The Colorado St. Rams (17-10, 6-6) teetered on the brink of major upset of the No. 24 San Diego St. Aztecs (22-6, 8-4) but could not hold their lead in the second half, falling 66-74 late.
Midway through the first half, the Rams took a 21-12 lead, but the Aztecs put up 8 straight points to draw the game to 21-20 with 5:46 remaining in the half. The Rams drew the margin back out to 34-30 by the half, but San Diego State kept the game even closer through the early part of the second half.
The Aztecs finally took and kept the lead midway through the second half, eventually drawing out their lead to 67-59 with just 1:40 remaining in the game. The Rams fought back, but steady free throws from the San Diego State offense undid the Rams' hopes of an upset.
Junior G Wes Eikmeier (14 pts, 3 reb), and junior G Dorian Green (14 pts, 7 reb) and junior F Pierce Hornung (11 pts, 9 reb) all played major roles in the Rams chances, but ultimately, the team could not contain the dual threat of sophomore G Jamaal Franklin (31 pts, 16 reb), who landed 13 points in the last four and half minutes alone.
The Rams will be back in action on Wednesday night, taking on the No. 20 UNLV Runnin' Rebels
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