CU Above the Rim – February, 2014

February 22nd – at Boulder          No. 4 Arizona 88, Colorado 61

On January 23rd, Colorado opened its game at Arizona with an 18-4 deficit on its way to a rout in Tucson.

On February 22nd, Colorado opened its game at Arizona with a 17-3 deficit on its way to a rout by Arizona in Boulder.

The Buffs fought back at home to make it a six-point game at the half, and cut the lead to four points several times early in the second half, but allowed the Wildcats to shoot 80% in the second half on their way to an 88-61 romp over Colorado. Josh Scott had 18 points eight rebounds for the Buffs, but everyone else on the team was ineffective. Askia Booker finished with ten points, but was held without a basket for the first 29:58 of the game, finishing 4-of-14 from the field. Xavier Johnson went 1-of-10 from the field, with the Buffs hitting 32% for the game … to 60% for the game for Arizona.

“It was a disappointing performance by our team and I have to look square in the mirror on that,” Boyle said. “As their coach, I didn’t do a very good job tonight.”

The Buffs go on the road for their final three regular-season games, traveling to Utah on Saturday, then wrapping up at Stanford (Wednesday, March 5) and California (Saturday, March 8). The Pac-12 Tournament is March 12-15 in Las Vegas, and Boyle might need that long to digest this weekend’s letdown.

After crediting Arizona for its performance, he reflected on the magnitude of the night and the depth of the disappointment. The Wildcats, he said, “whipped us in every which way you can whip a team . . . our fans were so ready for this game, this win; we gave them nothing. That’s a sick feeling to go home and live with. I don’t know what to say. “I haven’t been embarrassed many times as a coach, but I was embarrassed by the way my team played . . . we have to own it and accept it. The pit in my stomach has more to do with our fans and seniors. They deserve more (but) we deserve what we got tonight.”

Game Notes – 

– The 27-point loss was the worst home loss for CU in the Tad Boyle era (previous worst: A 74-50 loss to Stanford, 2/23/12)

• Only the second home loss in 18 games at the Coors Events Center (the other: UCLA).

• Continues to lead Arizona, 11-10 in the all-time series; Arizona sweeps CU for the first time in Pac-12 play.

• CU drops to 3-5 to UA in Pac-12 games; suffers first loss in Pac-12 home games to UA (2-1).

• Only the ninth loss suffered at home in four years (60-9). Other losses: Wyoming, Kansas, Texas A&M (ot), Stanford, Arizona State (ot), Oregon State, UCLA, twice.

• Colorado’s first basket came at 9:50, marking the longest drought to start a game without a basket this season (previous was 14:36 at Arizona 1/23/14). – The 30-point deficit (86-56 with 1:22 remaining) was the largest of the season.

Game Recap … The Blackout game against the Wildcats began darkly for the home-standing Buffs. In a game where dominance on the boards was to be the key, Arizona sent a clear message that they would not be out-rebounded by a 48-27 margin (as had Arizona State). The Wildcats opened the game by missing a pair of free throws … but got the rebound on the second miss. Arizona then missed a three-pointer – and got the offensive rebound. The Wildcats then missed a jumper – and got the offensive rebound. On their fourth try of the first minute of play, Arizona scored.

After Dustin Thomas made one of two free throws to get CU into the scoring column, the Wildcats went on a scoring spree. A three-pointer was then followed by a three point play and an 8-1 game. Xavier Talton made a two of three free throw attempts to make it an 8-3 game, but Arizona then went on to score three more baskets. When Askia Booker was fouled – and missed two free throws – Colorado was 0-for-7 from the field and down 14-3 at the first media break.

A three-pointer by the Wildcats made it a 17-3 game, with Wesley Gordon making a pair of free throws to make it 17-5. A basket and a foul made it 19-5 at the under 12 minute timeout … with the Buffs now 0-for-11 from the field. A jumper by Arizona upped the lead to 21-5, while Colorado continued to miss shot after shot from the field. After a free throw by Arizona, the Buffs made a basket – on its fifteenth attempt – when Jaron Hopkins hit a three-pointer. Two free throws by Josh Scott gave the Buffs a modest 5-0 run, but it was still 22-10 at the under eight timeout.

