CSU MENS BASKETBALL

CSU player, New Mexico assistants argue outside arena

Kelly Lyell
kellylyell@coloradoan.com
CSU basketball coach Larry Eustachy tries to calm down player Emmanuel Omogbo during a heated exchange between the Rams and New Mexico players near the end of Saturday's game at Moby Arena.

CSU basketball player Emmanuel Omogbo had to be held back by coach Larry Eustachy on Saturday after getting into a verbal altercation with three New Mexico assistant coaches outside the McGraw Athletic Center.

Omogbo’s emotions were still running high following the Rams’ 84-71 loss to the Lobos at Moby Arena in a physical game. It’s not clear who started the verbal exchange, but video posted to Twitter by Albuquerque Journal reporter Geoff Grammer shows the coaches and Omogbo screaming insults at each other as Eustachy holds Omogbo back.

Eustachy’s wife, Lana, then walks over to the New Mexico assistants and suggests they get on the team bus. Instead, they stand there and watch as Omogbo is steered toward the parking lot by the Eustachys.

Two of the assistant coaches, Terrence Rencher and Chris Harriman, had been ejected with 2:10 remaining in the game for leaving the bench during a skirmish between the two teams that occurred after CSU guard J.D. Paige was floored by a blind screen set by New Mexico forward Joe Furstinger.

“It was a clean play,” Eustachy said. “He just ran into a screen; it was as simple as that. But this started before the game with just some things that we don’t do, and we got caught up in the moment.”

But Furstinger’s response, briefly flexing in a Hulk-like pose and then bumping CSU’s Anthony Bonner as he jogged back down the court, caused tempers that had been heating up with trash talk during pregame warmups to boil over.

Stephens: New Mexico coach shows he's a coward, but got last laugh

Players from both teams approached each other at halfcourt as Paige was lying on the floor, being attended to by team trainers. CSU’s Gian Clavell pushed teammate Prentiss Nixon back to keep him from going after New Mexico players, but there was no other physical contact other than coaches and teammates holding each other back.

Plenty of words were exchanged, though, and, after a lengthy review of video of the incident, Nixon and New Mexico’s Obij Aget were both assessed technical fouls, while Rencher and Harriman were ejected.

There was no immediate word on whether or not any additional penalties would be assessed.

“The Mountain West is aware of the situation, and the review is already underway,” a conference spokesman said.

Colorado testing idea of adding girls high school wrestling

Paige, Eustachy said, was not seriously injured and should be available for the Rams’ game Wednesday night at Fresno State. CSU (11-7, 3-2 Mountain West) only has seven players available for the remainder of the season after losing three to academic ineligibility Tuesday, when spring-semester classes begin.

New Mexico (10-8, 3-3) led 83-67 when the incident occurred.

CSU’s Gian Clavell, a senior guard who scored 22 points, was standing near reporters seated courtside as officials reviewed video of the incident before assessing penalties when he yelled to his teammates: “We’re going to go there, and I promise you we’re going to beat the (crap) out of them.”

Clavell later said he was simply trying to calm his teammates down in the heat of the moment and that the Rams’ Feb. 21 game at New Mexico “is just going to be a normal game; it’s not anything special.

“… Whatever I said to the guys was just to motivate them, just to stay composed in that moment, get motivated, and just think about it.”

Eustachy said players were talking more than the usual amount of trash during pregame warmups and throughout the game. Courtside observers said they heard New Mexico players and coaches making derogatory comments about the impending academic ineligibility of the three CSU players and Clavell’s arrest in November on a misdemeanor charge of false imprisonment with a domestic violence enhancement. And they heard CSU players tell New Mexico players that their coaches were about to be fired.

“New Mexico’s capable of chirping that way, and we got caught up into it at the end,” Eustachy said. “… I thought we finally got it under control and didn’t even take a shot at the end. Got the game over with, and we move forward.”

Follow reporter Kelly Lyell at twitter.com/KellyLyell and facebook.com/KellyLyell.news

Big second half powers CSU women past New Mexico