Colorado State University Athletics
Wednesday, November 29
Fort Collins, CO
7:00 PM
Colorado State
vs
Colorado
No. 20/21 Colorado State host Rival Colorado Wednesday
11/28/2023 8:29:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Colorado State hosts Colorado in Sold Out Moby Arena
FORT COLLINS – Colorado State men's basketball is set to host rival Colorado inside a sold out Moby Arena Wednesday night at 7 pm. The Rams enter the game ranked No. 20/21 in the nation and will be the first time ever playing the Buffs as a ranked team.
Opening Tip
- Colorado State picked up its first win over a top 10 opponent for the first time in 39 years when they defeated No. 8/7 Creighton on Thanksgiving 69-48.
- The Rams held the Bluejays to 27.9% shooting, the second-best mark a Colorado State team has ever held an opponent to.
- CSU moved into the AP and USA Today Top 25 with their win checking in at No. 20 and 21, respectively. It is the first time Colorado State has been in the polls since March 2022.
- Head coach Niko Medved is in his sixth year leading Colorado State. He is 98-64 as the Rams' head coach. With two more wins, he will become the fifth coach in program history to reach the 100 wins mark.
- Isaiah Stevens returns for his final year of eligibility and the nation is taking notice of the guard. Stevens was named the Mountain West Preseason Player of the Year, Wooden Top 50 Preseason List and one of 20 players named to the Bob Cousy Preseason Watch List.
- Stevens has a pair of double-doubles on the year and already reset one of his own records when he posted 14 assists against Wright State. He is averaging 17.5 points, 7.8 assists, 2.8 rebounds and 1.5 steals per game while shooting 58.8% from the field and 52.6% behind the arc.
- He is coming off a week where he was named the Hall of Fame Classic MVP after averaging 19.0 points, 7.5 assists. 3.5 rebounds and 1.0 steals while shooting 58.6% and 60.0% from 3-point land. He had an impressive 5.0 assist-to-turnover ratio in the games against Boston College and Creighton. He was named the Mountain West Player of the Week for it.
- Newcomer Joel Scott saw his streak of 52 straight games reaching double figures ended the last time out, but the win over No. 8/7 Creighton was bigger. He played big minutes for the team without frontcourt mate Patrick Cartier, grabbing nine rebounds. He is second on the team averaging 14.5 points per game.
- Nique Clifford will see some familiar faces in former teammates on Wednesday night. The transfer from Colorado is shooting an impressive 63.8% from the field including 62.5% from behind the arc on his way to averaging 13.2 points and 6.7 rebounds.
- Freshman Rashaan Mbemba played big minutes in the win over Creighton scoring a career-best 13 points and grabbing four rebounds in 20 minutes of play.
- The Rams lead the Mountain West in assists per game (21.3), effective field goal percentage (61.3%), fast break points per game (15.67), field goal percentage (53.9%) and free throw percentage (78.4%).
Scouting the Buffaloes
Head coach Tad Boyle once again has a strong team in 2023-24 thanks to the return of KJ Simpson and Tristan Da Silva. The duo are averaging 18.3 and 15.2 points per game.
CU can fill up the basket with six players averaging over 8.0 points, including five in double figures.
The 3-point shot is a big weapon for CU who is making 42.1% of their threes this season to rank sixth in the nation.
What's Ahead
It's a quick turnaround for Colorado State who heads to Las Vegas for a showdown with another Pac 12 foe in Washington. The Rams and Huskies will square off inside the MGM Grand Arena at 5 pm MT on CBS Sports Network.
Opening Tip
- Colorado State picked up its first win over a top 10 opponent for the first time in 39 years when they defeated No. 8/7 Creighton on Thanksgiving 69-48.
- The Rams held the Bluejays to 27.9% shooting, the second-best mark a Colorado State team has ever held an opponent to.
- CSU moved into the AP and USA Today Top 25 with their win checking in at No. 20 and 21, respectively. It is the first time Colorado State has been in the polls since March 2022.
- Head coach Niko Medved is in his sixth year leading Colorado State. He is 98-64 as the Rams' head coach. With two more wins, he will become the fifth coach in program history to reach the 100 wins mark.
- Isaiah Stevens returns for his final year of eligibility and the nation is taking notice of the guard. Stevens was named the Mountain West Preseason Player of the Year, Wooden Top 50 Preseason List and one of 20 players named to the Bob Cousy Preseason Watch List.
- Stevens has a pair of double-doubles on the year and already reset one of his own records when he posted 14 assists against Wright State. He is averaging 17.5 points, 7.8 assists, 2.8 rebounds and 1.5 steals per game while shooting 58.8% from the field and 52.6% behind the arc.
- He is coming off a week where he was named the Hall of Fame Classic MVP after averaging 19.0 points, 7.5 assists. 3.5 rebounds and 1.0 steals while shooting 58.6% and 60.0% from 3-point land. He had an impressive 5.0 assist-to-turnover ratio in the games against Boston College and Creighton. He was named the Mountain West Player of the Week for it.
- Newcomer Joel Scott saw his streak of 52 straight games reaching double figures ended the last time out, but the win over No. 8/7 Creighton was bigger. He played big minutes for the team without frontcourt mate Patrick Cartier, grabbing nine rebounds. He is second on the team averaging 14.5 points per game.
- Nique Clifford will see some familiar faces in former teammates on Wednesday night. The transfer from Colorado is shooting an impressive 63.8% from the field including 62.5% from behind the arc on his way to averaging 13.2 points and 6.7 rebounds.
- Freshman Rashaan Mbemba played big minutes in the win over Creighton scoring a career-best 13 points and grabbing four rebounds in 20 minutes of play.
- The Rams lead the Mountain West in assists per game (21.3), effective field goal percentage (61.3%), fast break points per game (15.67), field goal percentage (53.9%) and free throw percentage (78.4%).
Scouting the Buffaloes
Head coach Tad Boyle once again has a strong team in 2023-24 thanks to the return of KJ Simpson and Tristan Da Silva. The duo are averaging 18.3 and 15.2 points per game.
CU can fill up the basket with six players averaging over 8.0 points, including five in double figures.
The 3-point shot is a big weapon for CU who is making 42.1% of their threes this season to rank sixth in the nation.
What's Ahead
It's a quick turnaround for Colorado State who heads to Las Vegas for a showdown with another Pac 12 foe in Washington. The Rams and Huskies will square off inside the MGM Grand Arena at 5 pm MT on CBS Sports Network.
Players Mentioned
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