The Colorado State men’s basketball team’s up-and-down season took its final turn at Moby Arena on Monday night.
The Rams welcomed the red-hot California State-Bakersfield Roadrunners into Fort Collins for their second round matchup in the NIT. The score was tied for the first 38 seconds of the game, and that was the closest the Rams got to the lead for the remainder of the game.
The Roadrunners scored first and never looked back, and when it was all said and done they walked out of Moby Arena with an 81-63 wire-to-wire victory over the Rams. Colorado State finished the season 24-12 overall.
“Unfortunately we ran into a freight train today,” Colorado State head coach Larry Eustachy said following the loss. “We didn’t take them for granted and I don’t think we were out-determined.”
The Rams have battled back from adversity many times throughout the season, and it looked as if they were going to do it again on Monday night. Despite going down by 11 points early, the Rams clawed their way out of a hole to bring the game to within one point on two occasions in the first half.
While the season may have ended in a double digit loss, Eustachy made a point to remember all of the positives that happened over the course of the season.
“I was quick to remind them that we did finish a game out of first,” Eustachy said. “We did have the Player of the Year in league. We did win a postseason game. You got to look through a lot archives to find that happen at Colorado State basketball.”
Colorado State had more than their fair share of adversity over the course of the season. From senior guard Gian Clavell‘s nine-game suspension early on in the season ,to losing three players to academic ineligibility, the undermanned Rams still managed to finish their season with 24 wins, tied for the third-most wins in program history.
“A lot of positives in spite of a lot of adversity,” Eustachy said. “It’s a team that I will remember for a long, long time.”
Monday night’s game also marked the last time either senior guard Gian Clavell or forward Emmanuel Omogbo will take the floor the Rams. The duo checked out for the final time with 1:54 remaining to a standing ovation from what was left of the 4,203 people that attended the game.
“It’s just hard to think that this is the end for me in college basketball,” Clavell said. “It’s hard to think that I’m done playing for Colorado State.”
When the final buzzer sounded and the teams began to file into their locker rooms, Clavell took a moment to soak in the crowd one last time.
“It’s a special moment,” Clavell said. “It was just showing that I appreciate them and thanking them for everything they’ve done.”
Clavell lead all scorers with 21 points in his final game at the collegiate level. Omogbo scored three points and grabbed eight rebounds. Sophomore guard Prentiss Nixon added 15 points and a steal in the loss.
During a season that would’ve torn many other teams apart, this season brought the Rams closer together.
“I didn’t want it to stop,” Clavell said of the season. “I love this team more than anything.”
California State-Bakersfield will travel to take on the Texas-Arlington Mavericks on March 22 at 7 p.m. The winner will advance to the semifinals which will take place on March 28.