It won’t be the title fight that many were hoping for, but Saturday will be another big game.
In many ways, it’s a party game at Moby Arena.
The Colorado State men’s basketball team hosts Boise State in the regular season finale. The Broncos clinched the regular-season title from Mountain West earlier this week, and the Rams are chasing second place.
Although they didn’t win the regular season title, CSU fans will celebrate with a fifth straight sale as one of the best teams in program history. The Rams are almost surely tied to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2013, and three seniors will be honored before the tip.
And while not for the title, Saturday’s game is very important for NCAA tournament seeding purposes.
► Hot spot:Want to catch CSU’s last home game this season? A few hundred dollars should be enough.
Saturday’s 6:30 p.m. tip will be broadcast by CBS Sports Network. Here’s what to know about the game and how to watch and listen online.
When or: 6:30 p.m. Saturday at Moby Arena on the Colorado State Campus
How to find CBS Sports Network (CBSSN):
- Comcast/Xfinity: 412 (846 for HD)
- Direct TV: 221
- Parabolic array: 158
- Fort Collins Connection: 70
- Online stream: CBSSports.com/CBS-Sports-Network/
- The broadcast team on CBSSN consists of Chris Lewis (play-by-play), Bob Wenzel (analyst), and Amanda Guerra (sideline).
How to listen to the radio:
The CSU broadcast is available on KARS 102.9 FM, SiriusXM channel 383 (Sirius XM app 973) and the TuneIn app.
► The ‘flute player’: David Roddy takes on star attraction role for CSU basketball team
The CSU radio team will be Brian Roth (play-by-play) and Adam Nigon (analyst).
Betting line: No lines have been available since Friday afternoon.
Participation/tickets: Moby Arena has a capacity of 8,083 and the game sold out two weeks early, the fifth consecutive sale at Moby. Some tickets are available on resale sites such as StubHub and SeatGeek.
What’s at stake:
- A CSU victory secures the No. 2 seed in the Mountain West tournament for the Rams. A loss would likely mean the Rams would be the No. 3 seed (if San Diego State also defeats Nevada on Saturday night). It would also be another Quad 1 victory to further help the NCAA Tournament standings for the Rams, who are locks for the Big Dance.
- Boise State has already clinched the regular season title from Mountain West and will be the No. 1 seed in the conference tournament next week. The Broncos are a lock for the NCAA Tournament, but a win on the road to Quad 1 would further help their ranking for the Big Dance.
► Reviews: Boise State is a worthy champ, but Mountain West basketball needs a full schedule
Key players
- Abu Kigab: The 6-foot-7 senior Boise State forward is scoring 14.7 points per game and grabbing 5.9 rebounds per game.
- Marcus Shaver Jr.: The 6-foot-2 Boise State senior guard is averaging 14 points per game and shooting 38 percent on 3-point range.
- David Roddy: The 6-foot-6 junior forward for CSU is third in the MW in points (19.4 points per game), sixth in rebounds (7.8 per game), 14th in assists (three per game) and he leads the conference in shooting percentage (57%).
- Isaiah Stevens: The 6-foot junior guard for CSU is averaging 15 points per game, is third in assists per game (4.9) and second in assist-to-rotation ratio. He is also the best free throw thrower in the league.
Coaches: CSU is coached by Niko Medved, who is 75-44 at CSU in his fourth season. He is in his ninth season overall as a head coach with a career record of 154-131. Boise State is led by Leon Rice, who is in his 12th year as head coach (all with the Broncos). He has a career record of 241-143.
Team records: CSU is 23-4 and 13-4 in Mountain West play. Boise State is 24-6 overall and 15-2 in Mountain West play.
Other metrics: CSU is No. 31 in Division I by KenPom and Boise State is No. 28. The Rams are No. 28 in NCAA NET rankings and Boise State is No. 30. This is a Quad 1 game for both teams.
Series: CSU is 13-15 against Boise State. CSU won Game 1 77-74 in overtime at Boise.
► Last outing: CSU lands huge win at Utah State, likely secures NCAA Tournament bid
► NCAA Tournament Tracking: Will Colorado State do March Madness?
Follow Kevin Lytle on twitter.com/Kevin_Lytle and on facebook.com/KevinSLytle. Colorado Sports can also be followed on Twitter. Support his work and that of other Colorado journalists by purchasing a digital subscription today.
