When you’re playing with only eight, everyone’s got to be great.
That’s the case for shorthanded Colorado State, a team who again relied on eight players on Wednesday night. And while Isaiah Stevens and John Tonje again played lights-out, the Rams fell to the Boise State Broncos 80-78.
In the first half, CSU started hot, as Isaiah Rivera’s 3-pointer gave them a 9-point lead with 10:35 to go until halftime. However, Boise State rallied and went on an impressive 17-3 run to end the half, powered by Marcus Shaver’s nine points. The Broncos led 36-31 at the break thanks to that phenomenal 6-minute stretch.
Boise State opened their lead up to 10 4:29 into the second half, when the Rams recovered and brought the game to a 50-50 tie with 11:47 to go. Both Rivera and Stevens were crucial during that stretch.
Although the visiting Broncos pushed their lead back up to six points, the game was again tied — this time 69-69 with 4:05 to go — and it was a close battle all the way to the final buzzer.
With Boise up 80-78, Tyson Degenhart missed his second of two free throws with 6 seconds on the clock. CSU got the rebound and Tonje got off a 3-point attempt, but it was blocked and the Rams fell for the 15th time on the season.
The Rams were better than usual from downtown, hitting 59% (13-22) of their 3-point attempts. Unfortunately, they were bullied down low; Boise State led in total rebounds 34-25, and edged the Rams out by seven (20-13) second-chance points.
Senior guard Isaiah Stevens finished with a double-double of 17 points and 12 assists, while Patrick Cartier scored a team-high 18. Degenhart led all scorers with 19 and added six boards.
Colorado State is now 11-15, 3-10 MW on the season after losing to one of the top teams in the Mountain West in Boise State (20-6, 10-3 MW). Next up, the Rams host Fresno State (9-16, 5-9 MW) at Moby Arena with a 3 p.m. MT tip-off on Saturday, Feb. 18.
