Nique Clifford recorded his 14th double-double of the season to lead the CSU men’s basketball team to a 67-59 victory over Nevada in the quarterfinals of the Mountain West Conference tournament Thursday in Las Vegas.
Clifford scored 25 points and grabbed 14 rebounds as the Rams secured a spot in the semifinals against the winner of Thursday’s late game between Utah State and UNLV.
With the win, the Rams improved to 23-9 overall and extended their current winning streak to eight games.
CSU only led by one, 29-28, at halftime but scored the first three points of the second half and never led by fewer than four points after that. The Rams’ largest lead came at 61-51 with 1:55 remaining in the game as they were able to keep the Wolf Pack from making a late run.
In addition to Clifford’s 15 points, Kyan Evans had 11 and Jaylen Crocker-Johnson 10.
CSU jumped out to a 5-0 lead and never trailed in the game. The Rams led by as many as nine early when a 3-pointer by Clifford gave them a 13-4 lead. Nevada cut the CSU advantage to a single point multiple times, but in each instance the Rams managed to extend their lead without giving it up.
The Rams led 29-28 at halftime and then outscored the Wolf Pack 38-31 in the final 20 minutes.
CSU’s game against the Utah State-UNLV winner is scheduled for 10 p.m. MT on Friday at the Thomas & Mack Center.
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