The Colorado Buffaloes men’s basketball team (9-11, 0-9 Big 12) got off to a slow start in a conference rematch against the Arizona State Sun Devils (12-8, 3-6 Big 12), eventually losing 70-68 in a game that went down to the wire. Coming off of eight straight losses and after losing to the Sun Devils early in January by 20, the Buffs looked to get a much-needed win on their home floor as 2.5-point favorites.
ASU started with back-to-back offensive rebounds before eventually cashing in on a three. The Sun Devils then caught CU off-guard and immediately forced a turnover with a quick press. Colorado struggled to handle the ball, and midway through the first half, the Buffs had six turnovers and six points.
The visiting team’s length and active hands on defense slowed Colorado’s offense and limited paint touches. The Buffs looked discombobulated and ended the first half with 10 turnovers, a continuation of the main problem that has plagued them all year. When CU got spread out and couldn’t convert inside, ASU fed off of the pressure and came up with several loose balls to capitalize on their lead.
“I wish [the players] were as frustrated with an opponent's offensive rebound as they were with a missed shot,” CU head coach Ted Boyle said postgame, frustrated with his players’ boxout execution.
Down 10, Boyle took his first timeout, The Buffs made adjustments and were able to drive and kick and finally hit from long-range.
Bangot Dak was one of the only Buffs able to get any offense going early on, pump-faking from the perimeter and taking the ball straight to the rim to finish inside on multiple occasions. His effort was undeniable from the start, converting a would-be airball from his teammate into an athletic putback, contorting his body in the air to get it to go. Using his length to score over ASU’s longest defenders, Dak was up to the challenge all night.
Sebastian Rancik, the 6-foot-9 freshman, made his first career start Tuesday, giving the Buffs a longer presence on the defensive end and a reliable addition to the offense. The forward started off on Joson Sanon, ASU’s second-leading scorer, and contested him well on the perimeter, moving his feet and coming up with a steal to get a solid defensive stop for CU. He got his first bucket of the game early in the second half and brought the crowd back into the equation.
Throughout the game, Boyle turned to the freshman in big moments. Rancik was consistently relied upon to inbound the ball in high-stakes scenarios and to take big shots in designed plays.
Trevor Baskin came off the bench and led the Buffs in scoring with 10 at the half, backing up his strong performance in the first matchup against the Sun Devils when he had 23 points and 10 rebounds. Baskin found a way to score in a multitude of ways, cleaning up possessions on defense, back-cutting to the rim and finishing in transition.
Down seven at half, the black and gold had a lot of work to do to clean up their performance in the second period.
Baskin started the second half in place of Elijah Malone and continued to make plays down the stretch. Drawing fouls on both ends of the floor and kicking out of double-teams to find his open teammates, he finished with 19 points and four steals.
The Buffs took the lead 45-43 and their leader, Julian Hammond III, got the offense flowing again by connecting with Dak for an alley-oop capitalized with an-and-one foul. Countless jaws dropped in the CU Events Center.
Foul trouble was an issue, as both teams were in the bonus with around eight minutes left in the game. By the end of the game, the teams racked up 38 fouls combined.
Late in the game, the crowd roared to life and Boyle urged his team on as Dak met the Sun Devils at the rim with another statement dunk, this one a posterization, and the Sun Devils were hit with a technical foul as frustrations started to show.
CU trailed by no more than five points for the final three minutes and had many opportunities to secure its first conference win. Despite missing a free throw to tie the game and giving up a critical turnover with under a minute remaining, CU’s press forced an ASU travel and gave Rancik one last shot to break the losing streak, but the freshman was unable to get it to drop.
“We took the right shots, they just didn’t fall,” Boyle said.
When the last seconds had run off the scoreboard, Rancik was visibly emotional after missing a few good looks in the final moments. Postgame, Baskin shared how the team had rallied around the freshman.
“Telling him not to be hard on himself. Telling him to keep his head up and stay resilient,” Baskin said.
Though he emphasized his confidence in his players' ability to stick together, Boyle was also discouraged after the loss.
“I’m not sure I've ever felt as bad for a group of guys as I did tonight in that locker room,” Boyle said. “We’re not playing smart enough, tough enough, consistent enough…This team needs a pat on the back right now. But they also need a kick in the ass.”
The Buffs will travel south to take on TCU on Sunday, Feb. 2. The game tips off at 2:00 p.m. MT and will be streamed on ESPN+.
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