The Colorado State men’s basketball team continues to reach new heights.
CSU (8-0) made big jumps Monday in both the AP Top 25 poll and the USA Today Coaches Poll, rising from 20 to 13 in the AP rankings and from 21 to 12 in the Coaches’ edition.
The top-15 rankings are the highest ever for CSU. The Rams’ previous highest ranking came during the 1953-54 season when the Rams reached No. 18 in the AP poll.
CSU’s jump was a result of the team’s two wins last week over Pac-12 opponents. The Rams defeated Colorado, 88-83, on Wednesday at Moby Arena before defeating Washington, 86-81, in the Legends of Basketball Invitational on Saturday in Las Vegas.
Also Monday, the initial NET rankings were released, and CSU debuted at No. 7. The NCAA Evaluation Tool is used by the NCAA selection committee to rank teams. In 2019, it replaced the old Ratings Percentage Index (RPI) which was used from 1981 to 2018.
Additionally, CSU graduate guard Isaiah Stevens picked up his second straight Mountain West player of the week award, the league announced Monday.
Stevens averaged 16 points, eight assists and two steals with a 2.3 assist-to-turnover ratio in last week’s victories over the Buffs and Huskies. He had his third double-double of the year with his 20-point, 11 assist-performance against Colorado and turned in a 12-point, five-assist performance against Washington while battling foul trouble. Ten of his 12 points came in the second half of the victory.
CSU has a pair of home games at Moby Arena this week, against Denver at 7 p.m. Wednesday and St. Mary’s at 4:30 p.m. Saturday.
