 couldn't close out a cold-shooting Rams team that suddenly found their touch. Colorado State tied the game at 39 with 7:18 left.Moments later, Gatling had a bucket to put the Buffaloes ahead for good. He also blocked a shot by Nico Carvacho down the stretch and then sealed the win with two late free throws.The Rams (7-6) rebounded from a sluggish start in which they shot 17.9% during the first half and scored just 12 points.Gatling appeared to hit a big shot when he banked in a 3-pointer just as the shot clock expired with 7:30 remaining. It put the Buffaloes up 42-37. But the officials went to the monitor and ruled Gatling didn't get the shot off in time, keeping it a one-score game. Colorado State tied it up on the next possession.The Rams were 2 of 22 from 3-point range in a contest in which they never led.McKinley Wright IV added eight rebounds and three assists for the Buffaloes, who will more than likely fall out of the rankings after a loss to Northern Iowa earlier in the week.Carvacho finished with nine points and 10 rebounds for the Rams.Colorado State held Wright and Bey to a combined 11 points and below their season averages. But it wasn't enough.The opening half was anything but pretty for Colorado State, which missed all 10 attempts from 3-point land. Although the Buffaloes led 27-12 at the break, it could've been more if not for their 12 turnovers.The 12 points were the fewest allowed in the first half by Colorado since holding Utah to 11 on Dec 31, 2011. That was the Buffaloes' first game in the Pac-12 and they won 73-33.BIG PICTUREColorado: A win's a win, right? No style points, correct? The Buffaloes weren't at their offensive best, but the defense picked up the slack. Colorado leads the all-time series 91-38.Colorado State: Looked like it might be a blowout. The Rams regained their composure.BRIGHT SNEAKERSColorado State's Kendle Moore and Dischon Thomas certainly stood out on the court with their bright orange sneakers.ADDAZIO PEARANCENew Colorado State football coach Steve Addazio took the court before the game.''Just wanted to say hello and say how excited I am to be at Fort Collins and CSU,'' Addazio told the fans.Fired from Boston College on Dec. 1, Addazio signed a five-year deal with the Rams earlier this week. His first game will be at home against Colorado.UP NEXTColorado: Host Prairie View A&M on Thursday.Colorado State: Travel to Tulsa on Dec. 21.---More college basketball: https://apnews.com/Collegebasketball and https://twitter.com/-Top25)
Dec 12, 2019No. 24 Colorado heads to rival Colorado State on Friday looking to avoid a three-game losing skid.The Buffaloes (7-2) were one of eight previously undefeated teams who lost last weekend, but the 72-58 setback at former Big 8 and Big 12 Conference counterpart Kansas was somewhat expected."It's not like our team to take 34 of 60 shots from 3(-point range)," Colorado coach Tad Boyle said in his postgame press conference of the Buffs' 7-of-34 shooting from deep. "But sometimes KU makes you do things you don't want to do." More surprising was Colorado's return home to a 79-76 loss to Northern Iowa on Tuesday. The Buffs shot 50 percent (10 of 20) from long range and were 16 of 18 from the foul line, but still lost as a result of their season-worst defensive effort.Northern Iowa shot a blistering 53.8 percent (14 of 26) from 3-point territory and had a pair of 20-point scorers."We've seen everything that they ran. We saw it on film. We didn't execute our game plan," Colorado guard McKinley Wright IV said after the game. "We didn't execute our personnel. We were close enough, hard on drivers, let them get to the paint and get easy dunk(s)." Surrendering 70-plus points in back-to-back games dinged its standing, but Colorado comes into Fort Collins still rated No. 27 nationally in adjusted defensive efficiency per KenPom.com advanced metrics.Colorado State (7-5) boasts a top 100 ranking in a variety of offensive categories, including a 35.6-percent clip from 3-point range and 53.3 percent shooting from inside the arc.The Rams also excel at drawing fouls, a byproduct of attacking the interior with 6-foot-11 center Nico Carvacho. He is averaging just shy of a double-double with 13.3 points and 9.9 rebounds per game, both team highs.He recorded 12 points and 12 rebounds in a 72-68 victory on Tuesday night against South Dakota State. But Adam Thistlewood was the hero in that game, sinking a late 3-pointer that gave the Rams breathing room down the stretch.The win snapped a two-game skid, after Colorado State opened Mountain West Conference play with losses to San Diego State and at Boise State."The experience of those last two games and how bad those hurt, we took it personal," Thistlewood said after Tuesday's win. "A little extra experience got us through this one tonight." Experience helps shape Friday's contest. Although Carvacho is a senior, Colorado State features a variety of first- and second-year contributors: freshman guards Isaiah Stevens and David Roddy, and sophomores Thistlewood and Kendle Moore on the perimeter.Colorado's three double-digit-point scorers -- Tyler Bey, D'Shawn Schwartz and Wright -- are all juniors. The Buffs counter the veteran interior presence of Carvacho with Bey, who is averaging 13.0 points and 11.0 rebounds per game.With the additional support of 6-foot-10 senior center Lucas Siewert, who is averaging 7.4 points and 5.0 boards per game off the bench, the Buffs will have a distinct experience edge.--Field Level Media
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