Colorado State University Athletics
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Denver
Men's basketball recap: Franklin leads Colorado State to 77-66 win at Denver
11/18/2010 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Nov. 18, 2010
By Danny Mattie
Athletic Media Relations
DENVER, Colo. – Four players recorded double-figures scoring, led by senior forward Travis Franklin’s 22 points, and the Rams shot nearly 60 percent from the field en route to a 77-66 road victory over the Denver Pioneers at Magness Arena Thursday night.
“This was a good win for us,” said Head Coach Tim Miles. “We’ve finally assembled the type of team that can do these types of things. I thought we took pretty good shots. Travis was good at finding seams. I thought he did a really nice job tonight.”
Franklin cut through the Pioneers’ defense for 22 points – the fifth 20-point game of his career – while Andy Ogide poured in 15 points and sophomore Jesse Carr added 10. But it was Pierce Hornung that got the Rams rolling after a slow start.
“Pierce was a huge spark tonight,” added Miles. “He got a steal, hit a three and scored. He’s that kind of player and he can do that.”
Hornung finished with 11 points in the contest, and his three-pointer, just the third of his career, came as part of a seven-point scoring barrage after he checked in with the Rams trailing, 11-2, 4 minutes into the contest. After knocking down a pair of free throws, the sophomore forward recorded a steal at the top of the key and took the ball all the way in, before nailing the trey as the shot clock expired on the Rams’ next possession.
A layup by freshman guard Dwight Smith capped the Rams’ scoring run at 9-0 and suddenly the game was tied, 11-11, with just more than 13 minutes left in the half.
CSU went on capture its first lead of the contest, 18-16, on an Ogide layup at the 9:13 mark. The Pioneers momentarily tied the game, 25-25, but the Rams built a four-point lead over the final 5 minutes of the first half, and never trailed again.
The Rams defense tightened after the intermission, and the team held DU to just two field goals over the first 8 minutes, 40 seconds of the second half. That allowed CSU to push the lead to double-digits, 51-41, on a Wes Eikmeier three-pointer at the 13:35 mark of the second half. Eikmeier connected on another three just moments later and after Carr hit 1-of-2 from the free-throw line, CSU’s lead had ballooned to 55-41 with just more than 11 minutes left in the contest.
Junior guard Brian Stafford kept the Pioneers within striking distance, tallying 14 of his game-high 26 in the second half, but DU only got as close as nine points, 66-57, before Carr shut the door with seven points, including a three from the top of the key, in the final 3:34.
The win, CSU’s first non-conference road victory since Dec. 27, 2008 at Hawaii (74-58), moved CSU to 2-0 to start the season, and snapped the Pioneers’ 15-game home winning streak, which was tied for the seventh-longest streak in the nation.
The Rams are idle this weekend, but return to action Nov. 27 when they host Sam Houston State at Moby Arena. Tipoff for that game is scheduled for 7 p.m.
