Former Boilers: Colorado State Upsets Memphis, Ethan Morton Advances in NCAA Tournament
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Former Purdue wing Ethan Morton is advancing to the next round of the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament. On Friday afternoon, No. 12 seed Colorado State pulled off an upset, defeating No. 5 seed Memphis 78-70 in the first round of March Madness.
Morton came off the bench for the Rams and was responsible for three rebounds, an assist and a steal in 14 minutes of action. Colorado State will now play the winner of No. 4 seed Maryland and No. 13 seed Grand Canyon in the Round of 32.
Kyle Evans finished the game with 23 points, Jalen Lake and Nique Clifford each dropped in 14 and Jaylen Crocker-Johnson added 12 for the Rams. They improved to 26-9 with the victory.
ANOTHER THREE FOR THE RAMS 🌧️#MarchMadness pic.twitter.com/gauegNHgny
— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) March 21, 2025
Morton played a critical role in helping Colorado State reach the NCAA Tournament during the Mountain West Conference Tournament. The former Purdue wing scored 11 points, grabbed four rebounds and had an assist in a 69-56 win over Boise State in the Championship Game.
In his lone season with the Rams, Morton is averaging 3.8 points, 3.2 rebounds and 2.3 assists per game. He's shooting 52.7% from the floor. This marks the third time in his five college basketball seasons that Morton has advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
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Dustin Schutte is the publisher of Purdue Boilermakers on SI and has spent more than a decade working in sports journalism. His career began in 2013, when he covered Big Ten football. He remained in that role for eight years before working at On SI to cover the Boilermakers. Dustin graduated from Manchester University in Indiana in 2010, where he played for the men's tennis team.
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