Colorado State men’s basketball couldn’t find a rhythm against a stingy Denver defense, falling 83-81 in Moby Arena Friday. In a close late-game finish, CSU found itself just shy despite adjusting well after halftime. On offense, the Rams relied on Kyle Jorgensen and Carey Booth to carry the load but ultimately fell short.
Defense falls short
The Pioneers utilized solid screens effectively throughout the night, capitalizing on open shots around the perimeter. Defense has been a point of emphasis for CSU this season, and it finally proved too much for the offense to overcome.
Even when DU had to create shots, it consistently found ways to.
Zane Nelson, Julius Rollins and Carson Johnson scored off the dribble well when needed, which posed a problem for CSU’s defense. The Rams struggled to keep up in the first half especially when DU commanded a lead late.
“We (have) got to be better on the defensive end, period,” Jorgensen said. “It’s never our offensive struggle that is having us losing these games. … Man, we gave him too many open shots. We gave them too many open layups. You know, it’s just minor mistakes that just can’t happen in a college basketball game.”
Lack of offensive rhythm for CSU
The Rams kicked off the game trading blows with the Pioneers and scoring efficiently but fell into a slump that lasted into halftime. For CSU, the adjustments in the second half
CSU also finished with over double DU’s turnovers and managed 18 less shot attempts. It made up for the shooting deficit with free throws, which was often due to forcing shots around the rim.
Late in the first half, the Rams found themselves resorting to backing down in the paint close instead of finding open players around the perimeter like they did in the first three games of the season. Ball movement wasn’t as dynamic, and the Rams struggled against a defense head coach Ali Farokhmanesh said was different than they had seen.
“It was clear they were trying to take away Josh and Brandon’s threes more so than anybody else, and they were effective in that,” Farokhmanesh said. “I think for us as a staff, going forward, I think we have to know that we’re probably going to see switching every single night from here on out. But at the end of the day, (on) the defensive end of the floor, we weren’t as good as we needed to be.”
Officiating stoppage for DU’s head coach and fans alike also led to an abnormal night and breakdown in rhythm for the game as a whole.
Second-half takeover for Kyle Jorgensen
While the blossoming sophomore was held to just two points in the first half, he both sparked CSU’s offense soon after halftime and ended the game as the Rams’ leading scorer with another career-high _ points. In a tight finish, Jorgensen gave the team a fighting chance despite the Pioneers responding effectively.
Jorgensen hit 7-of-11 shot attempts and accounted for 56% of CSU’s second-half offense. His physicality and ability to not be moved from his spot wasn’t as present, but he could be shaping up to be the one the Rams look to in a tight contest.
“Kyle’s been great,” Farokhmanesh said. “I thought (CSU’s players) executed the game plan in the second half offensively, when we had to adjust, because we weren’t ready for them to switch one through five. … It was our guys having to fin him, space off each other and find open looks for him.”
The trust in Jorgensen is something Farokhmanesh said has been earned.
“I don’t know why you wouldn’t (trust him) at this point, but I sure have trust in him,” Farokhmanesh said. “And I think all of them have trust in each other, though.”
Rashaan Mbemba returns, rotation struggles
After missing the first four games of the season due to injury, Rashaan Mbemba returned to the lineup off the bench in a limited eight minutes. He was a part of a bench that didn’t contribute as heavily due to unexpected gameplans.
“It was a little different, having Rashaan in there that changed the game and changed the rotations, too,” Farokhmanesh said. “So I don’t know if it was them taking our bench out of the game as much as I think that was more on me of them switching one through five and probably not giving them enough of a game plan going into that.”
Interested in more sports content? Sign up for Ram Report here for weekly CSU sports updates!
Reach Michael Hovey at sports@collegian.com or on social media @michaelfhovey.
