Crocker drills game-winning 3-pointer, picks up big win

FORT COLLINS • As Colorado State coach Ryun Williams said postgame, welcome to February.

The stretch run is underway for all college basketball teams across the country and the CSU women kicked it off with a bang. On Saturday, the Rams did something it hadn’t done all season — win a close game.

Williams’ team was 0-6 in games decided by five points or less heading into their first Border War matchup of the season and this just seemed like the perfect opportunity. With the game tied up at 63 in the final seconds and with everyone inside Moby Arena on their feet, junior guard Cailyn Crocker made sure everyone left happy.

“Welcome to the Border War,” Williams said postgame. “It’s always that type of game. They’re pretty experienced over there, so we knew they were going to come in here really ready to go and I thought our kids showed a lot of fight today. Nothing’s ever easy when you play a game like this. To come out on top in a game like this, which we haven’t done yet, [I’m] really proud of our kids.”

Just like the entire Wyoming team did on the game-winning play, the attention around this Rams team has surrounded senior guard McKenna Hofschild.

The 5-foot-5 Minnesota native may not be the most intimidating player upon first glance, but it only takes a few possessions to understand how good she is.

After a 25-point game against Wyoming that featured a perfect 10-for10 performance from the free throw line, Hofschild is now averaging over 21 points per game this season, nearly four points per game higher than the next closest player in the conference.

A good reason she’s likely headed toward Mountain West Player of the Year honors in a few weeks was illustrated on the game’s final play.

Hofschild is also by far the conference’s leader in assists and wasn’t hesitant to give the ball up in the final seconds.

The pass to Crocker wound up being her ninth assist on an afternoon where every one of them counted.

This was an important win for the Rams, who now sit tied for second in the conference with San Diego State and coincidentally, Wyoming. With just two of their final six games coming at home, they’ll need every ounce of momentum they can get.

“We’re walking off the court with smiles on our faces and you’re feeling good and it just grows a belief that you can finish,” Williams said. “That’s how it is in February and March, in conference play and in the conference tournament. You’re going to see a lot of games like that. Our kids are playing good basketball. Even in our tough losses, we’ve played pretty good. Just proud that we got this done today for our fans.”