Colorado State Rams at Utah State Aggies

Great Osobor's 20 points, 14 rebounds lift Utah State over No. 13 Colorado State 77-72

Osobor’s final points from the free-throw line — where he was 8 for 8 — made it 69-60 for Utah State with 1:56 left.

“It was a war in the post,” Osobor said. “They're pushing, they're fouling. I love it, to be honest.”

After trailing most of the game, Josh Uduje capped a 10-0 run with a 3-point play on a follow shot to put the Aggies up 65-57 with 3:57 remaining.

“Spectrum magic is real and tonight we really did see it. The crowd was amazing,” Uduje said of the boost the Spectrum arena fans gave the team.

Fans flooded the court and engulfed the happy Aggies as they won their 13th straight.

“Once they stormed the court, I thought, 'Oh, we're really doing this.' It was fun!” said Osobor, a junior from England.

Utah State (14-1, 2-0 Mountain West Conference) last won against a ranked team on March 7, 2020, defeating fifth-ranked San Diego State 59-56.

Isaiah Stevens led the Rams (13-2, 1-1) with 21 points and eight assists. His late scoring flurry made things interesting but he missed a one-and-one free throw late. Colorado State was 4 for 11 from the line.

“We did have a chance down the stretch but missed two front ends of one-and-ones and missed free throws to make it a one-possession game. We got outscored by 16 points from the free-throw line,” Colorado State coach Niko Medved said.

Nique Clifford had 18 points but fouled out with 1:14 left and Patrick Cartier scored 15 points before fouling out with 1:56 to play.

“He's one of the best guys in the country at getting fouled. We got to do a better job at defending without fouling,” Medved said of Osobor. “He does a great job of initiating contact on every play ... but he got us into foul trouble and it was an enormous factor in the game.”

Coach Danny Sprinkle extended the best-ever start for a first-year Aggies coach.

“We made just enough shots and got to the free-throw line. If we don’t go 20 for 23, we don’t win the game. Our guys were aggressive,” said Sprinkle, who had to change his clothes after getting doused by his players in the locker room.

Osobor, who played for Sprinkle at Montana State before moving to Utah State, gave the Aggies their first lead of the game with 15:28 remaining on a layup to make it 42-41.

“Coach always tells me, ‘When you play hard, with your talent, it’s very hard to match,’” Osobor said.

The Rams led by as many as 10 in the first half and had a 32-28 lead at halftime.

“We could have a much bigger lead but we missed a ton of bunnies at the rim,” Medved said.

BIG PICTURE

Colorado State: The Ram’s motion offense was a bit herky-jerky for a team that has shot 53% on the season.

Utah State: After missing nine straight shots and falling behind in the first half, the Aggies clawed their way back into the game. The Aggies outrebounded the Rams 45-33 and shot 63% in the second half to pull out the win.

UP NEXT

Colorado State: Visits Boise State on Tuesday night.

Utah State: Hosts Wyoming on Tuesday night.

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