The Wildcats got a dunk off of an inbounds play after the break, countered by a jumper by Josh Scott. Then Eli Stalzer cut the lead to ten, at 24-14, but Arizona got an open jumper to push the lead back up to 12 points. Stalzer was then fouled while shooting a three-pointer, making two of three. Josh Scott got the offensive rebound, being fouled on his next jumper. Scott made both, pulling the Buffs to with eight for the first time since it was 8-1. Xavier Johnson was fouled on Arizona’s next possession, making one of two. The Buffs got the rebound on the miss though, with Josh Scott getting a layup to make it a 7-0 run. Timeout, Arizona, with 4:37 to play, and the score 26-21.

The Buffs had a chance to cut the lead further, but could not convert. Arizona next hit on a layup and then a jumper to push the lead back up to nine points. Josh Scott then got into double digits with a layup to make it 30-23 with two minutes left in the first half. Arizona made one of two free throws before the Buffs threw up an air ball on their next possession. The Buffs finally got its first basket from a starter (Ben Mills started for Josh Scott), when Askia Booker hit a jumper at the buzzer to make it a six-point game at the half.

Halftime score: No. 4 Arizona 31, Colorado 25

The Buffs’ big three was the Big One in the first half against Arizona. Askia Booker went 1-for-8 in the first half, not scoring from the field until the last two seconds of the half. Xavier Johnson, meanwhile, had one point, going 0-for-4 from the field. Josh Scott kept the Buffs in the game with 3-of-6 field goals and four-of-four from the free throw line for ten points. Overall, the Buffs were 6-of-27 from the field to open the game, with the Wildcats helping the Buffs out by going 3-for-10 from the free throw line in the first half.

A Josh Scott jumper cut the lead to four to open the second half, but Arizona scored on its first possession as well. Xavier Talton then got his first basket of the game, countered by a basket for the Wildcats on their end to keep it a six-point game, at 35-29. Askia Booker made it three-for-three for Buffs in the second half, but Arizona kept the Buffs at bay with a jumper. Dustin Thomas got a layup to enter the scoring column, but Arizona got a three-pointer after an offensive rebound. Askia Booker then turned the ball over, with the Wildcats getting a layup to make it a 42-33 game, prompting a CU timeout with 16:30 to play.

Josh Scott made a pair of free throws to cut the lead to seven, with the Wildcats making one of two to make it a 43-35 game. A step back jumper by Askia Booker gave him six points, but Arizona countered with a three-pointer to again push the lead to nine. Xavier Johnson, still without a basket, made a pair of free throws, but again Arizona made a three-pointer, and, with 14 minutes to play, it was again a ten-point advantage for the Wildcats.

A jumper by Arizona made it a 12-point game, with Xavier Johnson getting his first basket to make it 51-41. The Buffs finally forced a miss by Arizona, but promptly turned it over, leading to a fast break dunk and a 12-point game once again at the under 12 timeout. A CU turnover by Dustin Thomas led to a fast break for the Wildcats, culminating in free throws for Arizona. Just like that, it was again a 14-point game, at 55-41. Yet another turnover by Dustin Thomas led to a dunk, and a 16-point lead for the Wildcats.

After the Buffs were again unsuccessful on their end, Arizona made it an 8-0 run. Askia Booker hit a jumper, but that was more than offset by a three-pointer for the Wildcats. A missed jumper by Xavier Johnson led to a dunk for the Wildcats, and what was a game was now a rout. Timeout, Colorado. With 9:15 to play, the CEC scoreboard read: Arizona 64, Colorado 43.

