If you’re reading this and you’re a Lobo fan, bless you. That was a tough, and somewhat unexpected way to watch the Lobos go out and (likely) end their season. We’ll have more to say about it when some of the dust settles, but for now, there are still a few games left to decide the MW Tournament Champion. Let’s check out the matchups:
Game 8: #1 Nevada vs. #4 Fresno State
As expected, the Wolf Pack took care of Utah State with relative ease, claiming an 83-69 victory after leading the entire game. They got solid games from their big three, with Caroline putting up a 22-8, Oliver a 19-11, and Marshall chipping in 14 points. Utah State’s Jalen Moore went off for 27 points and Kobe McEwen added 17 of his own, but they didn’t get much help from elsewhere.
Fresno was able to advance after taking out the Lobos, 65-60. After the Lobos jumped out to an early double-digit lead, the Bulldogs were able to come back and keep the score close for the majority of the game. They were able to create enough separation at the end with a late run to hold off the Lobos, mostly thanks to some timely plays by the Taylors, Deshon and Jahmel. The Lobos didn’t shoot particularly well, which became a theme towards the end of the season, but most surprisingly was their performance at the free throw line, where they went just 12-22. Just another missed opportunity in a season full of them.
Fresno and Nevada faced each other twice this season and in both instances, the Bulldogs came out on top. However, they were both close games, with the game in Fresno going down to the wire, 77-76, while the game in Reno ended up 81-76. One has to think that this game will be close too.
Stat Comparison
(To read the plots, the further away from the center, the better the team is at each stat. That is, for each stat, the best team will have a value on the outside of the radar plot while the worst team will have a value on the very inside of the plot. For an explanation of the stats, click here. All stats taken from kenpom.com)
Key Players
Nevada: Marcus Marshall (SR Guard, 19.7 ppg, 2.5 rpg, 3.6 apg); Cameron Oliver (SO Forward, 15.7 ppg, 8.5 rpg, 1.9 apg); Jordan Caroline (SO Forward, 14.5 ppg, 9.2 rpg, 2.0 apg)
Fresno State: Jamel Taylor (JR Guard, 11.1 ppg, 3.3 rpg, 1.9 apg); Jaron Hopkins (JR Guard, 13.3 ppg, 5.5 rpg, 3.5 apg); Deshon Taylor (SO Guard, 11.9 ppg, 2.6 rpg, 2.1 apg)
Prediction
On one hand, Fresno State beat Nevada twice already this season, so it’s clear that they have the ability to take out the top seed. However, at this point I feel like we’re on a collision course to a Nevada-CSU rematch, so I’ll take Nevada in this one, 77-72. In our bracket challenge, only 38.9% of our respondents picked Nevada to win this game, but that’s because the other 61.1% picked the Lobos. 🙁
Game Info
Who: #1 Nevada (26-6, 15-4) vs. #4 Fresno St. (20-11, 12-7)
When: Friday, March 10, 2017 at 8pm MT
Watch: CBS Sports Network
Game 9: #2 Colorado State vs. #6 San Diego State
Colorado State did exactly what they should have done to the 10 seed in the conference: they dominated them. The conference player of the year, Gian Clavell, dropped 30 on the poor Falcons, including a 6-11 performance behind the arc. Three other Rams ended up in double figures, while the Falcons only ended up with two players scoring more than 6.
San Diego State recovered from a poor first-round performance to beat down Boise State 87-68 behind 22 points and 10 rebounds by Malik Pope (who may or may not have reinjured the knee that kept him out of 9 games earlier this season). Rather than the types of games they’ve played recently that can only be generously called “basketball”, the Aztecs put together a great offensive performance, including making 9 of 14 threes, while playing solid enough defense to hold off the Broncos. They’re now exactly where they figured to be going into the season, although they’d probably prefer you to forget the route they took to get there.
These two teams faced each other twice, with the Rams pulling out a one-point win each time. If that trend holds, fans will be rewarded for staying up all night to watch this one.
Stat Comparison
Key Players
Colorado St.: Gian Clavell (SR Guard, 15.5 ppg, 4.9 rpg, 2.0 apg); Emmanuel Omogbo (SR Forward, 12.5 ppg, 8.2 rpg, 2.6 apg); Printiss Nixon (SO Guard, 11.8 ppg, 3.2 rpg, 2.5 apg)
San Diego St.: Trey Kell (JR Guard, 13.2 ppg, 4.8 rpg, 2.8 apg); Dakarai Allen (SR Guard, 8.6 ppg, 4.1 rpg, 1.4 apg); Jeremy Hemsley (SO Guard, 13.2 ppg, 2.4 rpg, 2.1 apg)
Prediction
These teams are probably more evenly-matched than either fan base would like to admit, but given how their last two games against each other were each decided by one point, it would be hard to argue against. Before the tourney started, I picked CSU to win this game, so I’ll stick with this choice, although I expect it to be close. I’ll pick the Rams to win 69-66. The Lobo fans in our bracket challenge all picked one of these two teams to move on to the finals, with 83.3% picking CSU and 16.7% picking the Aztecs.
Game Info
Who: #2 Colorado St. (22-10, 14-5) vs. #6 San Diego St. (19-13, 11-9)
When: Friday, March 9, 2017 at 10:30pm MT
Watch: CBS Sports Network