Paxton Ritchey-CSC Sports Information
CHADRON, Neb. – Chadron State shot 50 percent from the field and 56 percent from three-point range to win their third game in a row, defeating CSU Pueblo 81-65 on Saturday afternoon at the Chicoine Center in Chadron.
The Eagles (12-10, 8-6 RMAC) have won five of their last six games, with all five wins coming at home. Crucially, Chadron State moved into seventh place in the RMAC standings and three games ahead of CSU Pueblo (10-12, 5-9 RMAC), which is part of a pack of schools tied for ninth place with the top eight schools qualifying for the conference tournament.
While the lead changed hands six times in the opening six minutes, Chadron State led for the final 34 minutes of game time and pushed the lead to as many as 20 in the second half before the final margin of 16 points. Chadron State outrebounded CSU Pueblo 39-28, outscored them 38-22 in the paint and held the ThunderWolves to 38 percent from the field and 25 percent from deep.
Above all, the Eagles got hot shooting, making 32 of 64 field goal attempts and 10 of 18 threes. It marks the sixth time this season that the Eagles have shot 50 percent or better, while CSC’s .556 percentage from beyond the arc is its second-best single-game performance of the year in that category.
Zy Wright scored 22 points on 8 of 13 shooting to lead the Eagles, also making 2 of 3 three-pointers and all four free-throw tries. Trey Ballard added 19 points off the bench, hitting a team-high three three-pointers.
Jalen Thomas stuffed the stat sheet again, finishing with 14 points, seven rebounds and seven assists. Darrius Miles added 11 points and eight rebounds.
Five players – Miles, Dalton Petersen, Julio Phipps, Zach Smith and John Jenkins – all hit one three-pointer apiece for the Eagles, with Petersen, Smith and Jenkins all connecting on their only attempt from behind the arc.
Chadron State led by seven at halftime and continued to generate good looks in the second half. After CSU Pueblo closed the deficit to five points, CSC scored on its next four possessions, punctuated by a Zy Wright three, to open up a 52-40 advantage.
Leading by 11 after the under-12 media timeout, Chadron State hit three threes in four trips down the floor, with Trey Ballard splashing home a triple to put CSC up 70-50 with 9:09 left and prompting a Pueblo timeout. The Eagles led by 14 or more for the rest of the game.
The Eagles will play their next four games away from home. A key stretch awaits next week when CSC travels to face third-place MSU Denver and first-place Colorado School of Mines next weekend on February 13 and 15.