SAN JOSE, Calif. – San Jose State men's basketball fell to Colorado State 91-70 Wednesday night at the Event Center. The Spartans struggled from the floor shooting 42 percent for the game and finished 5-of-21 from 3-point range.
Colorado State (10-16, 5-8) shot the ball with authority as six players finished in double figure scoring led by Kris Martin's 19. The Rams shot 59.3 percent for the game (35-59) and was 16-of-33 (48.5 percent) from 3-point range. The 16 made 3s were the most the Spartans have surrendered this season.
On the other side, SJSU (3-22, 0-13) was held to a 42 percent shooting clip, including 39.3 percent in the first half.
Neither team was able to control the ball in the first half as the teams combined for 17 first half turnovers. The Spartans, however, were able to lock things down in the second half with just three turnovers for a total of 11 in the game.
After Colorado State jumped out to an early lead, freshman guard Zach Chappell made back-to-back layups to bring the Spartans to just a one-point deficit at 23-22 with 5:47 in the half. The Rams, however, rattled off 10 unanswered to take a 33-22 lead at the 3:17 mark. Colorado State closed the half on a 16-7 run to take a 42-29 lead into the locker room.
The Rams hit eight of their season-high tying 16 3-pointers in the opening 20 minutes.
San Jose State found a spark in the second half off the bench in the form of junior walk on Brian Rodriguez-Flores. The Phoenix native finished with a career-high 13 points. Freshman Seneca Knight finished with 14 points with five rebounds and three assists. Chappell finished with 10 points.
The Spartans shot 44.7 percent in the half (17-38), however they were unable to match Colorado State's 47.1 percent clip. The Rams never lost control of the lead and led by as many as 25 at the 7:38 mark.
Nico Carvacho pulled down a game-high 19 rebounds for the Rams, 14 on defense to go with 18 points. Adam Thistlewood (16), Kendle Moore (13), J.D. Paige (11) and Anthony Masinton-Bonner (10) all finished in double figures.
The Spartans out-performed Colorado State in both points off turnovers (20-6) and points in the paint (42-34). SJSU improved from their 8-21 performance from the free throw line against UNLV with a 9-14 night. Colorado State struggled finishing just 5-of-11.
The Spartans will next travel to Colorado Springs, Colo., for a 1:00 p.m. game with the Air Force Academy on Saturday, February 23.