Kevin Lytle | The Coloradoan

Kevin Lytle, kevinlytle@coloradoan.com

The nervous energy at Moby Arena was palpable.

An 18-point second-half lead for a CSU men's basketball team on the brink of an upset of Fresno State had been cut to four in the final two minutes.

Let the freshman handle it.

A basket and free throw by Kendle Moore boosted the lead to seven, and the Rams held on for an impressive 74-65 victory.

Here are three takeaways from the game.

Second-half start

After falling apart in the final 20 minutes of a 40-point loss at Nevada on Tuesday, the Rams changed the second-half narrative Saturday.

CSU started the second half on a 13-0 run and held Fresno State scoreless for more than the first five minutes of the half to turn a three-point halftime lead into a 16-point advantage.

That lead grew to as much as 18 before Fresno State chipped away to make it a tight finish. The lead was down to five multiple times in the final minutes and down to four with 1:10 left.

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CSU showed its youth and inexperience in its inability to put the game away without some nervous moments.

But it ended as a win and a great response after giving up 58 second-half points in the 40-point loss to Nevada.

Best win of season

This was, without a doubt, the best win for first-year coach Niko Medved and his team. Fresno State (14-5, 5-2 MW) has been the clear second-best team in the Mountain West behind top-10 Nevada.

The Bulldogs’ only loss in conference was to Nevada.

“Really big (win)," senior J.D. Paige said. "Fresno’s the second team in the conference. It just shows that we can play with anybody when we’re locked in and focused."

CSU (8-12, 3-4 MW) came close to giving the game away late, and the Rams were an awful 18 for 32 from the free throw line, including 12 for 24 in the second half.

The Rams did hit their final six in a row to help seal the win.

Paige led the Rams with 17 points, Moore had 16 points, seven rebounds and three assists.

CSU was just 3 for 19 from 3-point territory in a loss at Fresno State early in conference play, but the Rams hit 10 of 20 from deep Saturday.

The offense was far from great, and the Rams had a stretch late in the second half of more than four minutes without a field goal.

Defense shows up

CSU held on because of its defense, something that hasn’t happened this season.

The Rams are the least efficient defensive team in the conference, allowing 78 points per game and for opponents to shoot nearly 46 percent from the field.

The Rams have shown flashes of good defense but rarely put together a full game on the defensive end.

Fresno State star Deshon Taylor had a big game, finishing with 24 points. Other than him, the Rams were excellent defensively.

“Without question (our most complete defensive game)," Medved said. "I thought our guys played really good defense. For the most part we made them earn everything for 40 minutes."

That defense was key in the final 10 minutes, as CSU couldn't score and continued to miss free throws.

The Bulldogs shot 37 percent overall and 27 percent from 3-point range.

Follow sports reporter Kevin Lytle at twitter.com/Kevin_Lytle and at facebook.com/KevinSLytle.

CSU 74, Fresno State 65

Fresno State 30 35 — 65

CSU 33 41 — 74

Fresno State (14-5, 5-2 MW) — Taylor 24, Grimes 16, Huggins 12, Rojas 7, McWilliams 3, Agau 3.

Colorado State (8-12, 3-4 MW) — Paige 16, Moore 16, Edwards 12, Martin 11, Carvacho 9, Masinton-Bonner 6, Thistlewood 3.

Attendance — 2,877