Arizona hit a pair of free throws to make it a 15-2 run, and give the Wildcats their biggest lead of the game of 23 points. Askia Booker hit a pair of free throws to give him ten points, but Arizona got a three point play to make it 69-45. Wesley Gordon got a put-back for the Buffs, but Arizona got another three-pointer to make it a 25-point game. Another dunk by the Wildcats showed the Buffs’ indifference, and brought about a run to the exits from the Buff faithful. Josh Scott hit on four free throws between another layup by the Wildcats, as the teams cleared the benches with three minutes to play.

Beau Gamble and Ben Mills got to play their final minutes at home on the floor, with Mills picking up a foul and Gamble getting beat for a layup. Mills entered the scoring column with a pair of free throws, but Arizona got a three-pointer from a scrub to make it a 29-point game. Mills got a three-pointer to offset dunks and layups for Arizona to close out a forgettable game.

Final score: No. 4 Arizona 88, Colorado 61

—–

 

February 19th – at Boulder          Colorado 61, Arizona State 52

Colorado, out-rebounded in its previous two games, dominated the boards against Arizona State (48-27) to take out the Sun Devils, 61-52.

Josh Scott led the assault, with 13 points and 13 rebounds. Askia Booker, held to two points in the first half on 1-of-6 shooting, keyed two second half runs by the Buffs, finishing with 18 points. Xavier Johnson, who struggled throughout the night (3-of-13 from the field; 5-of-9 from the line), nonetheless was the third Buff in double figures, with 11 points.

While the CU offense struggled through several droughts in the game, the Buff defense kept the home team in the game. Arizona State hit four three-pointers late to keep it close, but finished 7-of-25 overall from three-point range. Colorado, meanwhile, hit just one-of-nine three point attempts, but used 15 offensive rebounds and 20-of-26 free throws to pick up its 20th win of the season.

“A great win for our program,” said Tad Boyle. “It came at a very instrumental time in our season against a quality Arizona State team. Our guys really stepped up, our crowd was fantastic for a 9:00 p.m. tipoff. I can be more thankful and my hat goes off to them”.

As to ending a three-game losing streak to Arizona State, Boyle had this to say. “I’m tired of losing to these guys, number one, and number two, I knew what was at stake,” he said. “They’re a physical team and you’d better buck up and be physical back, otherwise they’ll punk you. I wanted to make sure I was dialed in. I feel that way every game. I may not show it every game, but I wanted our fans to know and our players to know how important this game was – and I think they really fed off it”.

Game Notes –

– The win was the 20th of the season, the fourth time CU has won that many games in a regular season (1968-69, 1996-97, 2012-13, 2013-14)

• The 20 wins in a season is the eighth team in school history (113 years) that feat has been accomplished (Boyle owns four of them).

• It’s also the fourth-straight season CU has won 20-games in a season – all under head coach Tad Boyle .

• CU breaks a three-game skid to ASU, evening the all-time series at 5-5 and evening its record to 3-3 in Pac-12 games against the Sun Devils. • CU improves to 4-1 at the Coors Events Center against Arizona State (the lone loss coming last season).

• The Buffs improve to an impressive 60-8 (.882) record at the Coors Events Center under the Boyle-coaching staff.

• Colorado is now 16-1 at home this season, the second-most wins at home in school history.

• CU improves to 37-21 (.638) against Pac-12 teams in the Boyle era.

• The Buffs end their three-game streak of scoring at least 40 points in the first half (27 tonight). CU didn’t break in to the 40’s until 10:34 left in the second half.

• ASU went on a 6-0 run to start the second half (20:00-15:52). This gave the Sun Devils their largest lead of the game (5).

• CU has held the opponent to below 39 percent shooting 11 times this season, six times in Pac-12 play (Arizona State, Washington, USC, UCLA, Oregon State, at USC). ASU shot 31% tonight.

• Arizona State’s 52 points is the lowest scoring performance by an opponent this season.

