Rams run gamut in physical game

In a very physical game with bodies constantly slamming into the

floorboards, the Rams proved to be stronger than the Aztecs of San

Diego State, winning 65-56 Thursday night at Moby Arena.

“It was a good game. Anytime you get a win, especially at home,

it is nice,” CSU head coach Chris Denker said. “It wasn’t our best

performance, but certainly one we’ll take.”

Courtney Fritz scored 18, including four 3-pointers, and

Michelle Elliot scored 15 for San Diego State.

“They’ve got some talent. They are so different in the way they

play. Teams that play them don’t really know what’s going on all

the time,” Denker said. “Fritz has a thing with us. She missed 11

3s prior to the game, but clearly she likes playing us.”

A Joy Jenkins 3-pointer stood as the Rams’ only points for the

first eight minutes of the game while Fritz hit three 3-pointers to

give San Diego State an early 13-3 lead. Lindsay Thomas then helped

fuel a comeback that landed CSU a 24-23 advantage at halftime.

In the second half, four 3-pointers and 12 points in the paint

helped the Rams seal the victory.

“We were more patient and had better ball movement,” sophomore

Vanessa Espinoza said.

CSU also had a healthy contribution from the bench as freshmen

Annika Walseth and Kylee O’Dwyer combined for 14 points. The

freshmen have been getting more playing time lately and Walseth

believes that is the reason for their success.

“A lot of it comes from getting experience on the court,”

Walseth said. “You get a couple games under your belt and you get

more confidence.”

Sophomore Lindsay Thomas overcame a tough Aztec defense that had

10 steals and four blocked shots by scoring 13 points, but Espinoza

came out as the Rams’ leading scorer with 16 points, including two

3-pointers.

The Rams used nine offensive rebounds to help compensate for

their low field goal percentage of 33.3 percent compared to San

Diego State who shot 45 percent. Thomas grabbed four offensive

rebounds and pulled down a total of eight boards.

“When they play a zone and you only hit 33 percent in the first

half you gotta find other ways to score,” Denker said.

CSU’s record advances to 14-9 on the year and 5-5 in the

Mountain West Conference, while San Diego State falls to 7-15

overall and 2-7 in the MWC. The Rams will now play host to UNLV on

Saturday night.

The Good: Joy Jenkins returned to the free-throw line for the

first time in nine games and hit 1-of-2.

The Bad: The referees blew their whistles 29 times for personal

fouls, 18 by the Aztecs and 11 by the Rams.

The Ugly: Down by no less than eight points in the final minutes

of the game, San Diego State continued to foul the Rams and call

timeouts to try and comeback, drawing many boos from the home

crowd.