Colorado State Rams 2010 NCAA Men's Basketball Post Season

<?xml:namespace prefix = st1 />Colorado State Rams

Mountain West Conference (16-15, 7-9)

Big Wins: 12/10 Colorado (77-62), 12/12 Montana (62-61), 2/3 at Utah (65-50)

Bad Losses: 11/15 at Oregon (55-68), 12/28 at Fresno State (50-73), 2/27 at TCU (67-73)

Coach: Tim Miles

Why They Can Surprise:

Colorado State could not compete with the top tier of teams in the Mountain West Conference. In fact, they failed to beat UNLV, San Diego State, BYU or New Mexico. Yet, they won every other conference game besides a road loss to TCU. This is a steady group that has been pretty consistent all year long. They beat who they should beat and lose to who they should lose to. Their success has come from the interior play of Andy Ogide, Travis Franklin and Travis Busch, but the team lacks the scoring punch to beat a quality team.

Ogide is the man with size under the basket. The 6-9 junior has emerged as a consistent interior scorer and the team’s best rebounder. But this is a big team and their strength is on the glass. Travis Franklin is a 6-7, 215 pound athlete who can mix it up under the basket or fly above the rim. He is averaging 10.5 points per game and does a solid job on the glass as well. Travis Busch does not put up such gaudy numbers, but he is the glue guy on this team. Busch will do a little bit of everything and his insertion in the starting lineup has boosted the Rams…even if the stat sheet does not show it.

Why They Can Disappoint:

Dorian Green is a fine scorer, but the troubles with this team begin and end on the perimeter. Green averages 11.7 points per game and connects on 38.2 percent of his attempts from beyond the arc. Adam Nigon is a consistent outside shooter as well, but he is not much of a threat to attack the basket. That puts a lot of pressure on Green to create opportunities for his teammates. He is a scorer first and foremost, but he has to be more of a point guard at times. Unfortunately, he is not a great ball handler and Colorado State has no other options. The only other perimeter player who sees any significant playing time is Harvey Perry, but he is not much of a ball handler either.

Who To Watch:

The Rams will have to make due with what they have on the perimeter. In the meantime, it will be up to the frontcourt to win the game. With Pierce Hornung, Mame Bocar Ba, Andre McFarland and Greg Smith available off the bench, Coach Tim Miles has plenty of options. Hornung and Smith are the best rebounders off the bench, but Smith is the player who can do some major scoring off the bench. Yet, Andre McFarland may be the most important player who usually starts on the bench. McFarland is 6-6 and he can provide an offensive spark with his outside shooting and that is something Colorado State usually needs. If McFarland is providing a spark off the bench as a shooting guard, this is a team that can suddenly have a decent offense and create match-up problems with their size on the perimeter.

Probable Starters:

Dorian Green, Freshman, Guard, 11.7 ppg, 2.4 apg

Adam Nigon, Junior, Guard, 8.6 ppg, 1.7 apg

Travis Busch, Senior, Forward, 5.7 ppg, 2.3 rpg

Travis Franklin, Junior, Forward, 10.5 ppg, 5.1 rpg

Andy Ogide, Junior, Forward, 11.7 ppg, 6.5 rpg

Key Roleplayers:

Mame Bocar Ba, Senior, Forward, 2.7 ppg, 2.4 rpg

Pierce Hornung, Freshman, Forward, 2.7 ppg, 4.2 rpg

Andre McFarland, Junior, Forward, 5.5 ppg, 1.4 rpg

Harvey Perry, Senior, Guard, 1.8 ppg, 1.4 rpg

Greg Smith, Freshman, Forward, 7.3 ppg, 4.0 rpg

By the Numbers:

Scoring Offense: 66.3 (238^th in nation, 8^th in conference)

Scoring Defense: 66.3 (124, 6)

Field-Goal Percentage: 42.4 (220, 9)

Field-Goal Defense: 42.5 (145, 6)

Three-Point Field Goals Per Game: 5.4 (250, 7)

Three-Point Field-Goal Percentage: 34.3 (161, 4)

Free-Throw Percentage: 68.3 (197, 5)

Rebound Margin: 2.8 (90, 4)

Assists Per Game: 10.4 (316, 9)

Turnovers Per Game: 14.9 (259, 8)