College Basketball: Colorado Buffaloes start out conference play 2-0
By Andrew Dill
While everyone is excited about the NFL playoffs and what it brings, the Colorado Buffaloes men’s basketball team has started off conference play on the right foot. The Buffs entered Friday night’s action against UCLA with a record of 7-5 with uncertainty surrounding the team after losing five games in non-conference play.
They quickly erased doubt winning back-to-back conference games, against UCLA and USC respectively. Askia Booker played one of his best games of the season, scoring a team-high 20 points, including knocking down a pair of clutch free-throws in the final seconds of a close game. Booker shot 6-of-15 from the field in Friday night’s action, going 4-of-6 from downtown. Colorado finished the game shooting 5-of-10 from behind-the-arc, four of which coming from Ski’.
More from Colorado Buffaloes
- The Top Prospects From Each College in Colorado
- Colorado Basketball: 4 Things to Know about New Mexico
- Colorado Basketball: San Diego Preview and Prediction
- Colorado Football Sources: Mike MacIntyre will be let go at season’s end
- Colorado Basketball: Drake Preview and Prediction
Wesley Gordon was impressive as well. The 6-foot-9 sophomore from Colorado Springs, Colorado collected a double-double in Colorado’s first conference win of the season. Although Gordon shot just 2-of-6 from the field, the forward went 7-of-8 from the charity stripe while hauling down 14 rebounds to go with 11 points. Colorado needed a big-game out of Gordon due to the fact that Josh Scott was ruled out of the game due to back spasms.
Sunday’s game against USC showed just how good this Colorado club can be. In a 86-65 beat down, Askia Booker scored a game-high 18 points on 7-of-13 shooting. Consistency has always been something to hold Booker back, but proving that he can contribute efficiently in back-to-back games speaks volumes on how hard this kid is working.
Colorado was without post Josh Scott (back spasms) for the second-straight game, but Xavier Johnson and Dustin Thomas picked up the slack. Both players scored 17 points apiece, combining for seven rebounds and three steals (all coming from Thomas). Wesley Gordon chipped in six points to go along with nine rebounds.
The Colorado Buffaloes (9-5, 2-0 in Pac-12) resume conference play this upcoming Wednesday night on the road against #10 Utah. Tip-off is scheduled for 9:00 PM EST, 7:00 PM MST.