Colorado University Athletics
Colorado
5-3
Colorado State
4-2
Buffs Need OT To Pull Away From Rival Rams
December 09, 2010 | Men's Basketball, B.G. Brooks
BOULDER - In non-hoops lingo, what happened Wednesday night at the Coors Events Center closely resembled the making of sausage - an often unsightly, grind-it-out process that could have wound up being unpalatable for the Colorado Buffaloes.
They worked overtime to get the final product right, but it was worth it. The Buffs and their first-year coach, Tad Boyle, left their home court with a 90-83 OT win over their in-state rivals, the Colorado State Rams.
It was a savory end to a long night.
"I don't know where to start," Boyle said afterwards, "but we beat a really good team tonight. I've got all the respect in the world for Coach (Tim) Miles, the job he's done and the team we just beat out there."
Boyle called the contest "a grind-it-out type game. We talked about it at halftime. (CSU) was trying to grind it out on us . . . We've got opportunities to play a lot of different styles. Obviously, we want to get up and down, and we'll play an 80-point game. There may be times when we have to play games in the 50s or 60s."
But the bottom line for the Buffs, said Boyle, is this: "The resiliency, the pride and the toughness are starting to develop."
CU found all three in the final minute of overtime, getting four consecutive free throws by Levi Knutson and a pair by Marcus Relphorde, who added a "take that" dunk at the buzzer.
Just as important, the Buffs also got a crucial block by Austin Dufault on a layup attempt by the Rams' 6-foot-9, 245-pound Andy Ogide that led to Knutson's last two free throws. Boyle called the block "key . . . it was huge."
Both coaches believed their teams should have won the game - which featured 14 lead changes and 10 ties - in regulation play. But Boyle's case might have been a little stronger than Miles.' In the final 2:00 of regulation, CU's Alec Burks and Cory Higgins missed four of eight free throw attempts, with the normally dependable Higgins going three-for-six.
"I wouldn't change it," Boyle said. "I'd take Cory at the line every day. I've got confidence in all the guys from the free throw line. We're a good free throw shooting team."
When they got a reprieve in the extra period, they proved it, avenging a 77-62 loss to CSU last season in Fort Collins and defeating the Rams for the 15th time in 16 games at the Events Center.
The Buffs (5-3) again were the beneficiary of balanced scoring: four players reached double figures, topped by Burks' 25. Behind him were Relphorde with 18, Higgins with 15 and Knutson with 14.
The Rams (4-2) were led by Travis Franklin with 19 and Ogide with 17.
After shooting only 34.5 percent from the field in the first half, the Buffs shot 65 percent in the second half and 60 in OT. CU trailed 33-30 at intermission and was fortunate to be that close. A three-pointer by Nate Tomlinson at the buzzer brought the Buffs to within three points and served as redemption for the Australian point guard.
After the Rams had gone ahead by as many as eight points earlier, the Buffs battled back to within one (28-27) and had a chance to take the lead in the half's final minute.
Tomlinson found himself wide open for a trey attempt just to the right of the top of the key. After his shot just nicked the front of the rim, the Rams got a layup on a nice cut to the rim by Dwight Smith, then a three-pointer by Wes Eikmeier to move in front 33-27.
They missed a chance to extend the advantage to eight points when Jesse Carr missed the front end of a one-and-one with 4.9 seconds left in the half.
CU snared the rebound and Tomlinson hit his trey as the buzzer sounded.
 Miles was more than miffed. "So an eight-point lead is down to three," he said. "That's how you lose . . . it's maddening. It makes me livid. It makes me furious."
The Buffs shot a paltry 34.5 percent (10-of-29) from the field in the first 20 minutes, while the Rams checked in at a torrid 63.6 percent (14-of-22). And still, CU trailed only by a trey when the second half began.
The Buffs cut their deficit to a point (35-34) on a pair of free throws by Higgins at the 18:44 mark, then took a 36-35 lead on Relphorde's foul-line jumper on their next possession.
This rivalry game was settling into a back-and-forth game.
Counting Relphorde's basket, there were six lead changes and two ties over the next 3 minutes, until Higgins hit four free throws to spark a 6-0 run and give CU a 46-41 lead with 13:30 to play.
CSU, however, wasn't close to cashing it in; the Rams tied the score at 46-46 on a basket by Will Bell and a trey by Carr.
And it was back to back-and-forth.
From that point there were nine lead changes and a pair of ties, with the Buffs finally getting a sliver of separation on Knutson's trey with 5:12 to play. His shot put CU up 66-62 - the biggest lead by either team since the half's opening minute.
CU's advantage went to six (70-64) on a pair of free throws by Knutson with 4:02 to play, but a pair of strong inside moves by Ogide brought CSU to 70-68.
After Boyle called timeout at 2:12, Burks made one of two free throws then hit a layup after Tomlinson forced a CSU turnover on an in-bounds play.
CU led 73-68 with a minute remaining, and students seated at opposite ends of the arena began trading insults, er, cheers.
Dorian Green's short runner with 27.7 seconds left cut the Buffs' lead to 73-70 - and the Rams began fouling. Before and after a layup by Carr, Higgins hit two of four free throws and CU took a 75-72 lead.
But Green's pair of free throws with 10.3 seconds to play cut the Buffs' advantage to 75-74. After Higgins again could hit only one of two free throws, Carr drove by him at the other end to tie the game at 76-76 with less than a second remaining and force the overtime.
Boyle said his team's defense "got really soft, really porous at the end of regulation. We kind of let them come down, drive it in the lane and get easy buckets. Obviously, our guys don't want to foul, but we have to be a little bit more sound than that."
Knutson called the win "great for us, not just because it's an in-state rivalry but going into Christmas break, we have a couple of home games then head to Vegas. I think it's a great boost for our team . . . everybody is staying positive, staying together. This is a great chemistry-building win for us."
The Buffs take a break during final exams, returning to the Events Center to play The Citadel on Friday, Dec. 17 at 7:30 p.m.
Contact: BG.Brooks@Colorado.EDU
