Welcome to our weekly look at Pac-12 basketball. We take a quick look at what happened in the past week and breakdown the best games in the week to come.
Top 3 upcoming games: Well here we are, the second-to-last week of the regular season. The conference race has narrowed to Cal, Washington and Colorado in the front of the pack, with Oregon and Arizona holding onto thin hopes. The Buffaloes hope to finish their first year in the Pac-12 undefeated at home, a feat that would be incredibly impressive and would most likely lock up a coach of the year win for Tad Boyle.
UCLA Bruins at Arizona Wildcats, Saturday, 12:00 p.m., CBS: Believe it or not both of these teams are still mathematically alive for a Pac-12 regular season title. Yes, the Bruins could still win it. In reality, neither team will win the regular season, but both are still in play for a coveted first-round bye in the Pac-12 tournament.
Washington Huskies at Washington State Cougars, Saturday, 6:00 p.m., Root Sports: A Cougar upset in Pullman could be huge for the Buffs title chances. Provided Colorado is able to beat Stanford on Thursday, they could head into Sunday's game with Cal in second place.
California Golden Bears at Colorado Buffaloes, Sunday, 2:00 p.m., Root Sports: As I mentioned above, this game could end up being No. 1 vs. No. 2 in the Pac-12. Either way it's a must win for this Buffaloes team, not only for their conference title hopes, but for conference tournament seeding and any possible NCAA tournament chances.
A look at each team after the jump...
Just like the Arizona State game, Colorado came out rather sluggish and made the game more difficult than it should have been, however, they held on and won 55-48. The Buffaloes played awful for most of the game and barely pulled out a victory. Andre Roberson was the lone bright spot again adding 12 points and 15 rebounds. Ultimately, the Buffaloes were able to hang on, but their performance today was not at all indicative of their true ability.
Things the Buffaloes did well: The Buffaloes didn't do too many things well in today's game. Spencer Dinwiddie helped the Buffaloes out when they needed some offense in the second half by pushing the ball and getting some easy buckets in transition. He only had 9 points, but they were an efficient 9 points as he went 2-4 from the field and 5-6 from the free throw line. Additionally, Andre Roberson was crucial down the stretch in the second half. He showed off his mini fadeaway post shot and Utah couldn't stop it. Although the Buffaloes shot terribly from the field, they were 15-19 from the free throw line, which was much needed for the victory.
Welcome to our weekly look at Pac-12 basketball. We take a quick look at what happened in the past week and breakdown the best games in the week to come.
Top 3 upcoming games: While the Buffs have a must-win road game Saturday against Utah, the real drama this week or the conference will come from Oregon heading to the Northern California schools and Arizona heading to Washington. Each of those two teams have their opportunity to cement themselves as players at the top of the conference or fall back into the pack.
Oregon Ducks at California Golden Bears, Thursday, 8:30 p.m., CSNNW/CSNCA: The first of two huge road games for Oregon takes place tonight, when the Ducks try to replicate what the Wildcats were able to accomplish in Berkeley.
Arizona Wildcats at Washington Huskies, Saturday, 1:00 p.m., FSN: If Oregon can win at California on Thursday night, this game could give the Huskies an opportunity to pull away a bit with a win, or create a mega jam at the top of the conference with a loss.
Oregon Ducks at Stanford Cardinal, Sunday, 2:00 p.m., Root Sports: With the Ducks most certainly spending more time in practice this week on California, this could be an interesting game on Sunday. A 0-2 week this late in the season for Oregon would really damage their tournament hopes.
A look at each team after the jump...
Colorado was lucky to have such an inferior opponent as they struggled for a majority of the game, but they were able to hold on and win against the Sun Devils 63-49. Colorado allowed Arizona State to take countless open shots and Arizona State just didn't make them. Spencer Dinwiddie had 15 points and Andre Roberson was a force on defense while adding 12 points and collecting 9 rebounds. Overall, it was a very sloppy performance, but Colorado should just be happy to get another road win.
Things the Buffaloes did well: Askia Booker returned to his usual self and added some instant offense off the bench adding 9 points. Andre Roberson is by far the best defensive player every game for the Buffaloes. His help defense leads to multiple turnovers and he never gets rebounded over. Although Colorado played carelessly for most of the game, they were able to finally show a killer instinct and pull away and this was mostly because of Roberson. Austin Dufault came on towards the end of the game as well and he contributed 12 points. More importantly, Colorado shot an efficient and effective 6-13 from the three point line.
