Bulldogs cruise for 12th straight MW home win

Wednesday, January 18

Fresno, Calif.

8 p.m. PT

Fresno State

12-7, 4-3MW

Colorado State

11-8, 3-3MW

Colorado State

Fresno State

Photo by: Cary Edmondson-USA TODAY Sports

Bulldogs cruise for 12th straight MW home win

1/18/2017 10:58:00 PM | Men's Basketball

Box Score

Fresno State redshirt sophomore Deshon Taylor matched his career-best with 19 points as the Bulldogs took control early for a 21-point win over Colorado State.

By: Stephen Trembley / Director of New Media

FRESNO, Calif. --- The Fresno State men's basketball team defeated the Colorado State Rams 78-57 on Wednesday night at the Save Mart Center.

The 21-point win is the Bulldogs' third-largest margin of victory in Mountain West play since joining the league in 2012.

How it happened: With the game tied 10-10, Fresno State went on an 18-4 run to take control of the game and never let off the gas pedal.

The Bulldogs led the Rams 37-25 at halftime as Fresno State junior guard Jahmel Taylor scored 12 of his 15 points in the first half.

Fresno State (12-7, 4-3 Mountain West) built a 26-point lead at 70-44 with 6:21 remaining and executed down the stretch to lock up its 11th consecutive home win when playing a Mountain West opponent.

Fresno State redshirt sophomore Deshon Taylor posted his second straight 19-point effort to match his career high, while Bulldogs' redshirt junior guard Jaron Hopkins added 18 points, seven assists and six rebounds in 32 minutes off the bench.

Colorado State (11-8, 3-3 MW) had two players post double-doubles – Emmanuel Omogbo (14 points/10 rebounds) and Gian Clavell (10 points/11 rebounds) – in playing all eight of its eligible players in the contest.

This was Fresno State's eighth consecutive home win, and 12th consecutive Mountain West home triumph.

The Bulldogs played well on both ends of the floor – moving the ball well with 18 assists on their 28 made field goals and limiting CSU to just 34.4 percent (21-for-61) from the field.

Quoteable:

Rodney Terry, Fresno State head coach

On how he installed the focus and energy in the team for tonight…
"It starts in practice. I think our Red Team (scout team) does a great job in terms of trying to simulate our opponents that we are going to play against. For two days, we really tried hard to guard a motion offense. We have a lot of respect for Coach Eustachy and his program. We try to allude to the fact that they have eight guys that they are playing, and six or seven of those guys are their best players. So, at the end of the day, they are playing with their best guys. When you look around the country, a lot of teams are going to be playing a seven or an eight-man rotation. It doesn't matter in that regard, you have to come out and play with urgency and you have to come out and play hard. These guys have been averaging 83 points a game with seven guys, so that really doesn't matter in terms of how many people you have on your team. Coach Eustachy has done a really great job with the adversity that his team has faced."

On knocking down three point shots tonight…
"They have a good defensive scheme. Coach Eustachy is a great defensive coach and they are going to play scout-and-report defense, depending on the person that they are going up against. For us tonight, they really packed it in tight and were committed to trying to take away our inside presence and our drives to the basket. So, we had to make some shots. I thought our guys did a good job at kicking out the teeth of their defense and getting some good looks and making some good two-foot plays."

On Deshon Taylor…
"I think it is his mindset. To be a good defensive player, you have to want to be a good defensive player. It doesn't matter how fast you run or how high you jump, it is just the matter of the want to. You need to come out with that mindset of 'This is what I need to do in terms of energy, I need to play with urgency and play hard and I will let the chips fall'. He is always been that kind of guy since the day that he got here. He has always played with a chip on his shoulder, especially from a defensive standpoint."

On facing Nevada on Saturday…
"They are a well coached team, a team who is playing as well as anyone in our league right now. They have two elite level scorers in our league- Marshall and Oliver. They have guys over there that can really play at an elite level. We respect how they play. From an offensive standpoint, they are a team who averaged 84 points a game. They can score the basketball. It is going to be very critical for us to try to get back and get our defense set and try to dig in and play really hard on the defensive end. We are going to have to be aggressive and be in attack mode. We need to value taking care of the basketball and compete at a very high level. They are a high level team, and they've played like that all year and we respect what they do and how they do it. It is going to be a good contest, come Saturday."

Deshon Taylor, Fresno State redshirt sophomore guard

On tonight's performance and becoming more comfortable on the court…
"My team believes in me. They tell me to go out there and shoot the ball if I'm open. So I just go out there and play hard and good defense."

On being in starting lineup…
"I really don't care about the starting line up. I'm just going to go in the game and do what I have to do to get the W."

On meaning of this win after winning against Boise State…
"It's a great win. We just have to bounce back and get ready for Nevada on Saturday."

