Virginia vs. Colorado State Game Preview | NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament
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They didn't make it by much, but the Virginia Cavaliers are going dancing and now have a shot to win an NCAA Tournament game for the first time since their run to the 2019 National Championship. Standing in their way is a very solid Colorado State team that tore through its non-conference slate before struggling through the competitive Mountain West, a league that received six March Madness bids. The Cavaliers and Rams narrowly earned at-large bids as the last two teams in the field of 68 and will now face each other in a First Four play-in game in Dayton, with the winner securing the outright No. 10 seed in the Midwest Region and advancing to take on No. 7 seed Texas in the first round on Thursday in Charlotte.
Read on for a full preview of the NCAA Tournament First Four Play-In game between No. 10 seeds Virginia and Colorado State, including game details and notes, statistical comparisons, an opponent scouting report, and what to watch for.
Game Details
Who: No. 10 Virginia Cavaliers (23-10) vs. No. 10 Colorado State Rams (24-10)
When: Tuesday, March 19th at 9:10pm ET
Where: UD Arena in Dayton, Ohio
How to watch: truTV
How to stream: fuboTV (Start your free trial)
How to listen: SiriusXM 84 | Virginia Sports Radio Network - click here for affiliates
All-time series: This is the first meeting between Virginia and Colorado State
Virginia in the NCAA Tournament
- This is Virginia's 26th appearance in the NCAA Tournament and 10th under Tony Bennett.
- UVA owns a 35-24 all-time record in NCAA Tournament games and is 13-8 under Tony Bennett.
- Tony Bennett is 16-10 in the NCAA Tournament as a head coach.
- Virginia is a No. 10 seed in the NCAA Tournament for just the second time. UVA is 0-1 as a No. 10 seed, falling to Florida in the first round of the 2012 NCAA Tournament.
- This is the first time that Virginia will be playing in a First Four play-in game.
- Virginia is 4-5 against teams that made the NCAA Tournament this season, beating Clemson, Florida, Texas A&M, and NC State and falling to Duke, North Carolina, Wisconsin, and twice to NC State.
Game Notes
- This is the first-ever meeting between Virginia and Colorado State.
- UVA is 7-3 all-time against Mountain West teams, but this will be the first time the Cavaliers have faced an opponent from the Mountain West since a win over UNLV in 1995.
- Virginia is 1-1 against the Mountain West in NCAA Tournament games, beating New Mexico in 1994 and falling to Wyoming in 1987.
- Colorado State is 5-1 at neutral sites this season, while Virginia is 3-2 in neutral locations.
- Virginia and Colorado State have played one common opponent this season: Boston College. Colorado State beat Boston College once, 86-74 at a neutral site, and the Cavaliers defeated the Eagles twice, once on the road and then in overtime in the ACC Tournament quarterfinals.
Statistical Comparison
| Virginia | Stats | Colorado State |
|---|---|---|
63.6 | Scoring Offense (PPG) | 76.4 |
59.6 | Scoring Defense (Opponent PPG) | 68.4 |
43.4% | Field Goal % | 48.8% |
36.3% | 3pt Field Goal % | 34.1% |
63.7% | Free Throw % | 75.4% |
40.2% | FG% Defense | 43.2% |
30.4% | 3pt FG% Defense | 33.1% |
32.8 | Rebounds per game | 32.9 |
15.2 | Assists per game | 18.4 |
1.86 | Assist/Turnover Ratio | 1.82 |
Opponent Scouting Report: Colorado State
2023-2024: 24-10, 10-8 Mountain West
The Mountain West was one of the toughest conferences in the 2023-2024 men's basketball season, or at least that's what the NCAA Selection Committee indicated by placing six teams from the Mountain West in the NCAA Tournament field, tied for third-most by any conference. Colorado State went 10-8 in league play and fell in the semifinals of the conference tournament, but thanks to the overall quality of the league and more importantly, a successful run through a rigorous non-conference slate, the Rams made the Big Dance.
Colorado State opened up the season with nine-consecutive wins, with the last four being against major conference opponents in Boston College, Creighton, Colorado, and Washington - Creighton and Colorado made the NCAA Tournament. The Rams also battled with Saint Mary's in non-conference play, falling 64-61 for their first loss. Conference play was a grind, with 12 of Colorado State's 18 games being decided by single digits, including two overtime games.
