Colton Iverson and Rebounding Will be Key for No. 8 Colorado State

The Colorado State Rams finished the season with a 25-8 record overall. The team’s 11-5 record in a surprisingly good Mountain West Conference earned the Rams a berth in the 2013 NCAA Tournament. In a matchup with No. 9 Missouri, the key will be rebounding and the play of Colorado State’s star Colton Iverson.

A three year bench player for the Minnesota Golden Gophers, Iverson has turned into a star for Coloardo State. In his senior season, Iverson is averaging 14.7 points, 9.8 rebounds and 1.3 assists. Iverson plays 29.7 minutes per game and shoots .599 from the field. Iverson leads the team in points and rebounds. All this production comes from a guy who played less than 20 minutes in games for Minnesota. In three seasons, Iverson averaged 5.4, 5.0 and 5.4 points per game.

The 6’10” forward had 14 double doubles during the season. Iverson’s 9.8 rebounds per game are the main reason why Colorado State ranks fourth in the country in rebounds per contest (40.4). However, in their first round matchup, the Rams will actually face one of the three teams that pull in more rebounds per contest.

The Missouri Tigers rank second in the nation with 41.4 rebounds per contest. For Missouri, Alex Oriakhi leads the way with 8.6 rebounds per contest. Iverson will need to help the Rams control the glass in the game. Iverson will be the X-factor for the Rams in the game, as he has been all year.

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