Isaiah Stevens scores 18, No. 17 CSU Rams shrug off slow start to beat CSU-Pueblo – The Denver Post

FORT COLLINS — Isaiah Stevens had 18 points to move closer to taking over as the program’s all-time leading scorer and No. 17 Colorado State shook off a sluggish start to roll past Division II CSU-Pueblo 86-54 on Sunday night.

The Rams (10-1) returned to the court eight days after a 64-61 home loss to Saint Mary’s. They looked a touch lethargic early on but quickly found their rhythm, using a 20-2 run midway through the first half to break free of CSU-Pueblo.

“It wasn’t a work of art,” Colorado State coach Niko Medved said. “But we also did some good things.”

Stevens’ smooth shooting moved him 14 points away from breaking the school’s scoring mark on the men’s side held by Pat Durham, who amassed 1,980 points from 1985-89. Basketball Hall of Famer Becky Hammon has Colorado State’s all-time career record of 2,740 points.

“The thing about (Stevens) is he appreciates those things a lot,” Medved said of school records. “But he’s also got the wisdom to know he’ll appreciate it a heck of a lot more down the road than today, because I’m telling you that guy’s focused on one thing and that’s winning games.

“His legacy speaks for itself. He’s a once-in-a-lifetime kind of player and person.”

Stevens’ night also included six assists and four rebounds before getting to watch the final 3:46 from the bench with the Rams leading 78-52.

Nique Clifford, Taviontae Jackson and Patrick Cartier each finished with 13 points. Clifford also had nine rebounds. Colorado State held a 36-12 advantage in points in the paint.

In all, the Rams had 11 different players check into the game.

“It was important,” Kyan Evans said of being able to utilize a deep bench. “Just having a good game helped with that. The lead allowed us to do a lot of that, so it was good.”

Armon Muldrew led CSU-Pueblo with 16 points, while Brevin Walter contributed 13. The game was considered an exhibition for the Thunderwolves (6-5), who already had a full slate of games this season.

“Defensively, those guys are at a different level,” CSU-Pueblo coach Matt Hammer said of the Rams. “You can see how they can go in and compete with anyone in the country. And then you have a guy like Isaiah Stevens running the show — he’s never too high, he’s never too low. He’s just super-composed. You make one mistake against him, he’s going to make you pay.”

The Thunderwolves held the lead for 26 seconds in the first half. But the Rams used their size and speed to pull away. Colorado State led by as many as 24 in the first half.

BIG PICTURE

CSU-Pueblo: The Thunderwolves lost an exhibition game at New Mexico 83-65 on Oct. 26. The Thunderwolves were picked to finish 12th in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference’s preseason coaches’ poll.

Colorado State: The Rams improved to 8-0 all-time against CSU-Pueblo, with an average win margin of 14.5 points.

UP NEXT

CSU-Pueblo: At Colorado Mesa on Jan. 5.

Colorado State: At Loyola Marymount on Friday.