Nov. 12, 2009

Complete Release in PDF Format

Schedule/Results

Season Statistics

Basketball Travelers Tip-Off Tournament
Nov. 13-15, 2009 | Eugene, Ore. | McArthur Court (9,087)
Colorado State | Oregon | UC Davis | Winston-Salem State

Tournament Schedule
Friday, Nov. 13
Game 1: Colorado State vs. UC Davis 5:30 p.m. MT
Game 2: Winston-Salem State vs. Oregon 8 p.m. MT
 
Saturday, Nov. 14
Game 3: UC Davis vs. Oregon 3 p.m. MT
Game 4: Winston-Salem State vs. Colorado State  5:15 p.m. MT

Sunday, Nov. 15
Game 5: UC Davis vs. Winston-Salem State  2 p.m. MT
Game 6: Colorado State vs. Oregon  4:30 p.m. MT
*Game listed visiting team vs. home Team

Up next
The Colorado State men’s basketball team opens the 2009-10 regular season in Eugene, Ore., at the Basketball Travelers Tip-Off tournament.

The Rams will play three games in three days at McArthur Court, beginning Friday at 5:30 p.m. MT against the UC Davis Aggies.  Colorado State continues action Saturday, taking on the Winston-Salem State Rams at 5:15 p.m. MT. 

CSU closes out the tournament against host Oregon.  Tipoff is slated for 4:30 p.m. MT.  That contest will be broadcast regionally on the Oregon Sports Network on Comcast SportsNet Northwest.  Jim Giansante (play-by-play) and Rob Closs (color) will call the action between the Rams and the Ducks.

Live statistics are available free of charge at GoDucks.com.   

Listen live
Each of Colorado State’s games will be broadcast live statewide on the Colorado State Sports Network.  Longtime CSU broadcaster Brian Roth will call all the action from Eugene.  Fans can tune into flagship station KLZ (560 AM).  The broadcast can also be heard streaming on CSURams.com/allaccess. 

Since 1902
The 2009-10 season marks the 106th in the history of the Colorado State men’s basketball program.  The Rams are 1,074-1,129 (.488) in 2,203 games all-time. 

A quick look at the Rams
Colorado State returns to the court in 2009-10 with 10 letterwinners, including three starters - Andy Ogide, Andre McFarland and Jesse Carr - from last season’s team that posted an overall record of 9-22 (4-12 MWC) and finished eighth in the MWC standings.

Ogide, a junior forward, is the Rams’ leading returner in both scoring (10.2 ppg.) and rebounding (5.8 rpg.). 

McFarland returns as one of the top three-point threats in the Mountain West Conference.  In 2008-09 McFarland connected on 55 treys and a 42.3 percent clip, and averaged 8.4 points and 4.1 rebounds per game. 

Carr started 18 games as a true freshman in 2008-09, recording 8.8 points and 2.9 assists per game at the point guard position before missing the final six games of the year with a groin injury.    

Other key returners include senior guard Harvey Perry, who averaged 5.1 points and 4.3 rebounds per game, and junior forward Travis Franklin, who averaged 6.5 points and 3.6 boards.  Junior guard Adam Nigon, a former walk-on, returns after averaging 2.6 points, 1.4 rebounds and 1.0 steals per contest.  Senior walk-on Arin Dunn, who saw significant playing time in the second half of the season, is back to bolster the Rams’ back court.  Mame Bocar Ba, saw action in 22 games (four starts) a season ago, when he recorded 2.0 points and 2.5 rebounds per game. 

The team added seven newcomers into the mix.  Four freshmen - Pierce Hornung (Arvada, Colo./Ralston Valley High School), Dorian Green (Lawrence, Kan./Lawrence High School), Trevor Williams (Denver, Colo./Lutheran High School), and Greg Smith (Omaha, Neb./Ralston High School) - could make an immediate impact along with junior college addition Johnny Del Bene, a guard from San Diego Mesa College, and transfer Travis Busch, a senior forward from the University of Minnesota who is pursuing his master’s degree at CSU and was granted a waiver by the NCAA to become immediately eligible.  Wes Eikmeier, a sophomore guard from Fremont, Neb., will sit out the 2009-10 season after transferring from Iowa State University.

Key losses for the Rams include departed senior guards Marcus Walker and Willis Gardner.  Walker ranked as the Rams’ top scorer in each of the previous two seasons and was named to the 2007-08 all-MWC second team and MWC Newcomer of the Year, and 2008-09 all-MWC third team.  Despite playing just two seasons, Walker reached 15th on CSU’s all-time scoring list (1,009 points).  Gardner provided toughness and leadership and was a top performer on the court, starting 53 of 57 career games for the Rams and averaging 9.6 points and 2.5 assists per game.   

