Buffs' Akyazili Earning More Playing Time In Crunch Time

BOULDER — Colorado basketball coach Tad Boyle has a simple philosophy when it comes to freshmen:

“I try not to expect too much,” Boyle said. That way, he added, “any contribution freshmen make is like a cherry on top of a sundae.”

Say hello to Thomas Akyazili, the freshman guard from Belgium who has been doing quite a bit lately to put a nice finishing touch on the Buffs' performances.

In five Pac-12 games, Akyazili's numbers are by no means eye-popping. He's averaging 3.4 points, 3.2 assists and 1.8 rebounds per game in just less than 20 minutes of play.

But it's the things that don't show up in the box score — energy off the bench, defense, good decision making and a competitive edge that fairly simmers with intensity — that are making just as big of a contribution. It's why he's been on the floor for the final minutes of the Buffs last two games — both wins — and why Boyle and his teammates are beginning to trust him more and more in clutch situations.

“We knew with whatever guard we signed — and I'm glad we signed Thomas, he's going to be a terrific, terrific player — we were going to need some sort of production,” Boyle said. “But as an incoming freshman you just never know what you are going to get — especially an incoming freshman that you never saw play live, you've only seen him on film.”

What the Buffs have received so far is a youngster who is maturing rapidly and getting more and more playing time as a result. After playing more than 20 minutes just once in the entire nonconference schedule, he's already surpassed that mark three times in Pac-12 play.

Akyazili is even getting a little national attention. CBS Sports' Jon Rothstein noted this week that "Colorado may have gotten a steal in 6-2 freshman Thomas Akyazili. A native of Belgium, Akyazili plays with great pace and impacts the game with his ability to make good decisions within the confines of the Buffaloes' offense. ... This is a good program piece for Tad Boyle."

As Rothstein also noted, Akyazili has just 14 turnovers in 293 minutes played this year. That has produced a terrific assist-to-turnover ratio in Pac-12 play. In five games, he's handed out 16 assists and had only four turnovers, and that 4-to-1 ratio is the best of any Buff and second-best in the conference.

Akyazili has also had a defensive presence. Against Oregon State, he had his turn against OSU's Gary Payton II and performed admirably — and when Payton tried to intimidate him, Akyazili refused to back down. After the game, Akyazili said, Payton “gave me props.”

Against Oregon, Akyazili was again in the game in crunch time as the Buffs held off a late rally by the Ducks. In that stretch, he found himself on the floor in a rare (for CU) three-guard lineup, joining starting point guard Dom Collier and reserve Xavier Talton. Boyle later said he had that combination on the floor because they were taking care of the ball, defending and making their free throws.

“My strength is that I can contribute a lot of different things, not just scoring and assisting,” Akyazili said. “Bringing a little bit of energy off the bench, I think that's a very important thing.”

One of those skills that has improved dramatically since the beginning of the season — and one reason he was on the floor at the end of the Oregon game — has been his decision-making ability. In five Pac-12 games, he's had just four turnovers, the result of a rapid maturing process that Boyle has watched develop.

“You could see it happening because of the way he approaches practice every day, the attitude that he brings to the gym every day,” Boyle said. “He's watching film with coaches, he's asking questions, he's upset when he makes mistakes. He's very self-critical. He's going to learn quickly. Some guys, it takes them awhile to figure out after they've made the same mistake 15 times, maybe they don't need to make that mistake again. He learns it after one or two times.”

Akyazili said his decision making is simply a matter of experience.

“The Pac-12 is way faster than the first games we played,” he said. “Everything goes faster, so you have to think really fast. My decision making is going to improve every time I play a game. It's just experience.”

RPI BUMP: The Buffs moved up to No. 24 in the latest NCAA RPI, thanks to their win over Oregon. The Pac-12 had 11 teams in the top 60 as of Monday morning: Oregon (9), USC (14), Colorado (24), Arizona (28), Utah (29), Oregon State (40), Stanford (44), Arizona State (50), Cal (53), Washington (57) and UCLA (59). Washington State (152) was the only conference school not in the top 60.

BIG JOB AHEAD: The Buffs face a big task Wednesday night in Washington when they will see UW guard Andrew Andrews. The Huskies senior is averaging 21.4 points per game on the season and 25.4 per game in Pac-12 play. “We're not going to eliminate his points,” Boyle said. “He's a good player. He's very aggressive offensively. He's going to get his shots. We've just got to make sure he works for everything.”

GREAT SCOTT: CU senior Josh Scott was named the Pac-12 Player of the Week on Monday. Scott averaged 21.0 points, 11.5 rebounds, 2.5 blocks and 2.0 assists in CU's wins over Oregon and Oregon State. The weekly honor from the Pac-12 is Scott's first and Colorado's sixth since joining the conference in 2011-12.

GORDON UPDATE: Boyle said after Monday's practice that junior forward Wesley Gordon, who missed the second half of Sunday's game with Oregon with a thumb injury, “is going to be OK. His thumb's a little sore.”

Contact: Neill.Woelk@Colorado.edu