On last meeting with Nevada…
"It came down to the end. Jaron making some good defensive plays and getting a game-winning dunk. We just have to play hard. They are a good shooting and rebounding team so we have to be focused in on the scouting report."

Jaron Hopkins, Fresno State redshirt junior guard

On tonight's performance and coming off the bench…
"I'm just remaining focused and playing hard in practice, being consistent, working on my defense. Hopefully it is transitioning into the games and guarding those great players."

On versatile play tonight…
"I guarded a few different people. I know I had to guard Omogbo on one of those plays. I just tried to make it a tough shot for him and he ended up missing it so that was good for me."

On two road game losses…
"For some reason, we were not playing the way we practice. We practice pretty hard and coach is always holding us accountable for that. I think these last two games we have been playing much harder, getting back to 'blue collar' basketball like coach always says. Hopefully we can just keep it up and do it on Saturday as well."

On road energy…
"I think it's just a lack of composure or energy. Coach makes sure were hyped up in warm up lines, so we can translate it into the game right away without getting lazy. Hopefully we can just keep our composure on the road and not turn the ball over as much, which we've struggled with in the past. Hopefully we can just play hard nose defense."

Player Notes:
Jaron Hopkins – 18 points, 7 assists, 6 rebounds, 4 steals
The junior transfer scored in double-digits for the 13^th time in his career … he was one shy of tying his career-high assists (8) … Hopkins shot 50 percent from the field (7-for-14) … he went 4-for-5 at the free throw line … leads the team with 44 steals on the season.

Deshon Taylor – 19 points, 3 steals, 2 rebounds, 2 assists
The sophomore transfer made career-high four 3-point field goals and recorded a career-high eight 3-point field goal attempts … tied his career-high with 19 points … scored in double-digits for the fourth time in his career.

Team Notes:

Fresno State set a new single-game season-high with 11 3-pointers.
This was the Bulldogs' third-largest margin of victory in conference play since joining the Mountain West in 2012.
This was the third game this season Fresno State recorded at least 12 steals.
Fresno State improved to 9-1 overall at home this season (4-0 vs. MW opponents).
Fresno State has now won 12 straight home games when playing a MW team.
Fresno State has now won 13 of its last 16 games when playing a MW team.
Fresno State is on an eight-game home winning streak.
Fresno State improved to 25-3 overall at home since the start of the 2015-16 season.
Fresno State improved to 36-6 overall at home since the start of the 2014-15 season.
Fresno State has now won 17 of its last 18, and 27 of its last 30 home games.
Fresno State has now won 10 consecutive home games played on a Wednesday.
This was the 11th meeting between Fresno State and Colorado State since the Bulldogs joined the Mountain West in 2012, which is two more contests against a single MW opponent than any other MW opponent since the start of the 2012-13 season.
Fresno State has now won three straight games in the all-time series with Colorado State.
Fresno State improved to 3-2 versus Colorado State when playing at the Save Mart Center since head coach Rodney Terry's arrival in 2011.

Fresno State's Largest Margins of Victory in Conference Play
(Since Joining the Mountain West in July 2012)
26 - at Fresno State 82, San Jose State 56 (Feb. 8, 2014)
22 - at Fresno State 85, Nevada 63 (Jan. 6, 2016)
21 - at Fresno State 78, Colorado State 57 (Jan. 18, 2017)
20 - at Fresno State 76, Boise State 56 (Feb. 26, 2014)
18 - at Fresno State 81, San Jose State 63 (Feb. 4, 2015)
17 - Fresno State 68, at Air Force 51 (Feb. 5, 2014)
15 - at Fresno State 85, Wyoming 70 (Jan. 4, 2017)
15 - at Fresno State 56, Air Force 41 (March 2, 2013)
14 - at Fresno State 87, Colorado State 73 (March 2, 2016
13 - Fresno State 69, at San Jose State 56 (March 8, 2014)
13 - at Fresno State 49, Wyoming 36 (Jan. 16, 2013)
11 - Fresno State 73, at San Jose State 62 (Jan. 14, 2015)
10 - Fresno State 92, at New Mexico 82 (Feb. 27, 2016)

Next Up: Fresno State travels to play at Nevada on Saturday at 3 p.m. PT. The game will be broadcast on CBS Sports Network and 940 AM ESPN Radio.

Fresno State will also play at Utah State on Jan. 28 at 6 p.m. PT before to the Save Mart Center for a two-game homestand the first week of February when the Bulldogs host Air Force on Feb. 1 and San Diego State on Feb. 4.

"Just the Ticket to Build Our Community" – The Bulldog Scholarship Fund gives Bulldog alumni, fans and friends the opportunity to support Fresno State Athletics and the student-athletes who inspire them. For information about how you can support the Bulldog Scholarship Fund, please visit www.bulldogscholarshipfund.com or call 559-278-7160.