Stevens has 13 points, helps No. 15 Colorado State rout Adams State 106-61
FORT COLLINS, Colo. (AP) — Isaiah Stevens, honored in a pregame ceremony after becoming Colorado State’s career scoring leader in his previous outing, scored 13 points to help the No. 15 Rams overwhelm Adams State 106-61 on Friday night.
Patrick Cartier also had 13 points, Jalen Lake had 12 and Nique Clifford and Joe Palmer added 11 points apiece in an offensive showcase that produced a season high in points for Colorado State (12-1).
Lake also had five assists and zero turnovers in his return from a broken finger that sidelined him for about a month.
“He just brings a lot of energy and just a calmness to our team,” Colorado State coach Niko Medved said. “He just does so many things right. It was great for him to be able to get out there and play some minutes before conference play opens up. That was a big deal for us to get him back in the lineup.”
Colorado State's backups scored 47 points.
“I was really happy with our bench,” Medved said. “I thought those guys came in and brought a lot of energy. It was great to get a lot of guys a lot of minutes tonight.”
John Harge had 12 points to lead Adams State. The game was counted as an exhibition for the Division II school.
“That team was really good,” Adams State coach Kenny Tripp said. “The first half, I saw some good moments from our squad. We’re moving the ball a little bit, getting into the paint, putting pressure on the rim, which is really good."
Tripp said his squad gained valuable experience that will pay dividends down the road.
“I think that the opportunity to play a nationally ranked school that happens to be in state, we’re pretty lucky for that,” Tripp said. “Moving forward, I think there are some good things to build on and obviously, there’s a lot we need to work on.”
Colorado State took control early, racing to a halftime lead of 56-35 with a barrage of 3-pointers. At one point in the first half, the Rams went on a 14-0 run, fueled by the outside shooting of Stevens and Palmer, who hit successive 3-pointers in the flurry to help Colorado State open a 20-point lead midway through the first half.
The Rams made 11 of their 3s in the opening 20 minutes with Stevens and Palmer contributing three each. Colorado State finished 14 of 28 from beyond the arc to Adams State’s 3 of 16.
“This was a big game for me,” Palmer said. "I was kind of struggling the past few games, just seeing kind of a couple go down. So it was good to have those 3s go in right away and have all our guys hit on them. Shoot, we had 14 3s tonight. It was great to see. It’s a big confidence booster for everyone.”
When the Grizzlies stretched their defense to try to contest the perimeter shooting, Colorado State responded with a formidable inside game that featured drives to the basket by Joel Scott, Lake and Clifford.
The Rams ran away from the Grizzlies, with mostly reserves on the floor, during a 21-0 run that swelled their lead to 92-49.
Stevens boosted his career points total to 1,999. Pat Durham was the school's previous leader, scoring 1,980 from 1985-89.
BIG PICTURE
Adams State: The Grizzlies managed to keep the game close in the early minutes before being overwhelmed in the face of Colorado State’s tenacious defense and a powerful offensive show that displayed both a strong inside game and outside shooting touch. They did gain valuable experience competing against a top-tier team, however.
Colorado State: The Rams got a chance to fine-tune their perimeter game as well as polish their transition game in their final nonconference matchup and roll into league play.
UP NEXT
Adams State: Returns to Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference play when it travels to Black Hills State next Friday night.
Colorado State: Opens Mountain West Conference play when it hosts New Mexico on Tuesday night.
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