Stevens Fights Through Pain in Narrow Defeat

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FORT COLLINS, Colo. – So close, yet so far.

Colorado State suffered another heartbreaking loss in a game they very much could've won. Instead, they ended up on the wrong side of the coin to the Boise State Broncos in an 80-78 loss Wednesday night when John Tonje was unable to finish a buzzer-beater three.

"Tough night, I'm getting tired of tough nights," head coach Niko Medved said. "We came out and had fight tonight, we did some good things, but in my opinion that was a game we should've won there. We didn't make enough winning plays."

The story of the night came from a familiar name within the lineup. He's been doing it night in and night out on the floor fighting through everything thrown at him. Take a wild guess of who's being discussed here.

Isaiah Stevens continued to do Isaiah Stevens things. He wound up collecting his fifth double-double of the season, 10^th of his career with 17 points and 12 assists. It would be too little too late for Colorado State's No. 4.

"I think the rebounding was missing," Tonje said. "A lot of offensive rebounds just killed us, honestly. Basketball is a game of runs, and they made good runs. We have to go play-by-play and we didn't come out in the end."

Tonje had a quality game overall himself with 16 points and leading the way in the first 20 minutes. The Rams let the Broncos go on a 17-2 run to close the half while also going scoreless themselves.

Interestingly enough, Stevens did not record his first points of the game until five minutes into the second half. Combined between himself and Patrick Cartier - who ended with a team-high 18 points – shot 1-of-10 from the floor in the first half.

"Obviously, he's (Stevens) going to be at the top of the scouting report," Medved said. "I think he missed some shots he would normally make, but he still had a big impact in the first half."

Wednesday night's affair also saw the return of Tavi Jackson for the first time since suffering an illness. He's been in and out of the lineup all year with injury and changes and what not, so it was a relief for those on the Rams coaching staff to see him finally suit up.

Jackson got 27 minutes of action in his return. Despite not starting, he quickly came in to replace Baylor Hebb who had two fouls in the opening two minutes. The number would remain to be a theme for No. 2, as he only ended the night with two points.
However, numbers don't tell the full story of his return to the court.

"I thought he gave us a really big spark," Medved said. "He did a really good job defensively, not afraid to take a charge, and he adds another level of athleticism to the game that helps us. Hopefully, this is a game he can build on."

The national TV audience was given a treat and plenty of drama in what was a close affair. After the Rams were obliterated by the Broncos 80-59 on the road, to be much closer was a great sign of things to come perhaps to end the season.

While Colorado State sits at an 11-15 record but more importantly an underwhelming 3-10 conference record, they hit the road starting this weekend against Fresno State. Ahead of the Bulldogs matchup, the Rams face the current 21^st-best team in the country: The San Diego State Aztecs, as they look to play the hero card again in Southern California.

"We're not looking back at things," Isaiah Rivera said. "We're just living in the moment, the only thing we can do is get better every day."

However, while hitting the road these next few days, the Rams may be shorthanded even more. While already dealing with several injuries at the moment, there could be some more on the mend.

Jackson took a severe fall landing back-first on the floor after going over a Broncos defender. He took a while to get up and was holding his left arm gingerly but continued to push through.

Meanwhile, Stevens rolled his ankle on one of the opening plays and took a while to get up and continue. Then, late in the game he injured his ankle once again and was limping for the final minutes of the game. Somehow, he hit a three-pointer to get the Rams within one in the closing seconds on one leg but was struggling on it all night long and now there's some tension on his status.

"We just have to stay with it," Medved said. "We have to wait and see what the status is on Isaiah Steven's tomorrow with his ankle, praying he's okay. He was hurting pretty good, but he wasn't coming out of this game. We just have to keep improving."

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