Game recap … The teams had to wait until 9:10 p.m. for the opening tip on ESPNU, and the players for both teams acted as it the start time was well past their bedtime. Neither team scored for almost three minutes, with Dustin Thomas breaking the ice with a pair of free throws at the 17:10 mark.

The teams then took the lid off of the basket, with Arizona State hitting a three-pointer and a layup sandwiched between a jumper by Josh Scott. The Sun Devils pushed the lead to 7-4 before baskets by Dustin Thomas and Wesley Gordon gave the Buffs an 8-7 lead. A few moments later, Wesley Gordon scored on a dunk, prompting an Arizona State timeout with 11:28 to play.

The teams then traded 5-0 runs, with the Buffs’ baskets coming courtesy of a three-pointer by Jaron Hopkins and a layup by Dustin Thomas. The Sun Devils tied the score with a free throw and a basket, making it a 15-15 game. The Buffs’ next four points came courtesy of Josh Scott free throws, but Arizona State matched the Buffs point for point. Askia Booker then got his first points of the game on a layup with 5:21 to play to give CU a 21-19 lead.

The Buffs had an opportunity to extend their lead, but Xavier Johnson missed the front end of a one-and-one, and then, a few moments later, missed two more free throws. Josh Scott did give the Buffs a four point lead, at 23-19, with a jumper, but a three-pointer and a layup gave ASU a 24-23 lead.

Colorado took back the lead on a Xavier Johnson tip in, offset by a pair of free throws by the Sun Devils. Eli Stalzer then got the final basket of the first half with 1:25 still left to play before the break.

Both teams then finished the half the way they started it … without scoring.

Halftime score: Colorado 27, Arizona State 26

For both teams at the break, there was bad news and good news. For both teams, their stars were either saddled with a pair of fouls or played ineffectively. Colorado’s big three was reduced to a big one, as only Josh Scott, with eight points and six rebounds, holding true to form. Both Xavier Johnson and Askia Booker finished the first half going 1-for-6 from the field. The good news for the Buffs was that, despite getting only 12 points from their big three scorers, they were still in the game.

The Buffs started the second half the way they started the first … by not scoring.

Colorado opened the second half by turning the ball over on three straight possessions, never even getting off a shot. Arizona State, meanwhile, took advantage by taking the lead with a 6-0 run, going up 32-27 and prompting a Colorado timeout.

Askia Booker then took charge of the Colorado offense, posting back-to-back-to-back baskets to give the Buffs back the lead, at 33-32.  A dunk by Josh Scott pushed the CU run to eight straight points, giving the Buffs a three point lead at 35-32. After a layup by the Sun Devils, a dunk and a free throw (one of two attempts on CU’s next possession) by Xavier Johnson made it a 38-34 game.

pointer and a layup in successive possessions. 36 game at the under eight media timeout.

Askia Booker hit a pair of free throws out of the break to give CU its largest lead, with a tip-in by Wesley Gordon making in a nine point game, at 45-39. Arizona State then quickly countered with a pair of three-pointers, eliminating two-thirds of CU’s lead. A Josh Scott basket gave him 13 points, and the Buffs a 47-42 advantage with six minutes to play.

Yet another three-pointer – by the same Sun Devil who made the two moments earlier, Jonathan Gillam, cut the CU lead to two points, at 47-45. Xavier Johnson, who had been three-of-seven from the free throw line previously, made a pair to make it a four point game. Askia Booker then hit a jumper to push the lead back up to six … only to have Arizona State hit yet another three-pointer, their seventh of the game (and fourth in the previous four minutes).

48 game with three minutes to play. Both teams missed opportunities over the next 90 seconds of game clock, with Arizona State hitting a pair of free throws with 1:26 to play to make it a one possession game. A nice feed from Xavier Talton to Xavier Johnson resulted in a layup to give the Buffs back a five point advantage. The Sun Devils then missed a long three, with Josh Scott collecting his 13th rebound for the Buffs.

