Buffs Get Big Road Win, Top Arizona State 63-49

Saturday, February 11

Tempe, Ariz.

4:30 PM

Colorado

17-8, 9-4PAC-12

Arizona State

8-17, 4-9PAC-12

Team	1	2	F
Colorado	28	35	63
Arizona State	21	28	49

February 11, 2012 | Men's Basketball

Box Score Game Notes: Colorado 63, Arizona State 49 Final Boxscore (PDF)

By: Associated Press

TEMPE, Ariz. (AP and CU Staff Reports) — Freshman Spencer Dinwiddie scored all 15 of his points in the second half as the Colorado Buffaloes outscored the Arizona State Sun Devils by exactly seven points in each half to finish with a 63-49 victory.

"You can tell your program has come a ways when you go on the road and expect to win," said CU head coach Tad Boyle. "We expected to win. There were some butterflies before the game because Arizona State has gotten better since we played them. I thought their match-up zone has gotten a lot better."

CU held a conference road opponent under 50 points for the first time in 45 years and the road win was much needed for the Buffaloes, who have had struggles away from home this season. CU improves to17-8 overall and 9-4 in the Pac-12 while Arizona State falls to 8-17 and 4-9, respectively. It was February 2, 1967 when CU won at Oklahoma State, 49-42, the last time a CU league opponent scored less than 50.

The win became all that much more important with the fact that every team near the top of the Pac-12 standings also won. There are five teams within a game of each other as the Buffs 9-4 record keeps them tied for third as both Oregon (78-69 over Washington State) and Arizona (70-61 over Utah) also won to improve to 9-4 in the league standings.

"They've made some adjustments since we've last played them and (Trent) Lockett coming back is a difference maker. He's a good player and their big guys are getting better," Boyle added. "They're a physical basketball team and that's one thing we talked about before this game, we're going to have to match their physicality."

California topped UCLA, 73-63, to stay a game ahead of those three teams at 10-3, a feat Washington will attempt to accomplish Sunday with a match up at Oregon State. For at least a day, Cal takes a half-game lead over Washington, who then has a half-game lead over the Buffs, Wildcats and Ducks with most teams having five league games remaining.

Andre Roberson and Austin Dufault added 12 points apiece for the Buffaloes, who won their third straight game against the Sun Devils and have won three of four overall. CU is now 4-2 all-time against Arizona State and the Buffs have swept a Pac-12 opponent for the first time.

Jonathan Gilling scored 11 points and Lockett added 10 for Arizona State, which has lost three of four and eight of its last 11.

After the Sun Devils trimmed a football type score of 28-21 down to five points, the Buffs managed an 8-0 run as Dinwiddie and senior Nate Tomlinson got hit 3-pointers for the Buffs to take a 39-26 advantage five minutes into the second half.

The Buffs led by as many as 19 in the second half and with another football-esque score in the second half of 35-28 in favor of the Buffs, CU got its 14-point victory nine touchdowns to seven, 63-49.

The Buffaloes have now won two league road games by double figures for the first time since 1998-99. The Buffaloes won at USC, 74-50, on January 26.

For the Buffaloes, this team is comparable to their 1996-97 team that featured Chauncey Billups and advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament. CU at 17-8 has its best 25-game record since that season, when they were 18-7. Both teams were also 9-4 through 13 league games.

Colorado now gets a bye and will next travel to Utah for a 3 p.m. tipoff next Saturday. After that the Buffs host the northern California schools and then close out with a trip to the Oregon schools.