Colorado State defeats Utah State in Mountain West semifinals 83-72

LAS VEGAS (AP) — Nique Clifford had 26 points in Colorado State's 83-72 victory over Utah State on Friday in the Mountain West Conference Tournament semifinals.

The No. 2-seed, Colorado State will play fifth-seeded Boise State in Saturday's championship game. The Broncos upset top-seeded New Mexico in Friday's first semifinal.

Clifford added 11 rebounds and six assists for the Rams (24-9). Kyan Evans scored 14 points, shooting 4 for 6 (4 for 5 from 3-point range) and 2 of 3 from the free-throw line. Jalen Lake had 14 points and shot 5 of 8 from the field, including 2 for 4 from 3-point range, and went 2 for 3 from the line. It was the seventh straight win for the Rams.

The Aggies (26-7) were led by Mason Falslev, who posted 22 points, seven rebounds and four steals. Ian Martinez added 13 points, six rebounds and four assists for Utah State. Karson Templin also had 11 points and nine rebounds.

Colorado State took the lead with 19:13 left in the first half and did not give it up. Clifford led his team in scoring with 13 points in the first half to help put them ahead 49-30 at the break. Colorado State used an 8-0 run in the second half to build a 25-point lead at 57-32 with 17:11 left in the half before finishing off the win.

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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.