Rams finally back, hosting Air Force
The coronavirus pandemic halted the surging Colorado State men’s basketball team dead in its tracks following a sweep of rival Wyoming in early February.
Having won eight of their last 10 games, it appeared no adversary could disrupt the Mountain West title-contending Rams as they returned home from Laramie except a pause related to COVID-19.
CSU endured a three-week layoff with COVID issues plaguing its next three scheduled opponents — Northern Colorado, New Mexico and Nevada.
Now the question is whether rust proves detrimental or if Niko Medved’s squad can pick up where it left off. But until the green and gold tip off against Air Force on Saturday at Moby Arena, there’s no way of telling.
“I wish I could tell you I knew how we would come out and play or how this is gonna look,” Medved said. “Obviously, this is all unprecedented. You never have a break like this this late in the season. So this is new for all of us. I think we’ve practiced well. I think our guys’ mindset is great. But we won’t know until we get back out there in those first 10 to 20 minutes of that game and feel what that feels like.”
From a conditioning standpoint, it’s impossible to completely mimic the physical demands of game action, even in a strenuous practice.
According to Medved, the team performed well behind closed doors at Moby Arena during the extended hiatus.
“It’s more short, hard, intense practices,” Medved said. “You want to keep guys healthy too.
So for us, we wanted to see if we could get smarter, mentally tougher, execute better, stay in shape and just be ready for our next opponent. Every day they came out, they were really good. They had good energy. I sensed no letdown whatsoever.”
When COVID-19 afflicted the Rams’ roster in late November, quarantine regulations forbade them from even sniffing Moby’s hardwood or touching a basketball. This time around they were able to practice as a team.
“I’ve really loved everything about the way this group has handled this season,” Medved said. “I can’t emphasize that enough. From all the way back when this happened last year into the summer and our first COVID pause we had before the season, they’ve just done a remarkable job of handling everything. They’re such a resilient group. They respond to everything.
“It’s funny; sometimes, they’re more resilient than the adults. They’ve done a great job. ”
In addition to hosting Air Force with the 2 p.m. tip, CSU’s return to action includes four contests in seven days to conclude the regular season.
In other words, the Rams transition from not competing for three weeks to grinding out a league battle once every 48 hours. So, Medved wasn’t exactly thrilled when the MW recently elected to pencil in the New Mexico game on March 3 and Nevada on March 5.
“I mean, clearly our guys want to play,” the coach described. “We’ll take anything that’s in front of us. But I think if you look around, (the Mountain West) clearly put us in a tough challenge here. Four games in seven days like that is difficult. But if any group is up for it, we are.”