Washington forward Keion Brooks Jr., left, passes the ball past Colorado guard J’Vonne Hadley after the second half of an NCAA college basketball game, Wednesday, Jan. 24, 2024, in Seattle . Colorado won 98-81. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)
The Colorado men’s basketball team hasn’t played many close games this season. Most of the close finishes didn’t go the Buffaloes’ way.
That certainly wasn’t always the case at home, as the Buffs held off Washington for a four-point victory on December 29. And the Buffs had to claw back from a 16-point deficit (13 at halftime) before pulling out a relatively comfortable 10-point home win against USC on January 13.
However, CU’s last three road losses have been decided by three points (Arizona State), four points (California) and nine points (Washington State), in a game where the margin was only four when CU missed a chance to regain possession with 32 seconds remaining). It’s a trait and a trend head coach Tad Boyle said he expects to address this week as the Buffs prepare for what could be another close battle Saturday at Utah (15 hours, Pac-12 Network).
Boyle cited that critical sequence in Saturday’s loss to Washington State as an example of his club’s recent lapses late in games. Instead of immediately fouling on the ensuing inbounds play, which would have given WSU a one-on-one free throw opportunity, the Buffs gave Isaac Jones enough open space to get a bucket and a foul, essentially clinching the victory for the Cougars.
“One thing we haven’t practiced enough is fouling at the end,” Boyle said. “It’s the little things I need to do to coach better. We have to execute better. And we all have to improve, that’s the main thing.
“We’re halfway through Pac-12 play. We are not where we want to be. We’re probably in the middle of the pack, and the only way to separate ourselves is to start piling up a few wins. (WSU) was an opportunity to put us in the upper echelon of the league, and we didn’t do it.
Weekly Honors
Jordan Pope’s dramatic buzzer-beater against Arizona helped Oregon State’s guard earn the latest Pac-12 Player of the Week honor, while WSU’s Myles Rice’s performance against Colorado played a role in winning the league’s All-Star First Year Award.
The last three of Pope’s career-high 31 points were scored Thursday against the ninth-ranked Wildcats, giving OSU its first win against a top-10 team since a 2015 win over No. 7 Arizona . Pope went 5 of 8 on 3-pointers with five assists. Two days later, Pope had 19 points, six assists and four rebounds as the Beavers completed a home sweep of Arizona State. In both wins, Pope went 17 of 28 from the floor (.607).
Rice started his week with 10 points, seven rebounds and six assists in a win over Utah before scoring 12 of his 17 points against the Buffs in the second half. Rice went 7 for 13 and scored four straight points after the Buffs cut WSU’s lead to just three points with 1 minute, 33 seconds remaining.
Notable
Tip-off for the Feb. 10 home game against Arizona is set for 8 p.m. It will air on ESPN or ESPN2, to be determined this week. … Monday’s NET rankings in the Pac-12: Arizona (4), Colorado (29), Utah (37), Washington State (40), Oregon (54), Washington (75), USC (100), Stanford ( 109), Arizona State (120), California (133), UCLA (135), Oregon State (160). … After losing at the buzzer at Oregon State, Arizona fell two spots to 11th in this week’s Associated Press Top 25. For only the second time this season – but the second time in the last three weeks – CU did not receive a vote. .
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