Colorado University Athletics
Buffs Face High-Scoring UW On Huskies' Home Court
January 20, 2016 | Men's Basketball, Neill Woelk
SEATTLE — Tad Boyle barely had time to savor Sunday night's win over visiting Oregon before he began stressing the importance of the next item on the Colorado Buffaloes' agenda: a two-game road trip that begins with a Wednesday night game at Washington (8 p.m., Pac-12 Networks) and finishes with a Saturday evening affair at Washington State (7 p.m., Pac-12 Networks).
“To separate yourself in this league, you have to win on the road,” Boyle said. “So we have to go on this road trip with the mindset that we're going to compete in both games. If we do that, I think we can win some games in this league.”
Winning on the road is never easy, but it's proving to be an especially difficult task in a conference that currently has the No. 2 RPI in the nation. After the first three weeks of Pac-12 play, road teams are just 9-21, with five teams still winless on the road in conference games.
The 14-4 Buffs (3-2 Pac-12) are one of those teams with a conference road win, and a 3-1 road record for the season. As Boyle has said, the Buffs have proven they can win on an opponent's home floor. (CU's road win over Auburn, by the way, is looking even better in wake of the Tigers' home win over Kentucky last weekend.)
But the surprising Huskies might pose the toughest test the Buffs have faced yet in a true road contest. Picked in the media preseason poll to finish 11th in the conference, Lorenzo Romar's team has sprinted from the gates with a 4-1 conference record (12-5 overall), with wins over USC and UCLA already in hand.
There's no secret who makes the Huskies tick. Romar starts four freshmen and a senior, and that senior — Andrew Andrews — is a big reason behind UW's early conference success. The 6-2 guard leads the Pac-12 in scoring for all games (21.4) and in conference games (25.4). He's also the conference games leader in assists (6.2 apg), he's a capable 3-point shooter (averaging 2.4 per game), and for good measure, he's also fourth in the league in conference steals.
Boyle said the Buffs will likely employ a strategy similar to the one they utilized against Oregon State's Gary Patyon II, one that will see a variety of Buffs have their chances to guard Andrews.
“We're not going to eliminate his points. He's a good player,” Boyle said. “He's very aggressive offensively. He's going to get his shots. We've just got to make sure nothing comes easy for him. He's going to score, we know that. But we've got to limit that scoring as best we can. If he scores 25 points, I'd like him to need 25 shots to do that.”
The Buffs also hope to accomplish that without sending Andrews to the foul line — a trip he makes often. He's shot 59 free throws in conference play, the most of anyone in the top 15 in free throw shooting percentage. Next on the list? CU's Josh Scott with 30.
The Huskies, though, aren't a one-man team. They have a crop of outstanding freshmen, led by guard Dejounte Murray (15.0 ppg) and forwards Marquese Chriss (11.0 ppg) and Noah Dickerson (8.2 ppg, 5.9 rpg).
If the Huskies are lacking in any department, it's on the defensive end of the floor. They are third in conference scoring, averaging 87.6 points per game. But despite their 4-1 record, they're yielding an average of 91.4 points per game — dead last in the conference — thanks in main part to last weekend's 99-67 drubbing at Arizona.
“Defensively, they're not where I'm sure Lorenzo wants them to be,” Boyle said. “But they're freshmen, they're learning, they're getting better and they're extremely talented offensively. If we can neutralize their scoring and keep them under their averages and take care of the ball and execute offensively, I like our chances. But it's not going to be easy.”
The Huskies have also shown an ability to come back from a big deficit, overcoming a 22-point second-half deficit vs. USC to claim an 87-85 win.
The Buffs, meanwhile, will be looking to neutralize UW's scoring with the consistency of senior Josh Scott — this week's Pac-12 Player of the Week — who has put together a string of four straight double-doubles. Boyle would also love a repeat of his bench's performance against Oregon — CU's subs cashed in 45 points in the win over the Ducks — as well as get more consistent scoring from wings George King and Josh Fortune.
“They've shown that when they have success, they have great energy in that building,” Boyle said of Hec Edmundson Pavilion. “Their student section is real close to the opposing bench. We're going to have to be focused; we're going to have to be mentally tough; we're going to have to be physically tough when we go not only to Washington, but to Washington State as well.”
Contact: Neill.Woelk@Colorado.edu
