Colorado State University Pueblo

FORT COLLINS, Colo. (Dec. 12, 2020) – The Colorado State University Pueblo men's basketball team met up with Colorado State University Saturday for an exhibition game against the Division I Rams. The ThunderWolves led 42-40 at the half, but would fall in the end by the score of 89-77.  
 
The Pack (0-2, 0-2 RMAC) shot 42.2 percent from the field, while CSU hit 51.7 percent of its shots. CSU Pueblo totaled 11 3-pointers after dropping 12 3-pointers in the first two games combined. The rebounding edge went to the Rams, but by only a 35-34 margin. The ThunderWolves pulled down 11 offensive boards, which translated into 15 second chance points.
 
Guard Tre Brown (R-Jr., Tacoma, Wash.) scored 28 points in 28 minutes to lead the Pack. 
 
From Coach Hammer
 
"It was great to see the guys battle with the intensity and physicality they played with," said CSU Pueblo Head Men's Basketball Coach Matt Hammer. "We have to do a better job of being disciplined and not putting guys on the free throw line, but those things will come. It was nice offensively to see guys sharing the ball and trusting each other. Getting 14 assists on 27 made field goals was great to see. A lot of problems are solved when you are making shots, which we really didn't do a good job of in the first couple of games. Now it's back to work on Monday and hopefully we have two home games next weekend."
 
Stat Leaders
 
Brown was 8-for-17 (47.1%) from the field, hit 4-of-7 (57.1%) from long range and was a perfect 8-of-8 from the line, en route to a game-high 28 points.
 
Forward De'Shaun Cooper (Fr., Poway, Calif.) scored 13 points on 6-of-7 (85.7%) shooting from the field, while his seven rebounds led the team.  
 
Guard Tristan Hurdle (Fr., Highlands Ranch, Colo.) knocked down four 3-pointers, three in the first half, and finished with 12 points. 
 
Guard Lian Ramiro (Fr., Aurora, Colo.) dished out a game-high seven assists. 
 
Summary
 
The ThunderWolves started strong for the first time this season and were rewarded with a 26-21 lead, their largest of the game, with 7:13 remaining in the first half. The Pack were able to counter any CSU run and with a Brown 3-pointer in the final seconds, the road team held a 42-40 lead at the break. 
 
CSU Pueblo hit seven 3-pointers in the opening 20 minutes. The ThunderWolves won the battle on the glass 19-18, which included seven offensive boards. There were six lead changes and four ties in the first half. 
 
The Rams knocked down a 3-pointer on their first possession of the second half to regain the lead at 43-42. A Brown 3-pointer knotted the game at 45-45, but that would be last tie the Pack would have. 
 
The ThunderWolves stayed within a two possession game and five minutes to the second half, a Cooper layup had the Pack trailing 57-53. Unfortunately, CSU Pueblo would only score two points during the next five minutes of game time, while the home team posted a 12-2 run to open up a double digit lead at 69-55. 
 
The ThunderWovles didn't go quietly, as a David Simental (R-Jr., G, Pueblo West, Colo.) 3-pointer with 2:37 remaining cut the deficit to six at 81-75, but that would be as close as they would get in the 12-point loss.
 
Up Next
 
The ThunderWolves are scheduled to open the home portion of the season Dec. 18-19 with a pair of Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference contests. The Pack welcome Westminster College Friday and Colorado Mesa University Saturday with both games slated to start at 7:30 p.m. No fans will be allowed in Massari Arena for the game, but links to live stats, live audio and live video can be found at https://gothunderwolves.com/sports/mens-basketball/schedule.

-- PACK --