Recapping exhibition play
Colorado State picked up a pair of exhibition victories, defeating Regis University (74-65) and Western State College (64-50), a pair of NCAA Division II foes for the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference. 

In the Rams’ first contest vs. Regis (Nov. 3), junior forward Andy Ogide scored 18 points and freshman Dorian Green recorded 17, and CSU cruised to the 74-65 exhibition win.

Green, making his unofficial debut in a Rams uniform, was perfect from the free-throw line, converting all four attempts, while shooting 3-of-6 from three-point range.

Ogide, last year’s leading scorer, used 7-of-9 shooting to lead the Rams on offense. The forward also posted seven rebounds. Junior Travis Franklin’s eight boards led the team.

Against Western State (Nov. 7), the Rams got off to a slow start, but turned up the defensive intensity in the second half en route to the 14-point win. 

Green, once again, was a bright spot for the Rams, leading all scorers with 16 points.  He started the scoring in the second half with a three-pointer just 23 seconds in, and by the time the Mountaineers could score on Colorado State’s defense again, the Rams had put up 16 points in the half, and just 11:56 remained on the clock.

Senior guard Harvey Perry chipped in with 14 point, after being held out of the exhibition opener vs. Regis.  Ogide added 13 points and junior forward Travis Franklin poured in 11 points.  That trio, and Green, accounted for all but 10 of the Rams’ points in the game.

Perry finished with a double-double, pulling down 11 rebounds, but it was freshman forward Pierce Hornung who led all players with 12 total rebounds, nine in the first half.   

Excellent in exhibition
After finishing the 2009 exhibition slate with a 2-0 mark, Head Coach Tim Miles improved to 6-0 in exhibition contests since taking over the reins of the CSU men’s basketball program in 2007-08.  In those contests, the Rams have averaged 83.5 points per contest, while holding opponents to an average of 66.3 points.  The following is a list of CSU’s exhibition games under Miles: 

Season openers under Miles
The Rams are 1-1 in season openers since Head Coach Tim Miles’ came to Colorado State University.  The Rams opened Miles’ first season with a tough 75-39 loss at Montana, a loss which CSU avenged, 85-55, at Moby Arena in the season opener of the 2008-09 season.  The Rams and Grizzlies will also meet this season, but not until Dec. 12, CSU’s 10th game of the 2009-10  schedule. 

Fresh start
The Basketball Travelers Tip-Off tournament marks the first regular season game for each of the four teams competing. Host Oregon posted a 2-0 mark in exhibition play, posting victories over Concordia (99-61) and Lewis and Clark (74-59).  UC Davis notched an 83-56 exhibition victory over Cal State East Bay. Winston-Salem State did not compete in any exhibition play. 

Tourney time!
Dating back to the 2005-06 season, Colorado State has been impressive in midseason tournaments. In the four seasons, the Rams have played in four championship games, winning twice. In 2006, the Rams capped a nine-game winning streak with a win over Chattanooga to claim the Dr. Pepper Classic Title. A year later, in Tim Miles’ first season, Colorado State traveled to Fairbanks, Alaska, defeating Oregon State, Tennessee State and Portland State to be crowned champions of the Top of the World Classic. Both in 2005 and 2008, the Rams finished as runners-up in the Rainbow Classic in Honolulu, Hawaii. Last year, before falling to Buffalo in the finals, Colorado State beat Vermont and Hawaii on its own court, the Rams’ first road victory in nearly two years.

Homecoming...finally
Colorado State opens the 2009-10 season with four consecutive games away from the friendly confines of Moby Arena, before opening their home slate against Mayville State on Nov. 24.  that is the latest home opener for the Rams since 2007-08, Tim Miles’ first season at CSU.  That year, the Rams began the season at Montana (Nov. 9), then traveled to Anchorage, Alaska for three games in the BP Top of the World Classic (Nov. 15-18).  The Rams then traveled to face the Stanford Cardinal (Nov. 24), before finally playing their first home contest, Nov. 28 against Arkansas Pine Bluff.  

CSU, Oregon connection
University of Oregon head coach Ernie Kent, now in his 13th season at the helm of the Ducks’ program, was an assistant coach at Colorado State on Boyd Grant’s first staff from 1987-89.  Kent aided as Grant put the Rams back on the map and led the team to back-to-back postseason berths.  In 1987-88, the Rams finished 22-13 overall and took third in the NIT, making it all the way to New York’s Madison Square Garden.  The following season, behind the standout performance of WAC Player of the Year Pat Durham, a 2009 CSU Hall of Fame inductee, the Rams (23-10) captured their first conference title since 1961 and advanced to the NCAA tournament for the first time in 20 years.  CSU  defeated the Florida Gators in the opening round before falling to No. 2-seeded Syracuse, an Elite Eight team from that season. 

