In the first five minutes of their game on Saturday night, the Colorado State men’s basketball team allowed five offensive rebounds, as Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) secured the first nine rebounds of the match.
However, CSU managed to regain control and dominated the boards for a while, holding a narrow lead as the game progressed. Unfortunately, they struggled again with rebounding during a critical moment. With a slim one-point advantage late in the second half, CSU allowed VCU to grab five offensive rebounds over two possessions, which led to a 7-0 run by VCU—all stemming from those offensive rebounds.
This sequence ultimately cost CSU in their 76-68 loss to VCU in a neutral-site game in Henderson, Nevada.
During a pivotal stretch, CSU (5-5) was ahead 61-60 against VCU (9-2) with less than seven minutes to go, appearing to handle VCU’s aggressive defense well while managing the three-point shooting. However, they lost control of the rebounding. VCU converted back-to-back offensive rebounds into points, including a layup and a three-pointer following multiple offensive rebounds on one possession.
The rebounding stats were not overwhelmingly different, with VCU winning the total rebound count 32-30, the offensive rebound count 12-6, and second-chance points 10-9. It wasn’t about the total numbers, but rather the timing and context in which those rebounds occurred.
With VCU ranked sixth nationally in scoring defense (allowing just 58 points per game), the match was destined to be a tight, low-scoring affair where every small margin counted. While CSU shot 51% overall, they struggled with 15 turnovers.
VCU hit 11 three-pointers, with nine of them coming in the second half. Former Utah State guard Max Shulga scored 20 points, and Joe Bamisile added 25.
Keshawn Williams led CSU with 14 points, while Nique Clifford and Jalen Lake both contributed 12 points, though their shooting combined was only 36% (9-25).
As CSU heads back home to conclude nonconference play, this game against VCU, a favorite in the Atlantic 10 Conference, could have been a crucial win for them. Their chances for an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament are now very slim. CSU’s next challenge is preparing for Mountain West play, with their final nonconference game set for 7 p.m. on Tuesday, December 17, at Moby Arena against Radford, who enters with a 9-3 record from the Big South Conference.
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