Needing a win in their Pac-12 regular season finale to avoid falling as low as 10th in the standings heading into the conference tournament, the Buffaloes dug deep and pulled out a 54-46 victory over Cal at Coors Event Center on Saturday.
Derrick White had 17 points, eight rebounds and four assists to help lead the Buffaloes to the win, their eighth in Pac-12 play after starting conference play 0-7 this season. Xavier Johnson scored a team-high 19 points on Senior Day to end his home career in style. Johnson needs just eight points in the Pac-12 Tournament to reach 1,400 for his career as a Buffalo.
The Buffs were relentless on the defensive end, limiting Cal to 27.3 percent shooting from the field. The Golden Bears didn’t help their cause, going just 12-for-19 from the free throw line. Cal had a mere six bench points in the contest, all from sophomore guard Don Coleman.
Colorado grabbed the No. 7 seed for the Pac-12 Tournament when No. 7 Arizona beat Arizona State in Tempe. It’s a remarkable turnaround for a team that was winless in the Pac-12 for nearly the first full month of conference play. The Pac-12 Tournament starts on March 8 in Las Vegas.