Colorado talent
The 2009-10 Rams roster features five players - Mike Annese, Arin Dunn, Pierce Hornung, Michael Lebsack, Adam Nigon and Trevor Williams - from the state of Colorado.  You have to go back 28 seasons, all the way to 1981-82, to find a CSU basketball team that featured more local talent.  Six players from the 1981-82 squad listed Colorado as their home state.

Rams juniors among top MWC returners
Junior forward Andy Ogide’s 2008-09 stats have landed him toward the top of several MWC categories among returning players.  As a sophomore in 2008-09, Ogide averaged 5.8 rebounds per game, fourth among returners in the MWC.  His .500 field-goal shooting is tied for third, while his 0.63  blocks per game rank fifth. 

Classmates Andre McFarland and Travis Franklin also return after strong sophomore campaigns.  McFarland connected on 42.3 percent of his shots from three-point range last season, ranking among the best in the league, while Franklin led the Rams with 49 offensive rebounds a season ago, helping the Rams to finish second in the MWC in that category in 2008-09 with an average of 11.10 per contest. 

On pace for 1,000
Entering the 2009-10 season, junior forward Andre McFarland ranks as the only Colorado State player on pace to reach the 1,000-point milestone for his career.  McFarland - one of just two players (Adam Nigon) to have played in each of Head Coach Tim Miles’ first two seasons at CSU - has poured in 525 points as a full-time starter in each of his first two seasons in Fort Collins.  McFarland tallied 266 points (8.3 per game) in 31 starts as a true freshman in 2007-08.  Last season, he averaged 8.4 points per contest, pouring in 259 points as the only Rams player to start all 31 contests. 

Marcus Walker, who completed his playing career at CSU in 2009, is the last Rams player to reach the 1,000-point milestone, tallying an impressive 1,009 points in just two seasons in Fort Collins.

MWC preseason poll
The Mountain West Conference released its preseason poll at the league’s annual Media Day, Oct. 6 at The Mtn. Studios in Denver, Colo.  Colorado State was predicted to finish eighth.  Below is the complete poll: 

Up Next
Colorado State hits the road once again, traveling to Terre Haute, Ind., for a Nov. 20 matchup against the Indiana State Sycamores in the inaugural MWC/MVC Challenge.  The Challenge is in the first year of a four-year agreement between the Mountain West and Missouri Valley Conferences.   Match-ups for the first year are based in part on 2008-09 pre-season rankings and RPI rankings from the previous year, or RPI rankings from the preceding three-year period. The following is a listing of the 2009-10 MWC/MVC Challenge contests:

About UC Davis
The Aggies open the 2009-10 season returning three starters from their 2008-09 squad that finished 13-19. Among the key returners are senior Dominic Calegari and juniors Joe Harden and Mark Payne. Harden and Payne were selected to the preseason all-Big Big West team. During their sophomore campaigns, Harden averaged 14.8 points and 7.2 rebounds a game while Payne scored 10.4 points, grabbed 5.8 boards and led the Aggies in assists, steals and field-goal percentage. UC Davis was picked to finish sixth in the Big West.

Series vs. UC Davis
Friday marks the first meeting between the Rams and Aggies.

About Winston-Salem State
The Winston-Salem State Rams are coming off an 8-22 season which saw early losses to powerhouse teams like Georgia Tech, Eastern Kentucky and Wake Forest. Returning for the Rams will be nine letterwinners, including eight players that made at least one start last season. The Rams will be led by their 2008-09 leading scorer, Brian Fisher. The senior guard paced Winston-Salem State with 13.9 points a game. Also returning will be sophomore center Paul Davis, who averaged 5.4 rebounds a contest and recorded 46 blocked shots last year.

Series vs. Winston-Salem State
Colorado State and Winston-Salem State have never met on the hardwood.

About Oregon
Known for its winning program, Oregon finished the 2008-09 season below .500 for just the sixth time in the past 25 years.  According to the Pomeroy College Basketball Ratings, Oregon played the toughest schedule in the nation last season. The Ducks have 11 players returning from last year’s roster, including all five starters and top scorers. Senior Tajuan Porter led Oregon, averaging 15.4 points, while redshirt junior LeKendric Longmire tallied 9.9 points a contest. Porter was efficient from the charity stripe, making 87.2 percent of his free-throw shots, while Longmire made 43.9 percent of his shots from long range.

Series vs. Oregon
The Rams and Ducks have met six times, with CSU posting a 1-5 mark against Oregon.  However, CSU’s lone victory came in the most recent meeting between the teams, a 61-50 road win for the Rams during the 1977-78 season.