Colorado
7-1
New Mexico
3-6
Boyle's Buffs Pull Away Late To Defeat New Mexico, Improve To 7-1
December 06, 2017 | Men's Basketball, Neill Woelk
BOULDER — Colorado's young Buffs are growing up in a hurry.
CU's freshmen sparked a decisive 12-3 run Wednesday night that broke open a one-point game in the second half and the Buffs pulled away down the stretch for a 75-57 win over New Mexico at the Coors Events Center.
The Buffs also had plenty of help from their seniors.
Senior Dominique Collier led the Buffs with 16 points — 14 in the second half — while freshman McKinley Wright IV recorded his first career double-double with 12 points and 10 rebounds. CU senior George King posted his ninth career double-double and second of the season with 10 points and 11 rebounds.
The Buffs won despite committing a season-high 23 turnovers that led to 28 New Mexico points. Colorado made up the difference by putting forth a dominant 58-31 rebound edge, as well as holding the Lobos to just 29.6 percent shooting (21-for-71) — including a 9-for-34 performance in the second half.
Colorado improved to 7-1 with the win while the Lobos fell to 3-6.
"Certainly not a thing of beauty," head coach Tad Boyle said. "If we were in a beauty contest I think we would have gotten fifth place. But we did what we had to do to get the win."
HOW IT HAPPENED: The Buffs knew the Lobos would apply pressure, and they did — to the tune of a season-high 23 Colorado miscues that led to 28 Lobos points. But CU held UNM to just 29.6 percent shooting (21-for-71) from the floor — including a 9-for-34 effort in the second half — while also posting a 58-31 edge on the boards to make the difference.
"I was really pleased with the second half," Boyle said. "We rebounded the ball well. If we'd rebounded like that last Saturday we'd be 8-0 right now instead of 7-1. But good bounce-back win. We have to keep getting better and learning."
The Buffs led by two at intermission before putting together their decisive 12-3 run midway through the second half, with freshmen providing the fuel for the burst. Lazar Nikolic scored the first five points, including a dunk on a beautiful alley-oop from Deleon Brown, McKinley Wright added four and D'Shawn Schwartz drained a 3-pointer to give the Buffs a 61-51 edge with 7:31 to go in the game.
"Laz is sneaky athletic," Wright said of his freshman classmate. "One of the guys with the most bounce on our team people don't know about yet. CU fans saw it tonight and they'll see more of it later in the season."
The Lobos briefly pulled back to within eight, but CU then produced a 7-0 run to take a 68-53 lead with 2:35 left to put the game away. Collier — the only Buff to have more assists than turnovers (2-0) —  had four points in the run to help the Buffs seal the win.
"Dom was really good in the second half," Boyle said. "He played within himself. He didn't force the issue. He let the game come to him and I was really pleased with Dom's effort, especially in that second half."
The Buffs jumped out to an early lead in the first half, building the margin to as much as 11 midway through the period. But the Lobos refused to go away, staying in the game with 3-pointers, finally tying the game at 33-33 with 40 seconds to go.
Colorado regained the lead on D'Shawn Schwartz drive with 25 seconds to go, taking a 35-33 lead into the locker room at the half.
The Lobos hit six 3-pointers in the first half, but managed to connect on just 3 of 15 tries from beyond the arc after intermission.
TURNING POINT: CU's 12-3 run broke open a tight game midway through the second half and the Lobos never threatened again. CU held the Lobos scoreless for a 3:42 stretch in the run.
WHAT IT MEANS: Although they improved to 7-1, the Buffs know they can't have another game with 23 turnovers if they want to be competitive Saturday when they play at No. 15 Xavier.
CU STANDOUTS: Dominique Collier had 16 points, two assists and no turnovers, with 14 points in the second half. … McKinley Wright IV had his first career double-double with 12 points and 10 rebounds. … Senior George King had his ninth career double-double and second of the seasons with 10 points and 11 rebounds. … Lazar Nikolic had eight points and seven rebounds in his first start, both career highs. … Dallas Walton had a career-high eight rebounds.
KEY STATISTICS: While the Buffs committed 23 turnovers, handing the Lobos 28 points, Colorado negated that by winning the rebound battle 58-30 while also holding UNM to just 9-for-34 shooting in the second half.
NOTEWORTHY: CSU's 58 rebounds were the most by the Buffs since grabbing 61 vs. Stetson in 2002. … UNM's two leading scorers, Chris McNeal (15.6 ppg) and Sam Logwood (16.5 ppg) finished with just six points combined. … CU is now 7-7 all-time vs. the Lobos and the win snapped a three-game UNM win streak in the series. … Collier, who came off the bench for the first time this season, led CU in scoring for just the fourth time in his career and is averaging 11.3 ppg over his last three games. … McKinley Wright and George King are now the only two players who have started every game for the Buffs this year.
QUOTEWORTHY: "We just have to be more consistent in everything we do. Taking care of the ball, rebounding, offensively, defensively." — CU coach Tad Boyle
"I thought CU did a really good job over the course of the game of just continuing to get the ball inside and getting some buckets around there. They made some shots in the second half and they did a really good job of protecting the rim." — UNM coach Paul Weir
"We know we're a young team but we try not to look at it like we're freshmen. We know we're Division I players. We have to play at a high level in order for this team to win. We have to do whatever it takes to help this team win, regardless of age or class or whatever." — CU's McKinley Wright
"I believe in this group. Win or lose Saturday, we're going to compete and we're going to get better. I love this freshman class. The future of Colorado basketball is bright. We have another one in street clothes that's pretty darned good. This freshman class is something that gets me excited as i think about the future — and the future right now is now, especially for George King and Dom Collier and Josh Repine. We're not waiting until next year, we're playing for this year." — Tad Boyle
NEXT UP: The Buffs travel to Cincinnati on Saturday for a 3 p.m. matchup with No. 13 Xavier.
Contact: Neill.Woelk@Colorado.edu
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