Colorado
3-0
Louisiana-Monroe
1-2
Boyle's Buffs Roll Past ULM To Improve To 3-0
November 17, 2016 | Men's Basketball, Neill Woelk
Colorado next faces Notre Dame in Legends Classic semifinals
BOULDER – Tad Boyle's Colorado Buffaloes rediscovered their shooting touch and played defense with a purpose Thursday night, rolling to an 89-70 win over ULM in their second game of the Legends Classic.
The Buffs had five players in double figures, led by Josh Fortune and Xavier Johnson with 14 points each. Derrick White and George King each chipped in 12 and Wesley Gordon had nine rebounds, four assists and two points as Colorado improved to 3-0.
CU also got some good production off the bench, getting 10 points and eight points from junior Tory Miller, as well as nine points from true freshmen Bryce Peters and Deleon Brown.
The Buffs will now turn their attention to next week's Legends Classic semifinals. Colorado meets Notre Dame on Monday in the Barclays Center in Brooklyn in a 5 p.m. nationally televised game (ESPN2), then plays either Texas or Northwestern a day later.
"This was great preparation for us getting ready to play Notre Dame," Boyle said.
HOW IT HAPPENED: The Buffs didn't let their ice-cold shooting effort from Monday's win over Seattle follow them into Thursday's game.
Instead, King opened the game with a 3-pointer, then hit another barely a minute later as the Buffs quickly opened up an 8-0 lead. White then scored eight unanswered points to give the Buffs a 16-3 lead and the Warhawks never seriously threatened to make it a game.
The Buffs stretched their lead to 38-19 late in the first half, then closed with a four-point flurry in the last four seconds of the half to take a 48-23 lead into the locker room at intermission. CU shot 15-for-34 in the first half, limited ULM to 7-for-28 shooting and had a 28-17 rebounding edge.
"The first half couldn't have been better," Boyle said. "But we have to get better for 40 minutes. Notre Dame shoots the ball better than Louisiana-Monroe."
Colorado then kept the lead in the 20-point range for most of the game and Boyle pulled his starters for good with a few minutes to go.
King, who was just 6-for-17 from the field in CU's first two games, finished with a 4-for-6 night, including 2-for-3 from 3-point range. Fortune was just 2-for-8 from the field, but had a perfect 10-for-10 night at the free throw line.
White, meanwhile, continues to show why Boyle and his staff have been so excited to get the transfer from UC-Colorado Springs on the floor. The 6-foot-5 senior has been handling point guard duties, and had four assists, three rebounds and two steals to go with his 12 points. The majority of those assists and rebounds came at key moments when the Buffs were building their big first-half lead.
"He can affect a game in so many ways," Boyle said. "If Derrick was a selfish player, he could have had 25 or 30 tonight, but he's not. I can't say enough about him, how he affects the game in so many different ways. That's what great players do."
The large early lead also gave Boyle a chance to give his true freshmen some quality minutes. Peters made his first appearance as a Buff and dazzled the crowd with a steal and dunk for his first basket in a CU uniform and also hit a 3-pointer for part of his nine points. Brown had two 3-pointers and true freshman Lucas Siewert had two points and six rebounds. Peters and Siewert each had 17 minutes on the floor while Brown had 20 minutes.
The Buffs also had a solid rebounding edge for the third game in a row, outrebounding the Warhawks 49-37. Along with Gordon's nine and Miller's eight, Fortune matched Siewert's total with six.
Jordon Harris led ULM in scoring with 15 points, all coming from a 5-for-8 night from 3-point range.
TURNING POINT: This one was never close. The Warhawks briefly closed an early double-digit deficit to eight, 20-12, but the Buffs answered with a 13-4 run that put the game away with three minutes still left in the first half.
CU STANDOUTS: Five players in double figures meant it was a balanced effort, but Derrick White's 12-point, four-assist, three-rebound, two-steal effort stands out because of it's versatility. … Wesley Gordon was his usual force on the boards, finishing with nine rebounds, and he also had four assists. … Tory Miller had eight rebounds, with five coming on the offensive boards. … Fortune's 10-for-10 night from the free throw line helped the Buffs go 28-for-35 from the line.
KEY STATISTICS: The Buffs had three consecutive defensive stops on seven different occasions in the first half, a statistic that Boyle loves to see. … The Buffs' emphasis on rebounding continues to pay dividends, and Thursday's 49-37 edge was no different, as it helped produce 19 second-chance points. … The Buffs also had more assists (14) than turnovers (12), a ratio that Boyle would no doubt like to see improve, but one that is still one the Buffs can live with.
NOTEWORTHY: Gordon now has 714 career rebounds, moving him into eighth place on CU's all-time list. He started the night in 11th and passed David Harrison, Larry Vaculik and Burdette Haldorson. …. Xavier Johnson moved into a tie for 23rd on CU's list of all-time starts, making his 69th on Thursday, and is now 31st on CU's career scoring list (1,025), moving past Chauncey Billups and Andre Roberson. … The Buffs have won 11 straight and 21 of their last 22 home games. … Along with nine points in his collegiate debut, Peters also had a team-high three steals.
QUOTEWORTHY: "It's hard not to think about what's next. … That's what games like this are fun to play in the preseason, because you get a feel for where you're at. It's going to be a Pac-12 level basketball team and program." — CU coach Tad Boyle on Monday's game against Notre Dame.
"I'm really excited to get out there and play in the Barclays Center. It's on national TV, which will be fun and we're playing a great team. We want to go out there and play our best and hopefully come back with two wins." — CU's Derrick White.
"Energy is the key word with Bryce (Peters). He brings it on defense, he brings it offense. He had three steals, he gets his hands on a lot of balls. He has a good feel for the game. … Bryce is going to be a terrific player here." — Boyle on true freshman Bryce Peters.
"Where he and Deleon (Brown) and Lucas (Siewert) are right now, we're going to need them at times. We're going to count on them a lot and I couldn't be more pleased with all three of them." — Boyle on all three true freshmen.
WHAT IT MEANS: Maybe the biggest takeaway from Thursday is that White is clearlu ready to live up to his billing as a player who makes everyone around him better. He can create as a scorer, is an excellent passer and can rebound. Second on the list is that CU's freshmen trio of Brown, Peters and Siewert will be contributors this season. Meanwhile, the Buffs should take some confidence with them to New York, where they'll get their first true barometer game of the season when they meet Notre Dame.
NEXT UP: The Buffs meet Notre Dame at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn in the Legends Classic Semifinals in a 5 p.m. game Monday. The game will be nationally televised (ESPN2) and CU will play again the following night against either Texas or Northwestern.
Contact: Neill.Woelk@Colorado.edu