Askia Booker then hit a pair of free throws with 39 seconds to play, making it a 57-50 game. A turnover by ASU lead to two more free throws by Booker and a game-high nine point lead. Two free throws by Arizona State was then followed by two more free throws by Askia Booker, giving Colorado a 61-52 victory.

Final score: Colorado 61, Arizona State 52

—–

 

February 16th – at Los Angeles          Colorado 83, USC 74

Colorado desperately needed to take out the last place team in the Pac-12 conference if its NCAA tournament dreams were to remain alive … and the Buffs got the road win they needed, taking out USC, 83-74.

Five Buffs were in double figures against the Trojans, lead by Xavier Johnson with 20 points. Askia Booker had a well-rounded game, with 18 points, eight rebounds, and six assists. Josh Scott contributed 17 points and eight rebounds, while Xavier Talton had 14 points and seven rebounds. Coming off the bench, Jaron Hopkins contributed ten points – all in the first half – as the Buffs built a lead which the Trojans could not overcome.

“Our offense has gotten a lot better in the last couple weeks,” said Tad Boyle. “But, our defense and our rebounding are going to carry us and if we don’t get that right – doesn’t matter if we are playing at home or on the road – you better have those things in check … I thought our defense was good in the second half, other than in transition. They got out in transition a couple of times and got some layups, but our guys fought . . . we’ve had some young guys step up. I’m extremely pleased with what we’ve had to overcome. We want to be competing for a conference championship; we don’t want to be in the middle of the muck, which is where we are. Every league has that muck, and it’s better than being in the bottom of it, I can tell you that. This team could have been there if we had felt sorry for ourselves and not compete like these guys have”.

Game Notes –

• The 19-7 record is the best start for a Boyle-coached team after 26 games and it matches the 1996-97 NCAA team after 26 games.

• CU improves to 6-3 against USC and 2-2 at USC all-time.

• CU is now 4-0 against the Trojans in Pac-12 play. CU is also perfect (4-0) against Washington State in Pac-12 play.

• Buffs even their road record to 4-4, improve to 2-4 on the road in the conference (other win Washington State).

• The season sweep of USC is CU’s sixth Pac-12 sweep over the last four seasons of conference play (2013-14: USC, Washington State. 2012-13: Oregon, Stanford. 2011-12: Utah, Arizona State).

• CU is one of five teams in the Pac-12 with eight conference wins and one of four teams with 19 overall wins.

• CU scored 40 points at the half in each of the last three games, a season-fist.

• CU improved top 14-2 (all games) when leading at half, 6-2 in Pac-12 games.

• Fifth straight game CU has had a at least one 20-point scorer.

• Five players scored in double figures this season (5-0 this season).

—–

 

February 13th – at Los Angeles           UCLA 92, Colorado 74

Four Colorado starters were in double figures, but the Buffs faltered badly down the stretch, falling to UCLA, 92-74.

A close game throughout, the Bruins went on an 11-0 run the final four minutes of the game to make a decent game look like a rout. Josh Scott led the Buffs with 20 points, followed by Askia Booker, who had 16 points – and a career-high 12 assists (previous best: seven). Xavier Johnson contributed 14 points and nine rebounds, while Xavier Talton posted ten points.

The Buffs were out-rebounded by the Bruins, 37-27, and gave up 11 three-pointers. For their part, the Buffs hit on 7-of-23 three-pointers, making only three of 15 attempts in the second half.

“We weren’t good enough in the second half, obviously,” said CU coach Tad Boyle. “We knew at halftime that we were in the game because we were making shots – we were pretty efficient offensively. Our defense wasn’t good enough all night long, and you guys know it’s about defensive rebounding. When we hit those numbers that we did against Washington the results take care of themselves. “UCLA just shot the lights out in the second half,” Boyle said. “They executed, we didn’t get stops when we had to, they shot the three-ball well, and our defense wasn’t good enough and we got out-rebounded by 10. UCLA is a good team, and they pose some matchup problems for us . . . but it hurts when you know you played good enough for 20 minutes to win a game, but we have to play for 40. Some of that credit goes towards UCLA, they’re a good basketball team and they played well tonight and they made shots.”

