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AIR FORCE ACADEMY — There were some nervous fans in the first half of this one.
Beleaguered Air Force all of a sudden was shooting the lights out and causing big problems for the Colorado State men’s basketball team.
Could a season that has had too many wobbles of late be in for a stunning loss?
Nope. The Rams stabilized and pulled away in the second half for a 91-74 win at Clune Arena.
Here are takeaways from the game.
Air Force (3-21, 0-13 Mountain West) is down bad. Coach Joe Scott is suspended due to an Air Force investigation of mistreatment of players.
The Falcons have now lost 17 in a row, but you wouldn’t have known it from the start.
Air Force was crazy hot shooting the ball early. It was part poor CSU (14-10, 5-8 MW) defense and part really good shot-making.
The Falcons hit 13 of their first 16 shots and led at several points in the first half. At halftime Air Force was shooting 70% (16-23) from the floor and 86% (6-7) from 3-point range despite being the worst 3-point shooting team in the league.
Those are alarming numbers but CSU maintained composure as the Ram offense also hummed. CSU led at the half (47-39) because the offense was hitting 3-pointers and getting to the free throw line.
Surely, Air Force would revert back to form and sure enough the Rams started playing some better defense and the Falcons started missing some of the crazy shots they hit earlier.
And that's what happened. Air Force hit just one of its first seven 3-pointers in the second half.
CSU continued to find good shots (and plenty of free throw opportunities) and slowly pulled away. The lead grew to as many as 22 points and the Rams were in total control all second half.
CSU has back-to-back wins but against poor opponents in San Jose State and Air Force. So, is this a bounce-back or just matter of playing bad teams?
Or a bit of both? The answer is probably both.
CSU has slowly started turning its defense around as the Rams have climbed into the top-185 in KenPom’s defensive efficiency. That’s nothing to brag about but an improvement.
The Rams have now held opponents under 70 points in five of their last six games.
The offense is starting to look better, too. Ball movement is up and in this one the 3-pointers really fell.
Air Force was collapsing in the paint, meaning clean looks from outside for CSU and the Rams took advantage.
Seven different CSU players hit 3-pointers in the game. The Rams poured in 14 total 3-pointers on 54% shooting from deep.
The Rams host Wyoming at 2 p.m. Feb. 14. After playing poor in Laramie two weeks ago, that game will be a stronger litmus test of CSU's play.
There was once a time when this arena was a house of horrors for CSU.
From 2003-08 the Rams lost six in a row at Air Force in an era when the Falcons were a legitimate threat to make the postseason (they had two NCAA Tournament appearances in that span).
But as college sports have changed, so has the difficulty of Air Force and a trip to Clune. NIL and the transfer portal aren’t kind to Air Force and the Rams have elevated.
Former CSU coach Niko Medved lost his first trip to Clune in 2018, but since then it’s been domination. CSU is now 14-2 in the last 16 here, including seven wins in a row.
Often, it’s been domination with a “Moby South” feel. In CSU’s best seasons, green fans flooded the arena. Nique Clifford, from Colorado Springs, had a personal homecoming last season for his final college game at home.
There was the highlight David Roddy poster dunk in 2022.
And lots of CSU wins.
This latest win means seven in a row for the Rams at Clune and most of them blowouts (a nine-point CSU win the closest game recently).
Now it’s done.
CSU is moving to the Pac-12 next season and Air Force is staying in the Mountain West. These opponents scheduling each other in a nonconference game is unlikely and one being for CSU on the road is even more unlikely.
This is likely to close the chapter (at least in the near future) on CSU’s time visiting Moby South.
Sports reporter Kevin Lytle can be found on social media on X, Instagram and Threads @Kevin_Lytle and on Bluesky.
This article originally appeared on Fort Collins Coloradoan: Colorado State basketball beats Air Force for Mountain West win
Continue reading...
Beleaguered Air Force all of a sudden was shooting the lights out and causing big problems for the Colorado State men’s basketball team.
Could a season that has had too many wobbles of late be in for a stunning loss?
Nope. The Rams stabilized and pulled away in the second half for a 91-74 win at Clune Arena.
Here are takeaways from the game.
Air Force starts hot but CSU maintained calm
Air Force (3-21, 0-13 Mountain West) is down bad. Coach Joe Scott is suspended due to an Air Force investigation of mistreatment of players.
The Falcons have now lost 17 in a row, but you wouldn’t have known it from the start.
Air Force was crazy hot shooting the ball early. It was part poor CSU (14-10, 5-8 MW) defense and part really good shot-making.
The Falcons hit 13 of their first 16 shots and led at several points in the first half. At halftime Air Force was shooting 70% (16-23) from the floor and 86% (6-7) from 3-point range despite being the worst 3-point shooting team in the league.
Those are alarming numbers but CSU maintained composure as the Ram offense also hummed. CSU led at the half (47-39) because the offense was hitting 3-pointers and getting to the free throw line.
Surely, Air Force would revert back to form and sure enough the Rams started playing some better defense and the Falcons started missing some of the crazy shots they hit earlier.
And that's what happened. Air Force hit just one of its first seven 3-pointers in the second half.
CSU continued to find good shots (and plenty of free throw opportunities) and slowly pulled away. The lead grew to as many as 22 points and the Rams were in total control all second half.
Is CSU turning a corner?
CSU has back-to-back wins but against poor opponents in San Jose State and Air Force. So, is this a bounce-back or just matter of playing bad teams?
Or a bit of both? The answer is probably both.
CSU has slowly started turning its defense around as the Rams have climbed into the top-185 in KenPom’s defensive efficiency. That’s nothing to brag about but an improvement.
The Rams have now held opponents under 70 points in five of their last six games.
The offense is starting to look better, too. Ball movement is up and in this one the 3-pointers really fell.
Air Force was collapsing in the paint, meaning clean looks from outside for CSU and the Rams took advantage.
Seven different CSU players hit 3-pointers in the game. The Rams poured in 14 total 3-pointers on 54% shooting from deep.
The Rams host Wyoming at 2 p.m. Feb. 14. After playing poor in Laramie two weeks ago, that game will be a stronger litmus test of CSU's play.
A farewell to Clune Arena for Colorado State
There was once a time when this arena was a house of horrors for CSU.
From 2003-08 the Rams lost six in a row at Air Force in an era when the Falcons were a legitimate threat to make the postseason (they had two NCAA Tournament appearances in that span).
But as college sports have changed, so has the difficulty of Air Force and a trip to Clune. NIL and the transfer portal aren’t kind to Air Force and the Rams have elevated.
Former CSU coach Niko Medved lost his first trip to Clune in 2018, but since then it’s been domination. CSU is now 14-2 in the last 16 here, including seven wins in a row.
Often, it’s been domination with a “Moby South” feel. In CSU’s best seasons, green fans flooded the arena. Nique Clifford, from Colorado Springs, had a personal homecoming last season for his final college game at home.
There was the highlight David Roddy poster dunk in 2022.
And lots of CSU wins.
This latest win means seven in a row for the Rams at Clune and most of them blowouts (a nine-point CSU win the closest game recently).
Now it’s done.
CSU is moving to the Pac-12 next season and Air Force is staying in the Mountain West. These opponents scheduling each other in a nonconference game is unlikely and one being for CSU on the road is even more unlikely.
This is likely to close the chapter (at least in the near future) on CSU’s time visiting Moby South.
Sports reporter Kevin Lytle can be found on social media on X, Instagram and Threads @Kevin_Lytle and on Bluesky.
This article originally appeared on Fort Collins Coloradoan: Colorado State basketball beats Air Force for Mountain West win
Continue reading...
