Colorado State University Athletics
Colorado State
Wyoming
Men's basketball recap: CSU win streak snapped at Wyoming, 70-51
1/21/2012 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Jan. 21, 2012
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By Danny Mattie
Athletic Media Relations
LARAMIE, Wyo. – The Colorado State men’s basketball team had no answer for a huge performance from Wyoming’s Leonard Washington, as the Rams fell at rival Wyoming, 70-51, Saturday afternoon in front of a crowd of 7,901 at UW’s Arena-Auditorium.
The loss snaps an eight-game win streak for Colorado State (13-5, 2-1 Mountain West), and gives Wyoming (16-3, 2-1 MW) its first victory over CSU in two seasons.
Washington, a transfer from Southern California, poured in 32 points and pulled down 14 rebounds, while notching a block and two steals to lead the Cowboys to the wire-to-wire victory.
“Washington was a one-man wrecking crew,” said Head Coach Tim Miles. “He is just a phenomenal athlete.”
The Rams were led by junior forward Greg Smith, who tied a season-high with 18 points, one shy of his career best, while pulling down six rebounds and blocking one shot.
Junior guard Jesse Carr also finished in double-figures scoring for the Rams with 14 points and a team-high four assists off the bench, while junior forward Pierce Hornung chipped in with 10 points, a team-best seven rebounds and one block.
Wyoming, which ranked third nationally in scoring defense allowing just 53.2 points per game, held the Rams to a season-low 51 points, shutting down the Mountain West’s leading scorer, Wes Eikmeier.
The Rams’ junior guard entered the contest averaging 16.7 points per game, but was held to just two points on 1-for-6 shooting from the floor. CSU’s second-leading scorer, junior guard Dorian Green, also struggled to find his offensive game, going scoreless in the opening half and finishing with just five points on 1-of-5 shooting.
“Their defense was great,” added Miles. “We weren’t able to get within two possessions for the last 25 or 30 minutes of the game. I really thought it was more about defense – aggressiveness.
“They [Wyoming] got [11] more shots than we did. They got more foul shots, they got more field goals, they got more offense, they got more rebounds, and they turned us over. You’re not going to beat a good team at home with those kinds of numbers.”
Wyoming outrebounded the Rams by a 35-24 margin, including a 13-4 edge on the offensive boards that led to a 12-2 UW advantage in second-chance points. Washington accounted for five of the Cowboys’ offensive boards.
Wyoming used a 12-2 run midway through the opening half to push a four-point lead to 14 points, and it took a 13-point advantage into the locker room.
The lead reached 17 in the opening minutes of the second half, before CSU clawed to within nine points at 47-38 and again 58-49 with 5:29 left in the game. But Wyoming held the Rams to just two points over the final five minutes of action to cruise to the 19-point victory.
The Rams now turn their attention to MW preseason favorite New Mexico, when CSU travels to face the Lobos Wednesday night at The Pit. Tipoff is slated for 8 p.m. MT and the game will be televised nationally on CBS Sports Network.
