Colorado State men’s basketball didn’t take long to look like itself again.
Passes found their mark, the bench celebrated after 3’s and Moby Arena felt alive under a new head coach. In his first regular-season game leading the Rams, Ali Farokhmanesh saw just about everything he wanted in a 98-64 win over Incarnate Word Monday night.
“This was awesome,” Farokhmanesh said. “We talked about getting that assist percentage high, over 60%, and for that to stand out, that was a major key for this game. The rebounding, though I thought that was phenomenal. We got beat up on the glass in both our exhibitions and scrimmages.”
CSU looked balanced and unselfish from the start.
The Rams shot 60% from the field, hit 13 3’s and recorded 22 assists on 29 made shots while also outrebounding the Cardinals 43-20.
“Man, I’m just so happy how we shared the ball,” transfer Brandon Rechsteiner said. “That was a big emphasis after our Creighton exhibition. And I thought we really came together, and everybody was kind of eating and doing their thing. I really liked that.”
Rechsteiner, a transfer from Virginia Tech, finished with 19 points and six assists in his CSU debut.
His backcourt rhythm with fellow newcomers Jevin Muniz and Josh Pascarelli helped set the pace.
“Halftime (adjustments were) more (about) defense, honestly,” Rechsteiner said. “Offensively, we looked good. We were kind of getting what we wanted. (Our emphasis) at halftime was kind of (running) the floor harder and (getting) out in transition more.”
The second half started just like that, with Pascarelli knocking down two 3’s in a row to stretch the lead past 20.
But it was Muniz boosting the Rams to an early lead off a 7-0 run with the first bucket, a dunk and a block just after tipoff.
“(Muniz) set everything,” Rechsteiner said. “He set the tone. I mean, Jevin is a unique player. He’s a bigger guard. Can shoot it, but he can pass. He loves playing in the post. (He) plays at his own pace.”
Muniz scored 13 on the night and brought energy on both ends, showcasing his ability to fill up the stat sheet.
Pascarelli added 18 on 4-of-7 shooting from deep. And the Rams’ rotation went 12 players deep, although the game was out of reach when Charlie Dortch subbed in, with everyone contributing in some way.
“That’s a great thing about our team,” forward Kyle Jorgensen said. “We (have) got a lot of depth. … You know, it sucks to have (Rashaan Mbemba) out. You know, Rashaan is a great player, and he’s (a) great teammate, but, you know, we (have) got to move on to the next.”
Jorgensen started in place of the injured Mbemba and took advantage, finishing with 15 points and nine rebounds in 23 minutes.
He played to his 6-foot-9 size well, which was something he lacked in some games just a year prior.
“Kyle was phenomenal,” Farokhmanesh said. “It’s kind of ironic because last year, around the same time, he got hurt and couldn’t finish. This year, same situation, but he comes out with 15 and nine. That tells me he’s grown so much. He’s worked for that moment.”
The Rams led 41-27 at halftime and controlled the second half with poise.
UIW’s Tahj Staveskie scored 27, but CSU’s depth and ball movement never gave the Cardinals a chance to get back in it.
“Honestly, that second half stretch, you know, where lack of communication let up too many open threes, (we) let (Staveskie) kind of get going a little bit,” Jorgensen said. “He finished with 27 (points), but we (have) just got to be better for the total 40 minutes. I feel like we kind of relaxed a little bit and played for the scoreboard and (didn’t play) to just progress.”
Farokhmanesh said he could feel both the energy in the crowd and the composure of his team in his debut.
“Nothing felt normal,” Farokhmanesh said. “I think once the game started, it felt normal, because then it was just basketball, (which) is the same thought process. Even when I was assistant for Niko (Medved), the lead up to the game, felt way abnormal. I missed being on the court with the guys.”
The new head coach said the staff’s decision to keep things simple over the offseason made the transition smoother.
And the team clicked in its first real test within a new system with plenty of new faces.
“I almost added too much,” Farokhmanesh said. “But we talked about it, pulled it back and stuck to our base. The guys have learned the nuances of it, and that’s why it looked the way it did tonight.”
Farokhmanesh had talked about the players needing to trust each other in the week leading up to the season opener, but it showed up in just the first game of the season.
And Jorgensen said Farokhmanesh’s approach has made a difference in big ways.
“For sure,” Jorgensen said. “I mean, (Farokhmanesh), you know, he’s a big reason why I stayed. I mean, you know, he’s somebody I go to for everything. He’s not even just a coach. He’s like, he’s a mentor.”
Farokhmanesh said he was proud to see the effort and teamwork translate right away.
“Yeah, I’m just excited for the guys, like they, they played really well against Creighton,” Farokhmanesh said. “And so for them to go back now and play this game the way that they did, and play together, and the ball movement, the spacing, and honestly, how they had been playing for the last month, I was happy for them that it showed up.”
CSU gets its next chance to improve against Omaha Sunday back in Moby.
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Reach Michael Hovey at sports@collegian.com or on social media @michaelfhovey.
