Colorado State University Athletics
Saturday, December 14
Henderson, NV
5:30 PM
Colorado State
vs
VCU
Battle of the Rams Saturday
12/11/2024 8:17:00 PM | Men's Basketball
CSU and VCU men’s basketball face-off in Henderson, Nev. Saturday
FORT COLLINS – It is a battle for Ram supremacy on Saturday when Colorado State and VCU square-off inside Lee Family Forum in Henderson, Nev. at 5:30 p.m. MT.
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Opening Tip
- Colorado State was unable to overcome a slow start against rival Colorado, falling 72-55.
- The Rams shot a season-low 31.3% in the loss
- Jalen Lake led all players in scoring for the game with 18 points. He extended his made 3-point streak to nine games going 3-for-5 behind the arc.
- Lake has increased his scoring during his senior season averaging 15.3 points. He has scored double figures the past eight games.
- Nique Clifford returned to Boulder after playing at Colorado for the first time since transferring from Boulder to Colorado State. He scored 10 points and grabbed a team-leading eight rebounds in his return.
- Clifford is averaging 17.9 points and 10.7 rebounds per game to lead Colorado State.
- He was selected to the preseason All-Mountain West team after earning third team honors last season.
- Sophomore guard Kyan Evans has seen a scoring uptick in the last four games averaging 8.0 points reaching double figures three times. He scored 11 at Colorado.
- Freshman Kyle Jorgensen picked up Mountain West Freshman of the Week honors after averaging 9.0 points and 6.0 rebounds in his first two games. He scored seven straight points for the Rams in overtime to lift them past TSU.
- The freshman started a trio of games, averaging 6.6 points and 2.8 rebounds.
- This is the first time Colorado State and VCU have met. The head coaches are familiar with each other as Ryan Odom was the head coach at Utah State from 2021-23.Â
- Head coach Niko Medved is in his seventh year leading Colorado State. He is 122-79 as the Rams' head coach. He has the second most wins in program history trailing only Jim Williams (1955-80) and his 352.
- He became the fifth coach in program history to reach 100 wins in Fort Collins last year.
- Medved is the only coach in program history to win 20-plus games four times.
- He picked up his 200th career win in November with the Rams' overtime win over TCU.
- The Rams welcome 10 new faces to the program in 2024-25. Six are transfers, and four are true freshmen.
- The program's all-time leading scorer and assists leader, Isaiah Stevens has moved on to professional basketball after exhausting his eligibility. He is currently with the Sioux Falls Skyforce, the G League affiliate of the Miami Heat.
- Stevens helped the Heat to a 2024 Summer League Championship.
- CSU has two players currently in the NBA or G League with David Roddy (Atlanta Hawks) and Isaiah Stevens (Miami Heat/Sioux Falls Skyforce).
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Scouting the Rams
VCU is off to a strong start to the 2024-25 season at 8-2. The Rams have only allowed one opponent to reach 70 points this season, holding them to an average of 58.1 per game.
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Joe Bamisile and Max Shluga lead the Rams' offense with 16.4 and 16.2 points per game. Shluga adds in 6.3 rebounds and 3.7 assists per game.
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VCU's defense ranks fifth in the nation for efficiency at 93.5 on KenPom and they have the most effective field goal defense holding opponents to a mark of 41.5%.
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What's Ahead
Colorado State returns home for its final non-conference game of the year when they host Radford on Tuesday, December 17 at 7 p.m.
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Opening Tip
- Colorado State was unable to overcome a slow start against rival Colorado, falling 72-55.
- The Rams shot a season-low 31.3% in the loss
- Jalen Lake led all players in scoring for the game with 18 points. He extended his made 3-point streak to nine games going 3-for-5 behind the arc.
- Lake has increased his scoring during his senior season averaging 15.3 points. He has scored double figures the past eight games.
- Nique Clifford returned to Boulder after playing at Colorado for the first time since transferring from Boulder to Colorado State. He scored 10 points and grabbed a team-leading eight rebounds in his return.
- Clifford is averaging 17.9 points and 10.7 rebounds per game to lead Colorado State.
- He was selected to the preseason All-Mountain West team after earning third team honors last season.
- Sophomore guard Kyan Evans has seen a scoring uptick in the last four games averaging 8.0 points reaching double figures three times. He scored 11 at Colorado.
- Freshman Kyle Jorgensen picked up Mountain West Freshman of the Week honors after averaging 9.0 points and 6.0 rebounds in his first two games. He scored seven straight points for the Rams in overtime to lift them past TSU.
- The freshman started a trio of games, averaging 6.6 points and 2.8 rebounds.
- This is the first time Colorado State and VCU have met. The head coaches are familiar with each other as Ryan Odom was the head coach at Utah State from 2021-23.Â
- Head coach Niko Medved is in his seventh year leading Colorado State. He is 122-79 as the Rams' head coach. He has the second most wins in program history trailing only Jim Williams (1955-80) and his 352.
- He became the fifth coach in program history to reach 100 wins in Fort Collins last year.
- Medved is the only coach in program history to win 20-plus games four times.
- He picked up his 200th career win in November with the Rams' overtime win over TCU.
- The Rams welcome 10 new faces to the program in 2024-25. Six are transfers, and four are true freshmen.
- The program's all-time leading scorer and assists leader, Isaiah Stevens has moved on to professional basketball after exhausting his eligibility. He is currently with the Sioux Falls Skyforce, the G League affiliate of the Miami Heat.
- Stevens helped the Heat to a 2024 Summer League Championship.
- CSU has two players currently in the NBA or G League with David Roddy (Atlanta Hawks) and Isaiah Stevens (Miami Heat/Sioux Falls Skyforce).
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Scouting the Rams
VCU is off to a strong start to the 2024-25 season at 8-2. The Rams have only allowed one opponent to reach 70 points this season, holding them to an average of 58.1 per game.
Â
Joe Bamisile and Max Shluga lead the Rams' offense with 16.4 and 16.2 points per game. Shluga adds in 6.3 rebounds and 3.7 assists per game.
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VCU's defense ranks fifth in the nation for efficiency at 93.5 on KenPom and they have the most effective field goal defense holding opponents to a mark of 41.5%.
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What's Ahead
Colorado State returns home for its final non-conference game of the year when they host Radford on Tuesday, December 17 at 7 p.m.
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Players Mentioned
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