The Colorado State women's basketball was dominant from the start to blow away rival Wyoming. Here are takeaways from the game.
Big crowd.
Big rival.
Big win.
The Colorado State women's basketball team checked all the boxes with a dominant 83-54 Border War victory over Wyoming Feb. 7 at Moby Arena.
The win snaps a mini two-game losing skid for the Rams.
Here are takeaways from the game.
CSU lands the desired fast start
CSU coach Ryun Williams knew the big crowd could impact the start, with extra eyes and therefore extra pressure on the team.
Channeling that energy positively was going to be key.
"There is that over-excitement to where maybe you don't play at your optimal level. You've got to get to that level and make it a basketball game," Williams said in the days before the game. "Yeah, the juices are going to be flowing but you've got to get that thing calmed down in your head sooner rather than later and just do your job."
CSU’s last two games created heightened importance on that quick start.
The Rams (18-6, 9-4 Mountain West) entered the Wyoming (8-15, 5-9 MW) game off back-to-back losses to Mountain West leaders San Diego State and UNLV. CSU scored 12 total first-quarter points in those games, including just three in front of a big “Education Day” crowd against San Diego State.
In this one? The Rams had an early 12-2 run to take control and had 24 points from five different scorers in the first 10 minutes.
CSU averaged just 47.5 points per game in those last two defeats and had 47 at half against Wyoming.
Just in case there were in doubt, CSU started the second half fast by holding Wyoming scoreless for the first 4:22 of the third quarter as the Ram lead ballooned.
The Rams handled the moment perfectly, starting fast and dominating throughout.
Brooke Carlson was dynamic, hitting three of her four 3-point attempts and pouring in a career-high 23 points while also adding four assists and two steals. Kloe Froebe hit three 3-pointers and scored 17 points to go with seven rebounds and five assists.
Big crowd at Moby Arena sees CSU win
The rivalry game was tagged with a “Pack Moby” effort by CSU’s administration. The Rams were selling $1 tickets in an effort to sell out the arena.
Shortly before tip the Rams announced a sellout crowd. With a wave of enthusiasm around women’s basketball sweeping the nation in recent years, this was a chance CSU wanted to perhaps land some new fans.
"It's important that we provide that kind of atmosphere for our teams and for our community,” CSU athletic director John Weber said.
The crowd was lively from the start and the team responded with a quality performance.
"That's a really cool thing. It's neat for our kids. I think they deserve it,” Williams said. “The community has really supported us.”
Big week ahead for Colorado State
February is a packed month of key games for CSU. In a scheduling quirk, most of the most important and marquee Mountain West games for the Rams fell within about a month.
It's when CSU faces most the top contenders for the league, plus rivalry games against Wyoming.
The back-to-back losses to San Diego State and UNLV were the start of that stretch. This win over Wyoming could mark a key reset.
The Rams now have a challenging road week. CSU plays at San Diego State (Feb. 11) and New Mexico (Feb. 14) in the next week. Those two are responsible for two of CSU's four league losses so far.
It's a week that will have a huge impact on the Mountain West standings with the conference tournament (March 7-10) fast approaching.
Sports reporter Kevin Lytle can be found on social media on X, Instagram and Threads @Kevin_Lytle and on Bluesky.
This article originally appeared on Fort Collins Coloradoan: Colorado State women's basketball team crushes Wyoming
Category: General Sports
