N. Colorado 72, Colorado St. 59

12/1/2007 9:45 PM

GREELEY, Colo. (AP) -Jabril Banks had 17 points and nine rebounds as Northern Colorado defeated Colorado State for the first time in 20 years with a 72-59 victory Saturday night.

Robert Palacios added 12 points. Jefferson Mason and Taylor Montgomery had 11 points each for Northern Colorado (3-3).

The Bears had 19 offensive rebounds that led to 20 points.

Marcus Walker led Colorado State (4-3) with 17 points on 5-for-12, 3-point shooting. Willis Gardner had 16 points for the Rams, who had beaten Northern Colorado eight straight times before Saturday.

The Rams led by as much as 51-47 after a layup by Gardner, and Gardner's two free throws put them ahead 53-50 with 8:52 left in the game. But Will Figures of the Bears hit an uncontested 3-pointer to tie it at 53.

The game was tied for the last time when Stuart Creason's put-back basket with 6:27 remaining pulled CSU even at 57-57, but Northern Colorado went on a 6-0 run, the final two coming on a layup by Mason with 4:36 left, to put the Bears ahead 63-57. Gardner scored the last points for the Rams with 3:30 remaining before the Rams missed five shots and went scoreless on their final seven possessions.

Northern Colorado led 32-31 at the break in a half where there were eight ties and eight lead changes. Gardner's 3-pointer with 8:36 left gave Colorado State a 24-21 lead, but Devon Beitzel's breakaway layup capped a 6-0 run for the Bears to put them up 27-24.

Ronnie Aguilar tied the game at 28 with a free throw with 3:58 left. A 3-pointer by Montgomery and free throw by Figures in the final 1:32 provided Northern Colorado with its one-point edge.