Welcome to the Madness, Colorado State! Rams pull off 'upset' over Memphis

Michael Cohen

College Football and College Basketball Writer

As March Madness goes, Day 1 of this year’s NCAA Tournament was relatively tame. There was a 12-5 upset when McNeese upended Clemson in spectacular fashion and a blow to the SEC when 11th-seeded Drake toppled sixth-seeded Missouri. But everything else went more or less by the book, even if No. 5 Michigan needed a last-minute jumper from Will Tschetter to stave off UC San Diego in crunch time and No. 3 Texas Tech only pulled away from UNC Wilmington in the final moments.

The hope for basketball junkies is that relatively calm seas can only last so long, that eventually the upsets and tournament magic start flowing from one arena to the next. We’ll be tracking the biggest storylines and moments of Day 2 all afternoon and evening, exploring some of the bigger topics in a bit more detail.

Bookmark this page and join us for what should be an excellent slate of games. Enjoy!

First “upset” of the day belongs to Colorado State

For the second time in as many days, the NCAA Tournament produced a popular 12-5 upset with Colorado State taking down Memphis on Friday afternoon thanks to an explosive second half, especially from beyond the arc. Sophomore guard Kyan Evans, who entered the game shooting 43.1% from 3-point range, set new career highs with 23 points and six triples to help the Rams erase a narrow halftime deficit. His first 3-pointer of the second half knotted the game at 48-48 with 15:02 remaining, and then Evans drilled back-to-back triples a few minutes later as Colorado State surged in front by 10. At that moment, the Rams were plus-21 from 3-point range with Memphis making just three of its first 15 attempts and finishing 6-for-23 overall — an unexpected development for a team that ranked 19th nationally in 3-point shooting at 38% this season.

But the end result — a 78-70 victory for Colorado State — was hardly unexpected considering the circumstances surrounding Friday’s game. The Tigers were without star guard Tyrese Hunter (13.7 points and 3.6 assists per game) after he suffered a left foot injury in the conference tournament, reducing head coach Penny Hardaway’s team to just two scorers averaging more than 10.4 points per game. That injury, coupled with a soft schedule in the AAC, left many surprised that Memphis was seeded so highly on Selection Sunday, with many bracketologists handing the Tigers a 7- or 8-seed, if not lower. All of that was enough for oddsmakers to tab Colorado State, which had won 10 consecutive games entering the NCAA Tournament, as the betting favorite despite the discrepancy in seeding. This is the third time in the last four years that head coach Niko Medved has guided the Rams to the Big Dance.

And it’s quite possible that the Rams will have some staying power in this year’s tournament as they prepare to face the winner of No. 4 Maryland and No. 13 Grand Canyon. Medved’s team is one of the most balanced in the country with an offense that ranks 50th nationally in efficiency and a defense that ranks 53rd. Four different players scored at least 12 points in Friday’s win over Memphis, led by Evans’ outburst, and the Rams finished with 14 assists on 24 made field goals. The defense, meanwhile, limited the Tigers to just 34.5% shooting in the second half and only committed seven fouls after the break.

Colorado State is now seeking the program’s first Sweet 16 appearance since 1969.