One loss to start the year and the narrative was, just another year of the same ol’ stuff. And then an eleven game winning streak ensued and how quickly things changed. Don’t look now but Colorado Men’s basketball team is rolling.
With an 11-1 record and that loss also being the opening game, CU’s basketball team is not only one of the hottest teams in the Pac-12 Conference but one of the teams in discussion for Top 25 consideration in NCAA basketball, too.
“We’ve taken care of our business going back to the Iowa State game — and that was one we’d like to have back—but if you ask any coach on our staff, maybe any player on our team, 11 games in, going to Vegas would you take 10-1? I think the answer would probably be yes,” head coach Tad Boyle said.
And they took care of business as Josh Scott scored 18, grabbed 8 rebounds and had 4 blocks to lead the Buffs. Josh Fortune recorded 13 points, Dominique Collier added 12 and the Buffaloes (11-1) won their 11th straight.
The Buffs won not by the offense but by means of the defense and rebounding as CU won in a thrilling finish, holding off the Penn State Nittany Lions by a score of 70-71 Tuesday night to advance to the Vegas Classic final.
“You have to find a way to win when you’re not playing your best, and we did that,” Boyle said. “We did that tonight. We made just enough shots.”
With the win, the Buffs received votes in this week’s Associated Press poll, and the win also had historical implications as it is the fifth-longest winning streak in team history. This is Colorado’s best start since 1941-42, in which that team began 14-0 and eventually went to the Final Four.
The Buffs will try and duplicate that result as they attempt to make history when they face off against No. 18 SMU in the final of the Las Vegas Classic on Wednesday.
It will prove to be a hard task as the Mustangs are undefeated on the season at 10-0. They are also playing with a chip on their shoulder as they finally have their head coach, the legendary Larry Brown, back. In Brown’s first game back as the head coach for the Mustangs, they beat Kent State by a score of 90-74. Brown missed the first nine games after the NCAA suspended him for rules violations in the SMU program.
Boyle played two years for Brown at Kansas and had nothing but kind words when speaking on his old coach and his team.
“The guy’s been so instrumental in my life,” Boyle said. “They’re rock-solid. They don’t beat themselves. We’re going to have to play a lot better than we did on Tuesday because with me knowing him, I know he’ll have his team ready. There’s a reason why he’s in the Hall of Fame. His teams are always well-prepared and we have to be too.”
If the Buffaloes do come out on top, not only will they come back to Boulder as champions of the Las Vegas classic, but they’re sure to be carrying a Top-25 ranking with them, too.
