Rams fail against Aztecs
The San Diego State Aztecs used 18 points from junior guard
Wesley Stokes and 17 from freshman forward Marcus Slaughter to beat
the CSU men’s basketball team 72-64 Monday night at Cox Arena in
San Diego.
The Rams were looking for momentum going into the Mountain West
Conference Tournament but instead they suffered their sixth
straight loss. They had a solid effort but could not contain the
inside-outside tandem of Stokes and Slaughter.
Rams head coach Dale Layer was still proud of his players saying
in a post game interview on KIIX 1410 AM, “I thought our effort was
terrific. The intensity was where I wanted it but we had a few
lapses.”
Those lapses came in the form of 13 turnovers. Late in the game,
Jon Rakiecki had two key steals to help boost CSU’s second-half
play, but the Rams couldn’t convert, committing simple mistakes
when possessions were important.
The Rams have now fallen to 11-14 overall and only 3-9 in the
MWC. They have two games remaining before the MWC Tournament begins
March 11.
Freshman Dwight Boatner had 13 points for CSU and continued to
be one of the best stories for the Rams all season.
It was also a big night for Rams senior forward Ronnie Clark,
who added a team-high 17 points.
“It’s arguably the best he’s played here at Colorado State,”
Layer said. “I thought he got it rolling in the second half but we
didn’t get him or (Matt) Nelson nearly enough touches.”
Clark was upbeat despite the loss saying on KIIX, “We’re taking
steps forward and getting better as a team and it’s going to help
us win the Mountain West Tournament. I had it going tonight, but it
just wasn’t enough for us to win.
Nelson added 16 points for the Rams, going 6-of-8 from the field
and a perfect 4-of-4 from the free-throw line.
The Rams face the Wyoming Cowboys for the Border War in Laramie
on Saturday to try and halt their longest losing streak of the
season.
“Any win is good,” Layer said. “We have to step up and play well
and if we take care of a couple of little things, we’ll have a good
chance of winning.
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