FORT COLLINS — For 36 minutes, Colorado State looked just fine without its leader, its motor, its closer — Prentiss Nixon, who was sidelined with an ankle injury.
They looked more than fine, in fact, as the Rams effectively slowed the game down to their pace, frustrating one of the highest-scoring teams in the country, and used a balanced offense to take control late in the second half.
Nixon's absence, though, soon became the story of the game.
Up nine with less than 4 minutes to play — giving the Rams a win probability of 92.