GREELEY — Colorado State’s Dorian Green had that look before the game even began. You know, That Look. Nearly every jump shot he put up during warm-ups found the bottom of the net. As far as he was concerned, it was a near certainty to repeat itself when those shots counted.
Butler-Hancock Pavilion, he said after CSU’s 92-78 win over Northern Colorado, is an arena just short of a shooter’s paradise.
He sure made it look that way. Green put on a blistering display from the 3-point line, scoring a career-high 36 points Thursday night for the Rams, which have won consecutive games and notched their first road win of the season.
“In warm-ups I told one of the assistant coaches, ‘I’m on fire,’ ” Green said. “It’s just one of those feelings where you come out … it’s just kind of a shooter’s gym. I was just feeling it from the beginning.”
He scored 24 of his points from the 3-point line, where he was 8-of-10. His career night included highs in 3-pointers made and field goals made (11), and he tied a career-high in field-goal attempts (16). He even had two 4-point plays.
“He was phenomenal,” CSU coach Tim Miles said. “One of the two he missed he was complaining he got fouled on. That tells you the kind of night he was having.”
Green’s 36 points was the most from a CSU player since Nov. 17, 2007, when Marcus Walker got 43 against Tennessee State. Green’s 3-point total tied David Evans in 1995 for fourth-most in a game.
Aside from Green’s Herculean performance, the key for the Rams (7-4) was getting control of UNC guard Tate Unruh.
When the Bears’ sophomore guard was scoring, UNC was at its best. He scored 10 points in the first 9:15 of the contest as CSU struggled to guard him. The Rams found themselves down 22-17.
But Unruh did not score his next basket until there was 4:45 left in the game. With him off the scoresheet for the majority of the contest, UNC’s effectiveness whittled away and CSU took control.
A 15-0 CSU run at the start of the second half blew the game open, going from 50-44 to 65-44. UNC (3-8), a participant in last season’s NCAA Tournament, made a couple failed attempts at getting back into the game.
Green led five Rams in double figures. Wes Eikmeier checked in with 15 points. CSU also nailed 13-of-24 shots from the 3-point line as they set a season high in points.
“It was good,” Miles said. “We needed this.”
Christopher Dempsey: 303-954-1279 or cdempsey@denverpost.com
