Cowboys Defense Does In The Rams [VIDEO]
For the first time in six years the Wyoming Cowboys swept the regular season series against Border War rival Colorado State with a 59-48 victory Wednesday night.
Wyoming (19-4, 8-2) led from start to finish and put the clamps on the Rams offense. The Cowboys held CSU to a season-low 30 percent shooting from the field. That included a 3-for-25 effort (12%) from 3-point range.
Colorado State (19-4, 6-4) came in averaging 74 points per game, which led the Mountain West.
Larry Nance Jr. and Derek Cooke Jr. produced double-doubles for a second straight game. Nance scored a game-high 19 points and grabbed ten rebounds. He also added four blocks and three steals. Cooke contributed 12 points and a team-high 11 rebounds. Riley Grabau added ten points, while freshman Jeremy Lieberman was an unsung hero with eight off the bench.
Nance, Cooke and Lieberman discussed the defense, Jeremy's play and the physicality of the game afterwards.
The Rams were led by J.J. Avila with 18 points and 12 rebounds. Stanton Kidd chipped in 15.
The Pokes got off to a 6-0 lead before Avila connected on a three for CSU. That was as close as the Rams would get. UW led 26-15 at halftime and increased their advantage to 16 points midway through the second half, at 44-28.
This was the ninth time the Cowboys have held an opponent under 50 points this season. Wyoming also knocked down eight 3-pointers and outrebounded the Rams 40-39.
This is the first sweep of the regular season series since the 2008-2009 season for UW.
The Cowboys return to action Saturday at Air Force. This is their only meeting with the Falcons this season. The game tips-off at noon.