Colorado definitely came out better than their previous road losses, but still couldn't get its first crucial road win as they lost to Arizona 71-57. The Buffaloes kept up with the Wildcats till the latter part of the second half, when Arizona was able to pull away. Colorado couldn't stop Arizona's inside presence and committed way too many lazy fouls. Andre Roberson had 12 points and 11 rebounds and Carlon Brown added 11 points for the Buffaloes. However, Colorado was unable to stop the inside presence of Jesse Perry and Solomon Hill who combined for 33 points. Overall, it was an expected rough game for the Buffaloes, and they will need to be able to rebound with a win against Arizona State to stay near the top of the Pac-12 conference.
Things the Buffaloes did well: The Buffaloes shot the ball well from inside the three point line and didn't come out in the second half and completely fall apart like their games at UCLA and at Stanford. Andre Roberson had a good game and was the only bright spot defensively. There just wasn't any consistent play for the Buffaloes as they couldn't beat Arizona's strong defensive and were unable to hit any three pointers early to spread the floor.
The Colorado Buffaloes and second year head coach Tad Boyle sit at a crossroads heading into tonight's game against the Wildcats in Tucson, Arizona. Win a road game against a high-quality opponent for the first time since beating Kansas State in January of 2011 and the Buffs will no longer be ignored as a legitimate threat to win the Pac-12 regular season. That win, combined with a home win for Oregon over Washington tonight would leave the Buffaloes tied with the Huskies and Golden Bears for first place, with the tie-breaker with UW and a home game against California that would even the slate. A win would give the NCAA Tournament Committee the validation that they need to consider Colorado as one of the two or (hopefully) three teams that head to the tourney from the Pac-12 conference. A win would announce that this team isn't just building for the future, it's built for the now.
Brooks: Buffs Tough, But Road Tough Is The Objective
But let's not get too far ahead of ourselves (as if I haven't already). A loss does not taint this year's progress. Win or lose, the next two games, on the road against Arizona State and Utah are absolute must wins for this team and getting both may actually be more important to the teams tournament chances. No matter what happens tonight, the Buffaloes still have a 4-game gauntlet to close the regular season, home games with Stanford and Cal before hitting the road to take on both Oregon schools.
Welcome to our weekly look at Pac-12 basketball. We take a quick look at what happened in the past week and breakdown the best games in the week to come.
Top 3 upcoming games: This week will make the Pac-12 race much more clear as four of the top five teams face off and California faces a tough road match-up against UCLA. The two games on Thursday night is the best combo that the league has had all season. For as much good as a win in Tucson would do for the Buffaloes, a loss against Arizona State would pretty much derail any hope CU has for making the NCAA Tournament without win the conference tourney.
Colorado Buffaloes at Arizona Wildcats, Thursday, 7:00 p.m., ESPN: This is the biggest game of the year so far for the Buffs. A national television audience will watch a CU team that has won five of it's last six games, but is primed to hit the road for five of their last seven in the regular season. The Wildcats did last week what no one else has been able to do this season in winning at both California and Stanford and has been playing much better since their loss in Boulder.
Washington Huskies at Oregon Ducks, Thursday, 9:00 p.m., Root Sports: The Huskies have been on fire of late, winning eight of their last nine to take over the top spot in the conference. Now they have to head to Eugene to face a Ducks team that is still reeling from a controversial, last second loss in Boulder.
California Golden Bears at UCLA Bruins, Saturday, 2:00 p.m., Fox Sports Prime Ticket: The Bruins have been playing better lately, but haven't been able to get over the hump as they fell in some tough, close losses. California needs to make up for a home loss to Arizona in LA.
A look at each team after the jump...
The Buffaloes were pushed to the brink tonight, but they still were able to win at the last second, 72-71. A questionable call called on Nate Tomlinson with the game tied and one second left gave the Buffs the margin they needed to get the win. While the foul could have gone either way, Tomlinson's effort to get to the bucket could not. Great play to win the game by Nate.
Foul trouble hurt the Buffaloes all game, yet other players stepped up and contributed to the Buffaloes' win. Askia Booker had another great game off the bench leading the way with 17 points. Also, Andre Roberson added 7 points, 11 rebounds and 7 blocks.Overall, the Buffaloes played well and overcame their mistakes leading to their victory.
Things the Buffaloes did well: There were some questionable calls from the referees, but the Buffaloes didn't let that affect their game. Askia Booker had another great game and whenever Colorado needs to beat a zone, he is always there cutting and attacking the zone. Spencer Dinwiddie added his usual points; a good thing about his game is that he never forces it. Carlon Brown had a rough game, but was key down the stretch. Additionally, the Buffaloes continue to get better attacking the zone and have become much more patient, which is a necessity for beating zone defense.
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