CSU’s Isaiah Stevens on cusp of breaking Ryan Yoder’s 30-year-old record – The Denver Post

About the same time Resurrection Christian head boys basketball coach Ryan Yoder’s Cougars wrap up their game Saturday against Sterling, a long-standing record he has held at Colorado State will likely fall.

Current CSU guard Isaiah Stevens needs just two assists to break Yoder’s career mark of 530, a record that has stood for 30 years. Stevens is likely to tie and break that record in the early minutes of CSU’s game at Wyoming, also Saturday (2 p.m.).

For Yoder, the record is something he has been proud of, but there is no one he would rather see break it than the dynamic senior point guard whose 11 assists in Wednesday’s overtime loss to San Diego State put him on the cusp of the record.

“It’s been an honor to have that record, since 1994,” Yoder said. “A lot of great players, Milt Palacio, and lots of other great point guards have come through, so it has been an honor. But I wouldn’t want anybody other than Isaiah to break it.

“He’s a phenomenal player. He’s a better point guard than I ever was. Really solid guy, man of character, man of faith, so he deserves it. He’s worked his tail off. He’s played four great years for CSU. If anyone’s going to break it, I am glad it is Isaiah. I have a lot of respect for him.”

Yoder’s mark was cemented at 530 his senior year of 1993-94. He broke the previous mark of 397 his junior year — when he tallied an ongoing, single-season program record 204. He spent his senior year adding another 187 to that mark.

Others have come close since. Palacio, who Yoder mentioned, had 420 from 1996-99. With 147 last season, Stevens passed Palacio and moved into second place with 443.

It was at the end of last season when Stevens really realized the record was within his reach this year. Now that the moment is at hand, he is excited about it.

“It’s been exciting,” Stevens said. “Obviously, dealing with injuries, you don’t know how that all plays out and everything, but we’re here, two assists away. I feel like before the end of the year, God willing, I’ll be able to get two of them. I’m super excited just to be in this position.

“I’ve been in pursuit of the record for a long time now. I’ve known about the numbers. As the years start to go by and the numbers add up, you start realizing, ‘Oh I need x-amount in a year or x-amount over a stretch of games,’ and you just start chipping away at it.”

The record has been a goal of Stevens’ since he first stepped foot on the CSU campus — actually before he ever played a game. Head coach Niko Medved had lunch with the future star at Tokyo Joe’s to discuss what Stevens could bring to the program.

Medved made it clear something like breaking records could be a possibility with hard work and dedication — both characteristics Stevens has — and he could be one of the best to ever come through the program. His coach is excited to see him reach such a milestone record.

“I think for Isaiah, this has been a dream or a goal of his since he came here, his first year,” Medved said. “He really wanted to be that guy. You are talking about a young man who had that vision for himself, that he could be that kind of a player. We sat down and we talked, and I told him the vision I had for him, first of all, that he was going to be our starting point guard as a freshman and that I intended it to be that way for the rest of his career and that I thought he could be a special player and a special leader and that’s what I saw in him.

“He saw that in himself and now to see that manifest over his career, be able to do that, that’s what you live for as a coach, to see guys come in and have an opportunity to reach their goals and dreams, that’s just so cool as a coach.”

Yoder and Stevens are no strangers to each other. With Yoder coaching only about 16 miles from Moby Arena, the two have crossed paths on many occasions.

One of those encounters came at a Christian Athletes in Action event, where Isaiah hung out and took pictures with Yoder and his family, including his son Ty, who is a sophomore point guard for the Cougars and looks up to and admires Stevens.

“Ty got to meet him, which I thought was pretty cool because Ty admires him and plays point guard and watches him play to learn from him,” Ryan said. “He’s a really solid guy.”

Ryan has joked with Stevens, telling him he needs to shoot more, but said Stevens just smiles when he says that.

While Ryan has his own basketball commitment Saturday, he is well aware of how close Stevens is to the record and wishes him well.

That respect is mutual.

“He’s a super cool dude, down to earth,” Stevens said of Yoder. “He has been a big supporter of me being a point guard at CSU. He’s never shied away from saying he likes the record, but at the same time he has been a big-time supporter of me in pursuit of it as well. We’ve had some pretty cool conversations, even in private, away from everybody else, that have been really heartwarming. He is a great dude. He is doing a lot out here in the basketball community in northern Colorado, so big shout-out to Ryan.”

Stevens’ pursuit of the record began with 144 his freshman year, which ranks as the seventh-best season total in program history. He followed that with 152 his sophomore year, the fourth-best ever, and 147 last season, tied for the fifth-best ever.

He currently has 86 this season. That total would be higher had he not missed the Rams’ first seven games recovering from a foot injury.

Once he leaves the program with the assists record — and he could also leave with the program’s second-highest career scoring total — he hopes his legacy lives on at CSU for years to come.

“I’ve been here for quite a while now,” Stevens said. “I think it is super special to be able to leave an imprint on the program, especially by being able to have your name in the record book. You don’t get to always control how that goes. A lot of it has to do with being available, being able to play. I have just been super blessed in that regard to be able to play in a lot of games, so I can’t overlook that fact that’s helped me get there.”

Stevens went on to say the record will be his biggest accomplishment and he wouldn’t mind seeing it stick around for 30 years, as Yoder’s did, or longer.

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