Colorado State is in the NCAA Tournament for the 12th time in program history and second time in the last three years under head coach Niko Medved, who is in his sixth season coaching the Rams. CSU brings to Dayton one of the most experienced rosters in the entire country, with six of its eight key rotation players being seniors or graduate students and seven of those eight being upperclassmen.
Leading the way is fifth-year superstar Isaiah Stevens, a 6'0" point guard who has been named an All-Mountain West selection in each of his five seasons in Fort Collins, including a First-Team nod in each of the last two years. Stevens is fourth among active Division I men's basketball players in career scoring and the entire Colorado State offense runs through him. He is averaging 16.5 points and 7.0 assists per game and shoots 44.7% from three-point range. The matchup between Stevens and Reece Beekman will be as entertaining as it is important.
Colorado State's second-leading scorer is 6'7", 225-pound graduate forward Joel Scott, who is averaging 12.9 points and 6.0 rebounds per game. Scott won't stretch the floor much, but is highly efficient in the paint and around the rim, converting at 62.8% on two-point field goals.
Joining Scott in the front court is another graduate forward in 6'8" Patrick Cartier, who is averaging 10.5 points per game and is able to stretch the floor as a 36.1% three-point shooter. Cartier is also good around the rim, making 60.5% of his two-point attempts. Expect Cartier to be guarded by Ryan Dunn, while Jordan Minor should get the assignment of defending Joel Scott.
Flanking Isaiah Stevens on the wings are Nique Clifford and Josiah Strong. A 6'6" senior and transfer from Colorado, Clifford does a little bit of everything for the Rams, averaging 12.2 points, 7.5 rebounds. 2.9 assists, and 1.5 steals per game and shooting 38.2% from beyond the arc. Clifford was named to the All-Mountain West Third Team. Josiah Strong rounds out the starting five, averaging 6.7 points and 2.5 rebounds per game, but shooting just 21.5% from three. .
Colorado State runs an eight-man rotation for the most part, with 6'4" junior guard Jalen Lake (6.2 ppg), 6'4" graduate guard Joe Palmer (5.2 ppg), and 6'7" freshman forward Rashaan Mbemba (4.0 ppg) contributing off the bench. The Rams got 73 total points from their bench across three games in the Mountain West Tournament last week.
Colorado State is an old veteran team, shares the ball well, and doesn't turn it over. The Rams commit just 10.1 turnovers per game, ranking 44th in college basketball in that category. They're fifth in the country in assists at 18.4 per game and fourth in the country with a 1.82 assist to turnover ratio. This game features two of the most disciplined teams in the country when it comes to ball security and unselfish basketball.
What to Watch For
Reece Beekman vs. Isaiah Stevens
Among all active Division I men's basketball players, only Zach Edey (Purdue), Jahmir Young (Maryland), and Max Abmas (Texas) have scored more points in their careers than Isaiah Stevens, who has scored 2,335 career points. The fifth-year point guard also leads all active players in career assists with 855. He's been an All-Mountain West selection every season of his career. The only thing missing from his collegiate resume is a win in the NCAA Tournament.
Does that sound familiar? It should. Reece Beekman is now a two-time ACC Defensive Player of the Year, three-time All-ACC selection, three-time ACC All-Defensive Team selection, the UVA all-time steals leader, third in career assists, and a two-time ACC regular season champ. But like Stevens, he's never won an NCAA Tournament game. That will change for one of them on Tuesday night and the outcome of their individual matchup will go a long way towards determining who advances.
Clean, disciplined basketball
Virginia and Colorado State rank third and fourth in the country in assist to turnover ratio, respectively. Both teams play an unselfish brand of basketball, prioritizing ball movement and ball security. The Rams are also quite comfortable playing at a slow pace, ranking 270th in the country in adjusted tempo, while the Cavaliers, of course, are occupying their usual spot of dead last in pace of play. Every possession will be critical in this game.
Defend the paint.
Colorado State shoots a middle of the pack 34.1% from three as a team, which ranks 179th in the country, but ranks 18th in overall field goal percentage at 48.8% and eighth in the nation in two-point field goal percentage at 58.2%. The way the Rams share the ball without turning it over leads to consistent high shot quality. Virginia, meanwhile, has held opponents to 46.6% on two-point field goals, a top-50 mark in the country. It will require a disciplined effort from the UVA defense to not allow the Rams their usual easy looks around the rim.
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