Game Notes –

– Colorado lost for the fifth straight time to UCLA, and remains winless against the Bruins in Los Angeles (0-6). CU is 0-4 against UCLA as a member of the Pac-12.

– The loss drops the Buffs to 1-4 in Pac-12 conference road games

– Despite the loss, CU’s 18-7 record is still the best record for the Buffs in four years under Tad Boyle.

– The seven three-pointers were the most for the Buffs in a road game this season.

– Askia Booker – 16 points, 12 assists – posted his first career double-double. His previous high in assists for a game was seven.

—-

February 9th – at Boulder          Colorado 91, Washington 65

Xavier Johnson posted a career-high 27 points, and the Buffs had three players score over 20 points in the same game for the first since 2007 as Colorado dominated Washington, 91-65.

Johnson posted his fifth career double-double, also collecting ten rebounds. The sophomore’s performance only slightly offset the damage done by Askia Booker – 20 points, seven assists, five rebounds – and Josh Scott. Scott, held to one point and one rebound by Washington State, went for 21 points and eight rebounds against Washington.

Colorado opened up a 13-2 lead to open the game and never looked back. Washington was never within seven points the remainder of the first half, and never closer than 16 in the second half. “I’m really proud of our guys, they played together”, said Tad Boyle. “We had 18 assists, it’s been a long time since we’ve had that number, we really shared the ball and played inside-out. Great individual performances and a great team performance.”

Of Xavier Johnson’s career-best 27-point performance: “I felt like if not his best game as a Buff then it’s right up there,” Boyle said. “He was terrific on both ends of the floor. The thing I’m most proud of with Xavier Johnson is his ability to take on a defensive challenge. He did it against Cue Johnson (WSU guard) and he did it tonight against C.J. Wilcox.”

Game Notes –

– The 26- point  margin is the second largest margin-of-victory CU has had over a team since joining the Pac-12 Conference in 2011 (largest is 40 when CU beat Utah 73-33 on Dec. 31, 2011). 

– Colorado’s 15th win at home this season, the second most ever by a CU men’s team (2010-11 team went 18-2). 

– CU improves to 6-1 against Washington at home and 4-0 at the Coors Events Center; CU still trails UW 9-8 all-time. 

– CU and Washington are tied in Pac-12 games at 2-2. 

– 18-6 record matches the 1968-69 season after 24 games. 

– Buffaloes improves to 59-8 (.881) at the Events Center under the Boyle-coaching staff. 

– 5th time this season the Buffs have put 90+ points on the board. 

– Team season-high 64.4% from the arc. 

– There were no ties or lead changes the entire game. 

– Colorado is now 26-0 when outrebounding their opponent (44-to-30 tonight) and when their opponent shoots under 40 FG% (Washington shot 32.3% tonight). 

– CU improves to 49-1 when out-rebounding the opponent (44-to-30 edge). 

–  CU is now 37-2 when outrebounding opponent AND allowing UW under 40 percent shooting. 

– The Buffs went on a 10-0 run to start off the game (20:00-17:50). 

– Went a perfect 6-for-6 from the field and 4-for-4 from the three-point line the first four minutes of the game. 

– Colorado’s 48 points at half is the most points scored in a first half all season and most since CU joined the Pac-12 Conference. 

– Three Buffs had double-digit scoring figures in the first half alone (Johnson-11, Scott-10, Booker-16).  –

– CU’s 6-for-10 (60.0%) first half three-point field goal percentage ties the season high (went 6-for-10, 60.0% in the first half against Jackson State on Nov. 16). 

-First time Colorado has had three 20-point scorers (Booker-20, Johnson-27, and Scott-21) since they played Oklahoma State Feb. 3, 2007 (Kal Bay-21, Dominique Coleman-20, Richard Roby-20).

