Colorado State earned its third straight victory on Wednesday by defeating UTEP 56-53 at the Sun Bowl Invitational. The Rams trailed after the first half, but out-scored the Miners 29-24 in the second half to secure the victory. The win improves Colorado State to 8-4, while UTEP falls to 6-7 with the loss.
Wes Eikmeier led the way for Colorado State. The junior guard finished with 16 points and six assists on 7-of-8 shooting. Teammate Will Bell added 12 points and four rebounds in the win on 6-of-10 shooting. Pierce Hornung scored eight and Greg Smith scored seven for the Rams in the win.
Gabriel McCulley scored 13 points on 6-of-7 shooting to lead the Miners. C.J. Cooper (11 points) and Michael Perez (10 points) also contributed in the loss.
The Rams shot 21-of-42 in the win. UTEP finished 17-of-39 from the field. Colorado State finished with a 26-21 edge in rebounding.