Two former Idaho state champions continue their winning ways at Colorado State
It was not the homecoming Tori Williams and Lauren Brocke had envisioned. But even in an empty ExtraMile Arena, winning still felt pretty darn good.
The Centennial High graduates helped the Colorado State women’s basketball team end a seven-game losing streak against Boise State and earn their first sweep of the Broncos since the 2015-16 season. The Rams won 71-51 on Wednesday and 75-53 on Friday.
The Rams (12-2, 8-2 MW) sit alone in first place in the Mountain West standings, and they’ve done so with the two former Idaho high school standouts on their roster.
“I was joking with Tori. The last time she played in Idaho was the state championship game, so it’s really been quite some time for her,” Brocke told the Idaho Statesman in a Zoom interview. “I played (in Boise) my redshirt freshman year, so it’s even been some time for me. Yeah, it’s crappy that fans can’t be there and our parents can’t be there, because I think we’d bring quite the crowd. But it’s just nice to be here, and we’re just grateful for the opportunity to even be playing games right now.”
Williams and Brocke have played together since the third grade. After leading Centennial to a 5A state championship in 2017 as seniors, the pair had planned to go their separate ways in college. Williams committed to Utah, and Brocke was headed to Wichita State.
But both players ended up at Colorado State instead.
Williams played her freshman season at the University of Utah, where she was named a 2018 Pac-12 All-Freshman selection by the media and honorable mention by the coaches. She led the Utes with 64 made 3-pointers, which also was the top mark in the Pac-12 among freshmen.
In the spring of her senior year in high school, Brocke switched her commitment to Colorado State when the Wichita State coach who recruited her left the program. Brocke redshirted with the Rams in 2017-18.
After playing a season apart for the first time in 10 years, the longtime friends were reunited for the 2018-19 season when Williams announced she was transferring to Colorado State.
“We basically talk every day. We’re with each other ever day,” Brocke said. “Even that one year that we were apart, we really didn’t lose anything. She came back and she was still the same Tori. I was still the same Lauren. It’s just been nice having the familiarity and a person that you’ve been with your entire life.”
Added Williams: “We’re definitely big little kids when we’re together, so that hasn’t changed.”
The Rams had an off year in 2019-20, finishing second-to-last in the Mountain West, but they’ve rocketed back to the top this season.
Williams, a 5-foot-9 redshirt junior guard, has started 13 of 14 games for the Rams. She’s averaging 12.9 points, 5.4 rebounds, 3 assists and 1.8 steals per game. Williams ranks No. 1 in the Mountain West — and is tied for No. 13 in the country — with 41 made triples at a shooting clip of 39%.
“(Colorado State coach Ryun Williams) definitely gives me the green light,” Williams said. “But he knows I’m more than just a shooter. He wants me to get into the paint and score or kick it out. He has a lot of trust in me, which is good.”
Williams totaled 15 points, 13 rebounds, five assists and five steals in two games against Boise State.
“This is a great win for Tori and Lauren, both being from Boise, and they’ve been tremendous Rams,” said Ryun Williams, who is not related to Tori. “Tori might have struggled shooting the ball this weekend, but every time that happens she comes out the next weekend and is usually lights out.”
While Brocke and Williams rarely left the court in high school, Brocke’s role with the Rams this season has been primarily on scout team. She was tasked with mimicking the play of one of Boise State’s “leading scorers” during practices leading up to the two-game series in Boise.
“It’s been definitely a different challenge, but it’s a challenge that I’ve kind of accepted,” Brocke said. “I’m just trying to get this scrub (jokingly referring to Williams) and all the others ready to play. It’s something that I enjoy, so it’s been fun.”
Brocke, a 6-3 redshirt junior, has appeared in four games for the Rams this season and 46 throughout her career.
“Lauren, she’s the leader on our bench. She knows the game plan as well as any coach,” Ryun Williams said. “... Her role is a little different — I know she would like to play — but she has accepted whatever we’ve asked her to do. And for these two kids to come into their hometown and get two big victories, I’m very, very proud of them.”
Both players are on track to earn undergraduate degrees this spring. Brocke is a business major with an emphasis in HR management and a minor in entrepreneurship. She plans to seek her master’s in business administration and has her eye on staying in the sports realm, possibly as a coach.
Williams is a communication major with a minor in sports management.
“I want to work as a director of operations for a men’s basketball team,” Williams said. “I just want to show young girls that they can work in a male dominated sport.”
