Aggies lose to No.1 CSU in heartbreaker
Colorado State lived up to its No. 1 seeding Tuesday, beating Utah State 72-67 and bouncing the Aggies from the Mountain West Conference Tournament in the second round.
USU led by three points with 1:14 remaining in the game, but an eight point run by the Rams – including four foul shots – got CSU to the semifinal round. The five-point victory was CSU’s largest lead of the game, which featured 12 lead changes and 11 tie scores.
“We felt like we could win it, we really did,” said head coach Jerry Finkbeiner. “So it’s a letdown right now in that locker room. I thought the girls showed some good things right here.”
Finkbeiner led the Aggies to an 8-10 record in their first season in the Mountain West, and a first round tournament win over New Mexico on Monday.
Senior guard Jennifer Schlott finished the game with 20 points and 11 assists, but CSU defense stifled the Mountain West Player of the Year, holding Schlott to three second-half points. Schlott did capture USU career scoring title with 1,566 points, formerly held by Devyn Christensen.
“Jen’s a phenomenal player,” said sophomore guard Stephanie Bairstow. “Probably the best player I’ve ever played with. It’s been a real honor playing with her at Utah State.”
Bairstow, Finkbeiner’s first recruit to USU, scored a career high 19 points on 9-of-13 shooting – including 17 points in the second half.
“I was able to get my shots in the end,” said Bairstow, “But it didn’t really come out in our favor.”
Finkbeiner echoed Bairstow’s sentiments.
“I just really was proud of our girls as we finished the journey this year, in our first year that we were ready to go,” Coach Finkbeiner said. “It’s been a good first‑year ride. Our record I don’t think shows how competitive we were. We’re looking forward to the future here.”
– logan.jones@aggiemail.usu.edu
Twitter: @Logantj