Adams State 78, CSU-Pueblo 61
The ThunderWolves squandered a golden opportunity to make a
statement in the RMAC standings Saturday with a win against Adams
State, but a poor night on the glass led to a 78-61 to the
Grizzlies.
The ThunderWolves, leading by three at halftime, saw their
advantage implode due to the Grizzlies' dominance on the boards,
out-rebounding CSU-Pueblo an amazing 46-19, and 31-8 in the second
half.
The Pack also didn't help its cause by being cold with its
shots, sinking just 30.6 percent of his field goal attempts,
compared to 57.7 percent by Adams State.
The Pack's poor performance in both department undid a great
night for the ThunderWolves' transition defense. CSU-Pueblo
forced 27 turnovers, 14 coming by way of steals, and gave
up the ball just nine times. But the largest turnover ratio
for the Pack this season wasn't enough to overcome the other
deficiencies in their game.
The battle also featured arguably the top two point guards in
the RMAC in CSU-Pueblo's Rachel Espinoza
(Jr., Pueblo, Colo.) and Adams State's Vera Jo Bustos, the
reigning RMAC West Division Player of the Year. Though
Espinoza has been very impressive in 2009-10, earning four RMAC
Player of the Week honors, the most of any player in the
conference, tonight's matchup broke for Bustos, who scored 24
points and sank six three pointers, part of Adams State's 6-for-8
night from beyond the arc. Espinoza led the ThunderWolves
with 16 points.
CSU-Pueblo entered the weekend needing at least one win against
either eighth-ranked current top Central Region seed, Fort Lewis,
or Adams State, which is currently the third-ranked team in the
region. CSU-Pueblo entered the week at 10th in the region,
needing to play its way into the top eight to put itself in
position for a national tournament berth in March. A road win
against either team would have set the Pack up to rise in the
rankings. But the pair of losses puts the Pack's back against
the wall, meaning CSU-Pueblo will likely need to win nearly the
remainder of their regular season games to even get a mention in
the top eight. Failing that, CSU-Pueblo must again capture
the conference's automatic bid by winning the RMAC Shootout, a
title the Pack has won three out of the past four seasons.
The ThunderWolves, now 12-7 overall and 8-3 in RMAC play, will need
to overtake Adams State for second place in the West Division in
order to host a RMAC Tournament quarterfinal game.
The ThunderWolves will get little chance to rest - they hit the
hardwood again Tuesday night in Pueblo when they host New Mexico
Highlands at Massari Arena.
