CSU ends 14-year drought in thrilling win at San Diego St.

SAN DIEGO – Gian Clavell simply couldn't miss.

The senior guard for the CSU men's basketball team scored a career-high 37 points Saturday to lead the Rams to their first win at San Diego State in 14 years, a 78-77 victory that keeps Colorado State University in the thick of the race for the Mountain West title.

Clavell banked in a 3-pointer with 1:30 remaining to give CSU its biggest lead of the game, 76-72. Then, after San Diego State went back on top via two free throws by Trey Kell with 10.7 seconds left, Clavell drove past two defenders for a layup with 3.8 seconds remaining to hand CSU the win, its first at San Diego State since 2003.

Clavell said it was the best game he's ever played, and it couldn't have come in a better setting.

"I love San Diego State, (coach) Steve Fisher, the players," he said. "I've always wanted to win here."

Without Clavell, it wouldn't have happened. He hit 4 of 6 shots from 3-point range, several fall-away jumpers from 18 feet away on the baseline and all five of his free throws. He scored 30 points in the second half, making 11 of the 14 shots he put up. He had eight rebounds, too. And two steals and two blocked shots.

He was in a zone like none he'd ever been in before. The 37 points is believed to be the most any player has scored against San Diego State since BYU star Jimmer Fredette poured in 43 during a 2011 game.

"I wasn't thinking about anything to be honest," Clavell said. "I didn't know what I had. I was just playing. It was weird feeling – a weird feeling but it was good."

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CSU's other senior, 6-foot-8 forward Emmanuel Omogbo, did his best to keep up with his high-scoring teammate, pouring in a career-most 24 points and pulling down nine rebounds.

Omogbo went 4 for 4 from 3-point range and 8 of 18 overall.

He and Clavell combined for 47 of the Rams' 55 second-half points.

"They're two special players," Eustachy said. "(With them), you always have a chance to win."

They are two players who are reminded every day by their coach that their college careers are coming to a close. After both recorded double-doubles Wednesday night in a win over San Jose State, the coach talked not just about the number of games they had remaining but about how many hours of practice they had left.

It's clearly sinking in.

Clavell, who came in averaging a team-leading 16.9 points a game, has scored more than 20 in six of the past nine games. And Omogbo, who was averaging 13.2 points and a MW-best 10.7 rebounds, has scored 13 or more points and pulled down eight or more rebounds in eight straight games.

"Everything happened through the flow of the offense," Omogbo said. "We didn't really try to force anything. When Gian was on, we kept going to him. And when he was in foul trouble, I picked up the scoring load."

After shooting just 30 percent from the floor (9 of 30) in the first half and falling behind 33-23, the Rams shot 61 percent (19 of 31) in the second half while limiting the Aztecs to 46 percent (12 of 26) over the final 20 minutes and 45 percent (26 of 58) for the game.

Forward Malik Pope scored 19 points and guards Jeremy Hemsley 17 and Trey Kell 16 for the Aztecs (11-9, 3-5), who wasted a double-digit lead for the second straight game and sixth time this season.

This game, though, was all about Clavell. He remembers coming to Viejas two years ago with J.J. Avila, Daniel Bejarano and Stanton Kidd on a CSU team that finished 27-7, the best record in school history. And still losing to the Aztecs while being jeered by their vocal student section, known as "The Show."

He fed off their energy Saturday, he said. And he walked out of the arena with a victory in the best game he's ever played.

"I'm just grateful," he said.

Follow reporter Kelly Lyell at twitter.com/KellyLyell and facebook.com/KellyLyell.news

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Boise State at CSU, 7 p.m. Tuesday, Moby Arena

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CSU 78, SAN DIEGO STATE 77

At Viejas Arena, San Diego

Colorado State 23-55—78

San Diego State 33-44—77

Colorado State (13-8, 6-3 MW) – Omogbo 8-18 4-4 24, Carvacho 0-1 2-4 2, Clavell 14-23 5-5 37, Nixon 1-7 0-0 2, Paige 3-8 1-1 7, Bonner 1-2 0-0 3, Koelliker 1-2 0-0 3. Totals 28-61 12-14 78.

San Diego State (11-9, 3-5 MW) – Hoetzel 3-5 2-2 10, Pope 7-12 4-6 19, Kell 4-12 7-9 16, Allen 4-5 3-4 11, Hemsley 6-17 3-7 17, Williams 0-2 0-0 0, Gill-Caesar 0-1 0-0 0, Izundu 2-2 0-0 4. Totals 26-58 19-28 77.

A—11,881