FORT COLLINS, Colo. – In one of the most complete performances of the year, Colorado State started strong and led from start-to-finish to defeat visiting Saint Mary's (Calif.), 74-58, Saturday afternoon in Moby Arena. The Rams remained one of the remaining undefeated teams in Division I, improving to 9-0 on the year, while the Gaels fell to 8-2.
Against the nation's fifth-ranked defense in terms of efficiency, CSU scored on its first possession with an Adam Thistlewood three-pointer and another from David Roddy to take an early 6-0 lead. SMC came back with the next four, but the Rams patient offense reeled off an 11-2 run to go up 17-6 with less than seven minutes gone. The margin got to four on two occasions, but CSU answered the call both times, the last finishing the half outscoring Saint Mary's 12-5 to lead 35-24 at the break.
CSU started the final 20 minutes like it started the game, scoring the first six points to push the lead to 17 points. From there, the Rams maintained control, never letting the guests get the margin to single digits and pushing the advantage to as many as 21 down the stretch. The Rams cleared the bench in the closing minutes, as a raucous Moby Arena crowd cheered the final moments of the 16-point victory.
Colorado State continued to be consistently strong on the offensive end of the floor, shooting 52.8 percent (28-of-53) from the floor and 56.3 percent (9-of-16) on threes against a team that had not given up 70 points all season and more than 61 in its last five games. The Rams' defense was also stalwart, limiting Saint Mary's to just 41.2 percent (21-of-51) on field goal attempts and a paltry 19.0 percent (4-of-21) beyond the arc. SMC did hold an advantage on the boards, 30-24, but the Rams had a plus-4 advantage in turnovers forced (15-11).
CSU had three players in double figures, led by Roddy's 19 points and seven rebounds, with 14 of those points coming in the second half. Junior Isaiah Stevens has 14 points, four assists and three steals, while junior John Tonje came off the bench with 12 points. Saint Mary's had a pair of players with 10 points each in Matthias Tass and Augustas Marchiulionis.
STAT OF THE GAME
• CSU's defense held SMC's other top three scorers, all averaging better than 10 points a game and a combined 34.6 points to just 20 points total on the day.
NOTES
• CSU has now taken a 3-2 lead in the series, avenging last year's loss in Moraga after a COVID break and also taking the first-ever matchup in Fort Collins between the two programs.
• Colorado State won its ninth straight home game dating back to last year, tied for 11th in CSU annals, while the nine-game overall win streak is the fourth longest in program history.
• This was Saint Mary's first non-conference road loss since December 12, 2015 and its second lowest point total this season.
• Colorado State has now held five of its last seven opponents to 62 points or less.
• This year CSU is now 6-0 when the starters tally at least 50.
• Roddy now has 996 points in his CSU career, while Stevens has 986, as there have only been 30 players to reach the 1,000-point mark as a Ram.
• The Rams are now 3-0 against teams that advanced to the postseason last year.
• Thistlewood is now fourth on CSU's all-time three-pointers list with 168, while fellow senior Kendle Moore moved up to fourth on CSU's career steals list with 129.
NEXT UP
• Colorado State will head to Fort Worth, Texas to take on Mississippi State as part of the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame Classic, Sat., Dec. 11 at noon MT. as the first of a tripleheader day of basketball.
• The game will be broadcast on ESPNU
• The audio will be on the Colorado State Sports Radio Network (along with online at CSURams.com), with Brian Roth and Adam Nigon handling the broadcast.
• CSU Sports Network broadcasts can be also accessed on mobile devices through the Varsity Network app (free on all Apple and Android devices). Fans can use the app for instant access to free gameday audio streams and receive push notifications to remind them of games starting or upcoming audio broadcasts.
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December 05, 2021 at 09:34AM
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CSU Leads Wire-To-Wire In Decisive Victory Over Saint Mary's - Colorado State University Athletics - CSURams.com
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