Colorado State men’s basketball was finally able to run away with a game in its third matchup of the season.

In their first two games against Montana State and Idaho, the team could not pull away or build a lead until the fading minutes of the second half.

However, against Portland State Wednesday night, the Rams put their foot on the gas and kept it there the whole time. CSU led by 16 at halftime, went on a 12-1 scoring run early in the second half and ran away with its third win of the season.

“We did talk about the margins of victory and everything, and how it does matter,” head coach Ali Farokhmanesh said. “So I was a little disappointed with how it ended in some ways because it didn’t feel like a 16-point win. … There really is no difference between an 18-point win and a 26-point win, but analytically, yes it does have some factors in it.”

The depth of a new-look roster showed up in the win as Jase Butler and Carey Booth — who led the way in the win over Idaho — took a step back while others performed exceptionally.

The biggest contributor on the night: The longest tenured Ram in senior Rashaan Mbemba. Mbemba came off the bench and in 20 minutes, finished with 17 points on 5-for-6 shooting from the field and 6-for-8 from the free throw line — a stellar performance for the big man who plays a smaller role now as opposed to recent years.

“I think (I played) kind of aggressive and the defense gave me good looks,” Mbemba said. “We prepared for (Portland State), how they play defense, and so we know what looks we might get and whatnot, and the fact they didn’t switch meant we made sure that we set screens … and also my teammates just finding me when I was open.”

Mbemba was dominant in the paint, finishing over every defender that the Vikings threw at him and drawing fouls with ease. A second-half driving and-one poster from the big man was when everyone in Moby Arena knew that this was his night.

“I saw (the defender) wasn’t ready, I took the step, and just took off,” Mbemba said about his emphatic dunk. “I can’t really describe how I felt in the moment. I was trying to be aggressive this time because my first game I didn’t, so I just tried to make it this time — and I’m glad I did.”

The leading scorer on the night for the Rams was guard Josh Pascarelli, who really showed his all-around skillset in the win. He finished with 21 points on an efficient 7-for-11 shooting from the field — which included three three-pointers.

Pascarelli showcased his elite scoring and ability to put up high-scoring outputs last season, but most of those games came from hot shooting nights from beyond the arc. Through three games this season, Pascarelli has been attacking the rim hard, finishing through contact and adding a new layer to his game set to elevate his play.

“It’s both ways,” Pascarelli said when asked about his revitalized offensive game. “Coach wanted me to be more an all-around player instead of just only threes. It will help the team more if you keep the defense honest, and I just really want to get better at that as well.”

Farokhmanesh continued with his 10-man rotation that he’s played all season, which includes Jaden Ghoreishi, Jojo McIver, Pops Dunson, Amondo Miller Jr. and Mbemba off the bench.

That unit produced great minutes in the first half and in their first stint of the game — able to push the lead to double-digits in the first half like CSU had been unable to do in games one and two on the year.

“I thought the freshmen really came in and gave us great minutes,” Farokhmanesh said. “Then you got a guy like Amondo who’s been a D2 All-American and played in a lot of games coming off the bench, and then Rashaan who’s one of 17 four-year guys left in the country … They’re only going to continue to get better and that bench is going to be massive for us.”

Ghoreishi continued his phenomenal start to his collegiate basketball career, as the freshman turned in another productive statline including 11 points shooting 5-for-6 from the field to go along with four rebounds. 

Add in two highlight alley-oop dunks to end the first and the second half, and Ghoreishi is becoming a fan favorite for his high-flying ability early on, alongside the other freshmen who have made an impact.

“I got to say big props to our freshmen who came in ready,” Mbemba said. “We saw it in Jaden, we saw it in Pops, and even Eric (Fiedler), Jaxon (Clark), River (Sawyer). They engage in practice, they’re ready to play. Sometimes it might be their night, it might not, but just to know that everybody is pulling on the same string, that’s the most important thing.”

The Rams will now take a solid win into yet another home matchup at 11:30 a.m. on Saturday, Nov. 14 against Loyola Chicago. CSU has some momentum despite beating three opponents in an inferior Big Sky Conference knowing that it has many players in this group that can contribute heavily on any given night.

“The only thing I was disappointed about was the offensive rebounding,” Farokhmanesh said. “We know that we can’t let that happen again. We’re playing with fire if we think we’re going to win games losing the offensive rebounding battle 14 to one. So that was the piece I didn’t like, but everything else I thought it was great.”