Colorado State men’s basketball was disrespected, landing in the First Four when they should have been in the Round of 64.

But, despite the selection committee doing them wrong, Niko Medved’s team took care of business anyway, embarrassing Virginia 67-42 on Tuesday night.

Thanks to that win, the 10-seed Rams now face 7-seed Texas tonight in the NCAA Tournament.

Colorado State handily defeated Virginia on in First Four game

The Rams and Cavaliers faced off in the First Four in Dayton, OH, but CSU should have never been there.

Colorado State was ranked as high as No. 13 this year, albeit, way back at the beginning portion of the season. Their non-conference wins were massive. The Rams beat Colorado—who won their First Four game last night against Boise State—Creighton to win the Hall of Fame Classic, Washington, and narrowly lost to Saint Mary’s. The aforementioned Creighton Blue Jays are a 3-seed, and Saint Mary’s is a 5-seed.

The green and gold enjoyed a NET ranking of 36, went 2-0 against Top-25 teams, and had the 12th-hardest strength of schedule in the nation thanks to six Mountain West teams making March Madness.

Simply, the Rams were slighted, but they took it to Virginia in Dayton.

To start the game, Colorado State was too amped up, which was easily seen by the play of Joe Palmer. The sixth man got amped when he battled for a rebound that went out of bounds off Virginia. He then shot a 3-pointer too deep, and turned it over with a wild pass on the next possession.

But the Rams settled into the game and their defense was stout. And so was the Cavaliers’ D; Isaiah Stevens was stifled as Virginia sent a double team to him whenever he got the ball.

Luckily, Nique Clifford and Joel Scott were on their offensive game. Scott led all scorers with 10 in the first half, while Clifford enjoyed 7 points and 8 rebounds in the first half.

Colorado State led at the break 27-14, and not just because of good defense, but Virginia was extraordinarily awful offensively.

The Rams looked much more like themselves in the second half and Scott scored at will inside, leading all scorers with 23 points. And Clifford took it to the rack relentlessly himself, finishing with 17 as they dominated in the paint 36-20.

CSU won 67-42, with 13 assists on 26 made baskets.

And Pat Forde agrees that Colorado State shouldn’t have been in the First Four:

It was the first NCAA Tournament win for CSU in 11 years. The 2012-13 team, which was likely the best team in school history to that point, was an 8-seed and defeated Missouri back in the day. This 2023-24 team is better, though, especially at head coach. And when you consider those guys 11 years ago basically grew up together, and this team came together this year—captained by Stevens—it’s truly amazing how good they are.

No. 10 Rams face No. 7 Texas Longhorns today

After proving to the committee they were worthy, the Rams now find themselves in the Round of 64 against No. 7 Texas.

This is a great matchup for fans because the two teams’ stats are quite similar. Texas enjoyed a 30th ranked NET (CSU is 36), and they narrowly lead in scoring (76.5-76.1). Colorado State holds a slight defensive edge (67.6-69.8), but with those numbers so similar, this game is likely to be quite close.

How the Rams can win tonight is by playing team-first basketball. That’s how they’ve played all year, and that will be the plan in Charlotte.

CSU’s 18.3 assists per game are 6th-most in the nation, led by the sensational senior Stevens and his 6.9 dimes per contest. Stevens is the team’s leading scorer, but when he’s finding teammates consistently, the Rams are truly tough to stop.

They are also 8th in the nation in 2-point field goal percentage (58.3%) thanks to sharing the ball well. The Rams love to attack the rim, and they unselfishly find one another for open buckets when possible.

Meanwhile, Texas boasts four starters who score in double digits, led by senior guard Max Abmas (17.1 PPG). The Longhorns also share the rock well, with 15.7 assists per game, and they make 36.1% of their shots from beyond the arc. They’re not the best defensive team, so this one could be a high-scoring shootout if the Rams find their footing early on the offensive end.

Colorado State – Texas tips off at 4:50 p.m. MDT tonight on TNT. You can also watch it streaming on MAX, or on SlingTV.

The winner of tonight’s game faces the winner of No. 2 Tennessee vs. No. 15 St. Peter’s. 75% of brackets have Texas beating CSU, while this chart gives the Rams a 42.6% chance of victory:

Rams fans can watch the game at Canvas Stadium in Fort Collins, or in Denver, Mile High Sports is hosting a NCAA Tournament watch party all day today at Number 38!

 

 

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