Colorado University Athletics
Buffs Set For Opener Vs. No. 7 Cyclones
November 12, 2015 | Men's Basketball, Neill Woelk
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. — The norm in college basketball is to start your season with a few cupcakes at home, build a little confidence and then test the waters against a good team or two.
Tad Boyle's Colorado Buffaloes are eschewing the norm this year. Instead of the “cupcakes-then-test-the-waters” formula, they're jumping directly into the deep end by facing seventh-ranked Iowa State — possibly the best team the Buffs will see for the entirety of the regular season.
Tipoff for Friday's nationally televised opener at the Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls is set for 3 p.m. (ESPN2), the first of a two-game road trip. After the ISU game, the Buffs will head to Auburn for a 1 p.m. game Tuesday (ESPN).
“It'll tell us right away what our weaknesses are and what our strengths are,” said Boyle, who is entering his sixth season at CU. “We will find that out.”
What we already know is it's one of the more ambitious season openers in CU history. The Cyclones are the highest-ranked non-conference opponent the Buffs have faced since they took on No. 4 Kentucky in the 1998 Puerto Rico shootout.
What Boyle wants to know is if his team has corrected the problems that led to last season's 16-18 finish, the first losing season in his CU career. The Buffs spent much of their preseason concentrating on improving their defense and rebounding, two areas in which they were lacking last season, and the Cyclones should provide an immediate measuring stick.
“If you play a team that is not as strong and you overpower them physically and with talent, you don't know those answers,” Boyle said. “You don't know those answers until you've been tested, and we're going to be tested. So we'll find out, win or lose.”
After roughly six weeks of practice, Boyle said he's pleased with how his team has progressed.
“I love this team,” Boyle said. “I love coaching them every day. I like our chemistry, I like our toughness, and I'm really pleased with where we are now. That being said, we play a pretty good team on Friday. But I really like where this team is mentally and physically. We've had about 25 practices now and we've come a long way. I'm really pleased.”
Of course, “pretty good team” is an understatement when talking about the Cyclones. Iowa State returns four starters from last year's team, one that finished 25-9 overall and won the Big 12 Tournament to earn a No. 3 seed in the NCAA Tournament, only to be upset by UAB in the tourney opener.
The Cyclones do have a new head coach — former Murray State boss Steve Prohm has taken over for Fred Hoiberg, who now coaches the Chicago Bulls — but no one expects Prohm to suffer any first-year blues. Rather, the expectations in Ames are sky-high.
Leading the group of returning starters is 6-8 forward Georges Niang, a three-time All-Big 12 player and a consensus preseason All-America pick this season. Niang last year averaged more than 15 points, five rebounds and three assists per game, and is equally effective inside and outside (he's eighth on ISU's all-time 3-point shooting chart).
“He's a preseason All-American for good reason,” Boyle said. “He can pass it, he can dribble it, he can shoot it, he can make plays for himself and others. He's a good player and they've got other good players around him”
Indeed, the Cyclones are more than just Niang. Guard Nazareth Mitrou-Long has 146 career 3-pointers, and has hit at least four treys in one game 13 times; 6-9 forward Jameel McKay is the reigning Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year; and 6-3 guard Monte Morris has nearly five times as many assists (310) as turnovers (66) in his career.
While the game will technically be a neutral-site contest, the crowd is expected to be overwhelmingly a pro-Cyclone bunch. ISU fans have developed a reputation over the years for traveling well to support their team, and the majority of the 3,250 seats in the Pentagon — a four-hour drive from Ames — will likely be Cyclone supporters.
“Absolutely, it's going to be a road game,” Boyle said “That's why ball control and us controlling the tempo is going to be so important. Our guard play is going to have to be good. We're going to have to not turn it over. We've got to keep the crowd out of it.
“They're going to make some shots, we know that. They're a good team. But we've got to make sure that everything they get they earn and it's contested.”
Boyle still hadn't cemented his starting lineup by midweek, saying the only guaranteed starters were frontliners Josh Scott and Wesley Gordon. But rest of the starting lineup will likely be Dominique Collier at point guard, Josh Fortune at shooting guard and either Tre'Shaun Fletcher or George King at the wing.
Another thing Boyle will be watching closely in the opening games will be how his team reacts to adversity, an area that was an issue a year ago.
“That's really where we'll be tested, and I think we'll be tested right out of the chute,” Boyle said. “There's going to be times when they make a run and the crowd's against us, and we've got to be mentally tough enough to handle that and overcome that adversity.”
But most of all, Boyle is looking for a barometer, the kind that only playing quality opponents can provide.
“The good thing about the early games is you learn a lot about yourself, and we're going to learn about ourselves this first week,” he said. “We're going there to beat Iowa State and we're going to Auburn to beat Auburn. We're going there to compete and win. But either way, we'll have some answers early about our team.”