—–

February 5th – at Boulder          Colorado 68, Washington State 63

On a night when Josh Scott had only one point, the Buffs still found a way to defeat Washington State, 68-63.  Askia Booker scored 26 points to lead the Buffs, with Xavier Johnson adding 20 points and nine rebounds as Colorado raised its record to 17-6, 6-4 in Pac-12 play.

“A win’s a win, especially in conference play,” said Tad Boyle, “and it wasn’t pretty at the end. Obviously, we have to finish better, and that kind of puts a damper on this win. But I thought in the second half, we blew it open to like 17 or 19, but we didn’t finish like we want to or need to … We’ll learn from this; we’ll get better. There were some good things, and obviously there’s still room for improvement, we just have to take it and move on”.

Game Notes … 

– Colorado improves to 5-1 against Washington State and 4-0 in the Pac-12. CU is also 3-0 at home against the Cougars.

– CU sweeps the season series and it’s the fifth Pac-12 sweep over the last three seasons of conference play (2012- 13: Oregon, Stanford; 2011-12: Utah, Arizona State). 

– Buffaloes improve to 58-8 (.880) at the Coors Events Center under the Boyle-coaching staff. 

– CU won its 14th game at home, only the fourth time in school history a CU team has won that many at home (14 wins ties the 2002-03 season: 14-1 and 2011-12: 14-2).  CU is now 10-1 (8-0 at home) in games decided by single-digits. 

– CU improves to 17-6, the best start under the Boyle coaching staff after 23 games. The record matches the 2005- 06 team after 23 games to start the season. 

– Ties CU’s second lowest scoring half of the season (23 pts in the first half); lowest is 22 against Baylor (Nov. 8).

—–

February 1st – Xavier Talton sparks Buffs in overtime win over Utah

Xavier Talton scored five of his 14 points in overtime, including the go-ahead 3-pointer to start the extra period, and Colorado overcame a 12-point second-half deficit to beat Utah 79-75 on Saturday. Josh Scott had 20 points and 10 rebounds to lead Colorado (16-6, 5-4 Pac-12), which averted losing a third straight. Askia Booker added 18 points for the Buffaloes, who have beaten the Utes eight of the last nine times in Boulder.

“Holy cow we needed that one,” said Tad Boyle, “we needed that one bad. I think our guys really responded tonight, especially how we fell down by 12 in the second half and we fought back. I just love the way our guys competed tonight. Toughness shows up in rebounding stats, and we didn’t hit our field goal percentage number on defense, but we hit our rebounding number in a big way. Plus 18, that was the difference in the game”.

Game Notes –

 • CU has now won five of six times against Utah in Pac-12 play (3-0 in Boulder) and seven of eight in the series since 2005.

• CU improves to 57-8 (.877) at the Coors Events Center over the last four years.

• 5-4 Pac-12 mark matches last year after nine games (CU was 6-3 in 2011-12).

• 13th win at home, 11th time in school history they have won that many at home in a season.

• Colorado breaks its longest losing streak of the season (two games).

• Tad Boyle and the Buffs are now 15-3 in games when a home win follows a road OR neutral court loss.

• CU moves to 7-0 at home (9-1 overall) under Tad Boyle in single-digit games this season (41-22 in four seasons).

• Today was second double-double by two players in the same game. Today: Josh Scott (20 pts., 10 rebs); Xavier Johnson (11 pts., 10 rebs.). Last time was earlier this season against Elon (Dec. 13; Johnson 12 points, 15 rebounds; Scott 12 points, 13 rebounds).

• CU is now 5-4 in overtime games under Tad Boyle.

• CU had 5 players score in double-digits (3rd time this season). • CU out-rebounded Utah 42-24 and moved to 13-2 on the season when out-rebounding their opponent.

• CU improves to a 16-6 overall record, the best record under the Boyle coaching staff after 22 games in their 3.5+ years (2005-06 team started 17-5).

——–

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *