
4
F
Oral Roberts
19
10
16
11
56
Colorado St.
20
15
17
19
71
Women Block Off Eagles for Home Victory
11/15/2021 8:41:00 PM | Women's Basketball
Mech blocks eight shots, team 11 to move to 3-0
FORT COLLINS, Colo. – Third game of the season. Best performance to date.
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For Colorado State women's basketball coach Ryun Williams, it's the perfect type of progression for his team, which moved to 3-0 under him for the fourth time with a 71-56 win over Oral Roberts. The result was a blend of the Rams doing what they do best offensively most the night – transition basketball – and the defense found a way to make up for what the Golden Eagles were most effective with, driving the lane.
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"I thought that was a really quality women's basketball game," Williams said. "Oral Roberts is very athletic, they have good quickness, they played with great physicality, so we had some good resistance tonight. I thought our kids matched every challenge along the way. I feel really good about the win."
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The contest was close early, with the Rams gaining a little separation in the third quarter, then a bit more in the fourth. For the second outing in a row, they had to close out a game strong, which was encouraging. So was seeing Sydney Mech do what she does best.
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Play defense, which is saying something, because she's a pretty formidable offensive option for the team. She helped slow down the push in the lane by the Eagles by blocking a career-best eight shots, which stands as the second most by a Ram in a single game. That also makes her tied for the third most in a game, because she rejected seven shots against Denver last year before getting hurt.
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Add in three more blocks from Cali Clark, and the 11 swats ties for the fifth-most in a game as a team.
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"I love it. Sometimes it just gets me going when I get in a good block," Mech said. "A lot of it is spacing, and obviously timing. That's the key to it. When they go up, you have to be right there at the right time and right on the ball."
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She's a blend of defensive assets, taking in account her height (she's 6-foot-2), her length (her arm span is impressive) and having quick feet. It allows Williams to use her in a variety of ways, which in turn gives the team flexibility to combat matchup problems.
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She pulled down eight rebounds, finished with two steals, added an assist and seven points.
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"The fans are seeing what we missed last year. Offensively, we were really talented and we could really stretch you, but defensively, missing Sydney, you can see how she can impact a game," Williams said. "Tonight she guarded three different positions on the floor, and I think probably dominated every single position on the floor defensively. Then also go get a rebound, also go run a fast break. Sydney, I think, really grew up tonight. These are just good early games for the growth of our basketball team."
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As a team, the Rams rebounded much better in the game, with four players grabbing at least seven, led by Karly Murphy with 13 to give her a double-double with her team-best 18 points. It led to the Rams being able to get out and run, which is what they want to do.
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Teams know this, so Oral Roberts poached a few outlet passes early to McKenna Hofschild, leading to some easy buckets in the first frame. Once the Rams became more careful in that regard, it led to 12 fast-break points, but also some quality looks after setting up in the half-court system.
Â
"I think there's really a lot of beauty in playing together as a team," guard Upe Atosu said. "We care about each other, because we believe everybody can score, everybody can put the ball on the ground, so it's not all about you. Having to play together, play as a team, is so fun for us."
Â
The transfer graduate student looked a bit more comfortable in her new uniform, finishing with 16 points and adding a trio of assists, the last one giving Murphy her final bucket. She attributed that to a good scouting report, as well as taking particular care of the assignments Williams had in mind for her.
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Kendyll Kinzer, another transfer, closed with 10 points and seven rebounds, while Hofschild closed strong to finish with 13 points and six assists.
Â
"I think the balance up and down the roster is going to be really important," Williams said. "You're seeing McKenna is getting a ton of attention. It isn't as easy as it was – not that it was easy last year – but she is facing a lot more resistance. Other kids have to help, a Karly, a Sydney, an Upe; I thought Bengisu Alper off the bench tonight was spectacular."
Â
By rebounding, they created their own path offensively, and most everybody did their part in running the floor to find a welcoming pass come their way. At times, Williams felt, they were a bit quick with a shot when they didn't need to be, but he feels that comes from having aggressive offensive players with a nose for the rim.
Â
They'll learn. And teams will learn they are a much different team with Mech on the floor. Where ever they may find her. Simply put from Williams, she was really good. Atosu had a different take.
Â
"She's kind of like, with the height and her position, it's kind of like a cheat in the game," Atosu said.
"We have a great advantage just having her playing from guard to post and all of that."
Â
Â
For Colorado State women's basketball coach Ryun Williams, it's the perfect type of progression for his team, which moved to 3-0 under him for the fourth time with a 71-56 win over Oral Roberts. The result was a blend of the Rams doing what they do best offensively most the night – transition basketball – and the defense found a way to make up for what the Golden Eagles were most effective with, driving the lane.
Â
"I thought that was a really quality women's basketball game," Williams said. "Oral Roberts is very athletic, they have good quickness, they played with great physicality, so we had some good resistance tonight. I thought our kids matched every challenge along the way. I feel really good about the win."
Â
The contest was close early, with the Rams gaining a little separation in the third quarter, then a bit more in the fourth. For the second outing in a row, they had to close out a game strong, which was encouraging. So was seeing Sydney Mech do what she does best.
Â
Play defense, which is saying something, because she's a pretty formidable offensive option for the team. She helped slow down the push in the lane by the Eagles by blocking a career-best eight shots, which stands as the second most by a Ram in a single game. That also makes her tied for the third most in a game, because she rejected seven shots against Denver last year before getting hurt.
Â
Add in three more blocks from Cali Clark, and the 11 swats ties for the fifth-most in a game as a team.
Â
"I love it. Sometimes it just gets me going when I get in a good block," Mech said. "A lot of it is spacing, and obviously timing. That's the key to it. When they go up, you have to be right there at the right time and right on the ball."
Â
She's a blend of defensive assets, taking in account her height (she's 6-foot-2), her length (her arm span is impressive) and having quick feet. It allows Williams to use her in a variety of ways, which in turn gives the team flexibility to combat matchup problems.
Â
She pulled down eight rebounds, finished with two steals, added an assist and seven points.
Â
"The fans are seeing what we missed last year. Offensively, we were really talented and we could really stretch you, but defensively, missing Sydney, you can see how she can impact a game," Williams said. "Tonight she guarded three different positions on the floor, and I think probably dominated every single position on the floor defensively. Then also go get a rebound, also go run a fast break. Sydney, I think, really grew up tonight. These are just good early games for the growth of our basketball team."
Â
As a team, the Rams rebounded much better in the game, with four players grabbing at least seven, led by Karly Murphy with 13 to give her a double-double with her team-best 18 points. It led to the Rams being able to get out and run, which is what they want to do.
Â
Teams know this, so Oral Roberts poached a few outlet passes early to McKenna Hofschild, leading to some easy buckets in the first frame. Once the Rams became more careful in that regard, it led to 12 fast-break points, but also some quality looks after setting up in the half-court system.
Â
"I think there's really a lot of beauty in playing together as a team," guard Upe Atosu said. "We care about each other, because we believe everybody can score, everybody can put the ball on the ground, so it's not all about you. Having to play together, play as a team, is so fun for us."
Â
The transfer graduate student looked a bit more comfortable in her new uniform, finishing with 16 points and adding a trio of assists, the last one giving Murphy her final bucket. She attributed that to a good scouting report, as well as taking particular care of the assignments Williams had in mind for her.
Â
Kendyll Kinzer, another transfer, closed with 10 points and seven rebounds, while Hofschild closed strong to finish with 13 points and six assists.
Â
"I think the balance up and down the roster is going to be really important," Williams said. "You're seeing McKenna is getting a ton of attention. It isn't as easy as it was – not that it was easy last year – but she is facing a lot more resistance. Other kids have to help, a Karly, a Sydney, an Upe; I thought Bengisu Alper off the bench tonight was spectacular."
Â
By rebounding, they created their own path offensively, and most everybody did their part in running the floor to find a welcoming pass come their way. At times, Williams felt, they were a bit quick with a shot when they didn't need to be, but he feels that comes from having aggressive offensive players with a nose for the rim.
Â
They'll learn. And teams will learn they are a much different team with Mech on the floor. Where ever they may find her. Simply put from Williams, she was really good. Atosu had a different take.
Â
"She's kind of like, with the height and her position, it's kind of like a cheat in the game," Atosu said.
"We have a great advantage just having her playing from guard to post and all of that."
Â
Team Stats
ORU
CSU
FG%
.338
.431
3FG%
.294
.300
FT%
.417
.818
RB
40
47
TO
14
16
STL
8
7
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
18
FGM
9
3FGM
0
FTM
0
Pts
13
FGM
5
3FGM
1
FTM
2
Pts
10
FGM
4
3FGM
2
FTM
0
Players Mentioned
G
/ Women's Basketball
F
/ Women's BasketballG
/ Women's BasketballF
/ Women's Basketball
G/F
/ Women's BasketballF
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