It’s good to be a fan of the Colorado State Rams (19-9, MW 11-4) right now. The team is on a five game winning streak, they’ve overcome adversity at seemingly every turn and are tied for first place in the Mountain West conference with only three games remaining. One of those final games will be Saturday at Moby Arena as the Aztecs of San Diego State (16-11, MW 8-7) visit Ft. Collins.
The Rams are peaking at the right time behind the scoring of senior guard Gian Clavell, senior forward Emmanuel Omogbo and sophomore guard Prentiss Nixon. All three are averaging double figures in scoring and Omogbo is leading the Mountain West in rebounding.
Colorado State comes into the game with an enormous amount of confidence. Not only are they coming off an impressive win at The Pit in New Mexico but they are looking for a season sweep of San Diego State after defeating the Aztecs last month in San Diego on a last second layup by Clavell. The Rams haven’t swept the Aztecs since the 2002-2003 season.
San Diego State isn’t the same team they were a year ago but they are still a hard nosed defensive team. While they have won five of their last seven games, they did stumble Wednesday night at home against Fresno State. They are last in the Mountain West in scoring and three point shooting but the lead the conference in defense allowing just 63 points per game.
This game is crucial for Colorado State if they want a chance at the Mountain West regular season crown. As it stands now, the regular season finale at Nevada would decide the regular season title. But a loss to a San Diego State could put the dreams of a title out of reach for Larry Eustachy’s team and possible wipeout any chance of an NCAA tournament bid.
Tip off is scheduled Tuesday at 6pm at Moby Arena. You can see the game on CBS Sports Network.