LAS VEGAS — What a moment to have a moment of greatness.
Or several of them, really.
Under the bright lights of the conference tournament in Las Vegas, Jase Butler had one of the best nights of his young college basketball career to lead the Colorado State men’s basketball team into the Mountain West quarterfinals.
Butler hit a career-high six 3-pointers and scored 20 points as the No. 7 Rams beat No. 10 Fresno State 67-63 at Thomas & Mack Center.
Butler hit a 3-pointer with 2:21 to go to put the Rams up 64-61. After a couple CSU stops, he then drove to the hoop for a layup to make it 66-61 and virtually seal the victory.
“All the things we talked about about eliminating luck, we actually did at the highest levels,” CSU coach Ali Farokhmanesh said. “When you’re not shooting the ball well, your offense isn’t clicking, I thought that’s what the game came down to is we eliminated the luck of winning in March.”
Here are takeaways from CSU’s first-round win.
When CSU changed the game
This was a grinder. CSU (21-11) struggled to find flow and rhythm, which was reflective of the first two matchups against a feisty Fresno State (13-19) team.
CSU trailed 45-39 in the middle of the second half when defense and quick-strike offense change the tone of the game.
Jevin Muniz made a steal and on the fastbreak dumped a pass off to Josh Pascarelli (playing his first game since Feb. 14 due to injury) for a layup. Seconds later freshman Jojo McIver grabbed a steal after hounding a Fresno State ball handler.
That steal ended up kicked to Muniz who nailed an open 3-pointer to cap a 7-0 run and put the Rams up for the first time since the first half.
“That play where Jojo dove on the floor and Jev got the (3-pointer), that really got the momentumgoing for us,” Butler said. “I think from there we just never looked back.”
There was still more back-and-forth from there, but that sequence changed the energy of the game in CSU’s favor.
CSU wears down Fresno State
Depth proved key here. Fresno State guard Zaon Collins was out hurt and the Bulldogs were limited with just six players truly in the rotation (a seventh played just over a minute).
It seemed to play a role in the second half. CSU had 10 players play 4 minutes or more and six with more than 10 minutes of action.
It may have played a role in CSU winning in the small margin, hustle plays. The Rams won rebounding 35-31 and offensive rebounding 13-5.
The Rams had key contributions from a variety of players. Carey Booth scored 18 points and had six rebounds. Muniz had a rough first half (0-3 shooting, one assist and a turnover) and he finished with just one field goal, but it was that key 3-pointer. He racked up six second-half assists (for seven total).
McIver was excellent defensively and also hit a 3-pointer and grabbed three rebounds.
Jase Butler’s ascension continues
In the first 24 games of the season, Butler had six games in double figures in scoring. He’s now done so six games in a row, including his top two scoring games of 25 against San Diego State and the 20 in this one against Fresno State.
He’s become an excellent driver, able to score inside with his left hand and/or draw fouls with his aggression. His smooth 3-pointer is falling as he is 13-28 (46%) from 3-point range over the last six games.
His six-pointers tied for most in a Mountain West tournament game with Prentiss Nixon and Gian Clavell.
In addition to his scoring, Butler had a career-high nine rebounds (three of them offensive).
The sophomore is a transfer from Washington and an emerging force for CSU.
“Zero hesitation with everything he did,” Farokhmanesh said. “We always say this. I’m theclassic guy that everybody says no to, and then I get the second chance the next time around.It’s awesome to see Jase from June to now how much confidence he has. He’s earned all of it, and there’s a reason why he’s in the position he is. He works his tail off. He’s one of the hardest workers on our team. I think everyone can see it. He’s one of the hardest playing guys, not only on our team, but I think in this whole league.”
San Diego State up next
The Rams will now play No. 2 San Diego State in the quarterfinals March 12.
The game will be at 6 p.m. Pacific/7 p.m. Mountain and broadcast on CBS Sports Network.
CSU and San Diego State split the regular season series, with each winning at home. The Rams won 83-74 at Moby Arena on Feb. 21 and lost 73-50 in San Diego on Jan. 28.
San Diego State is on the outer edges of the NCAA Tournament bubble, but the Aztecs likely need to win the Mountain West tournament to earn a Big Dance ticket.
Sports reporter Kevin Lytle can be found on social media on X, Instagram and Threads @Kevin_Lytle and on Bluesky.
This article originally appeared on Fort Collins Coloradoan: Colorado State beats Fresno State to make Mountain West quarterfinals