Buffs Prepare For Pair Of Home Games This Week

BOULDER — With four of their seven remaining conference games at home, the Colorado Buffaloes are still in good position to make a push for a top-four finish in the Pac-12 standings and earn a first-round bye in the March 7-10 conference tournament.

The Buffs (13-10 overall, 5-6 Pac-12) began their conference season stretch run Friday night with a home win over Utah. The win not only ended a seven-game skid against the Utes, but also pulled the Buffs into a tie with Utah and Arizona State for seventh in the conference standings.

Now, while the Buffs are still very much alive in the battle for a top-four finish they are also still in the midst of a six-team logjam in the standings that has just two games separating fourth through ninth place.

This week, Tad Boyle's team has a chance to build some more momentum with a pair of home games. Colorado hosts Cal on Wednesday in a 9 p.m. game (ESPNU), followed by a 2 p.m. Sunday matchup with Stanford (Pac-12 Networks).

Some notes on the rest of the conference and how they pertain to the Buffs' final four weeks of conference play:

The six teams in the fourth through ninth spots in the standings are UCLA (7-4 in the Pac-12), Stanford (7-4), Oregon (5-5), Colorado (5-6), Utah (5-6) and Arizona State (5-6), with Washington (7-3) just a half-step ahead of the bunch in third place. The Buffs still have games remaining against UCLA, Stanford, Washington and Utah, as well as a matchup with second-place USC (8-3). It means the Buffs can control their fate — take care of business and they have a good chance of moving up into the top four.
Speaking of Washington, the Huskies (17-6, 7-3) might end up being the surprise team of the league this year. Picked in the preseason media poll to finish 10th, they have won four in a row. The streak started with a win at Colorado in what CU's Boyle called a "separation game," and it includes victories over No. 9 Arizona and No. 25 Arizona State last week. The Buffs get one more shot at the Huskies on Feb. 17 in Seattle.
As for the Sun Devils (17-6, 5-6), that 12-0 nonconference run that produced a No. 3 national ranking now seems like a thing of the distant past. ASU has not won two games in a row in conference play and a team that once looked like a top-four NCAA Tournament seed is now flirting with bubble status.
Stanford (13-11, 7-4) appears to have righted the ship just in time for a trip to Colorado. The Cardinal jumped out to a 6-1 conference start, then lost three in a row. But Jerod Haase's team bounced back last week with a pair of wins over the Oregon schools, including a 96-61 thumping of Oregon — the worst loss for the Ducks in the Dana Altman era.
Cal (8-16, 2-9), the next opponent for the Buffs, ended a nine-game losing streak over the weekend with a win over Oregon State, sparked by a 14-point, 12-rebound effort from 7-footer Kingsley Okoroh.
UCLA (16-7, 7-4) is another team that is bouncing back after a mini-slump. After losing three in a row — beginning with a home loss to Colorado — the Bruins have rebounded to win three straight, including a victory over cross-town rival USC over the weekend. The Bruins pay a visit to Boulder on Feb. 25.
USC's loss at UCLA ended a six-game win streak by the Trojans (17-7, 8-3) that began with a win over Colorado in early January. The Trojans visit Boulder on Feb. 21. USC, by the way, has fired assistant Tony Bland, one of four college assistants arrested Sept. 26 in the wake of an FBI investigation. The other three — Auburn's Chuck Person, Arizona's Emanuel "Book" Richardson and Oklahoma State's Lamont Evans — have also been dismissed.
If you're looking for the team with the best schedule down the home stretch, it is without a doubt Utah. The Utes (13-9, 5-6) play five of their last seven at home, including the March 3 regular season finale against Colorado.

BUFFS RETURN TO WORK MONDAY: Colorado's Boyle promised his team last week that if they could produce a win vs. Utah on Friday, they could have the weekend off.

The Buffs did indeed win, and true to his word, Boyle gave his players Saturday and Sunday off.

Part of the reason for the time off, Boyle said, was to give the Buffs a chance to recharge. The Buffs have been practicing and/or conditioning since last August, when they began preparations for a trip to Italy.

"It's been a lot of stuff thrown at these freshmen so it's time to not relax, but almost take a breath, get rejuvenated," Boyle said. "It's really important down the stretch that we are emotionally, mentally, physically ready to take on all the challenges that come in February and March. This is when you have to raise your game up. The execution has to get better, the toughness has to be there."

The Buffs — who started four freshmen in the win over Utah — will return to practice Monday afternoon and begin preparations for Wednesday's game with Cal (9 p.m., ESPNU).

Contact: Neill.Woelk@Colorado.edu

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