Fresno State Athletics
Fresno State
Colorado State
'Dogs Rally Comes Up Short in Vegas
3/12/2015 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
By Stephen Trembley
strembley@csufresno.edu
www.GoBulldogs.com
LAS VEGAS -- The Fresno State men's basketball team could match the effort and sharp-shooting of a veteran Colorado State squad in a 71-59 loss on Thursday night in the quarterfinals of the Mountain West Championships.
Fresno State (15-17) rallied from an 19-point second half deficit to make it a six-point game before Colorado State (27-5) powered back into the game despite losing senior forward J.J. Avila to a right ankle injury midway through the first half.
"I'd like to give Colorado State a lot of credit tonight," Fresno State head coach Rodney Terry said. "They played the way they played all year long. They played as a team. They really competed at a whole other level. Thoser guys are one of the better effort teams in the country. They competed on both ends of the floor. They have a physical mindset in terms of rebounding the basketball. They made shots tonight. They made plays. We give them a lot of credit. They've had a great year."
The Bulldogs were led by junior point guard Cezar Guerrero, who had a team-best 16 points. Sophomore wing Paul Watson added 14 points and six rebounds.
Fresno State's Marvelle Harris had his double-digit scoring streak snapped as the junior guard posted four points and left the game late in the second half after going down hard on a foul. Harris was evaluated by athletic training and medical staff at the arena and further evaluation is expected to happen when he returns to Fresno with the team on Friday.
Daniel Bejarano scored 19 points and grabbed nine rebounds and Colorado State survived the loss of leading scorer J.J. Avila in the first half.
Sixth-seeded Fresno State opened the second half with a 19-7 run to close within six, 47-41. The Bulldogs wouldn't get closer as the Rams used an 11-3 run to go back up by 14.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
"Be Bold!" --- The official flagship radio station for Fresno State men's basketball is 940 AM ESPN Radio.
