Colorado University Athletics
Buffs Aim To Bounce Back As Trojans Pay Visit
February 20, 2018 | Men's Basketball, Neill Woelk
BOULDER — With three regular season games to go and the Pac-12 tournament now on the near horizon, the Colorado Buffaloes still have a chance to write a successful ending to the 2017-18 basketball season.
The first part of that chapter — however it ends — will be written Wednesday when the Buffs (15-12 overall, 7-8 Pac-12) host USC in an 8:45 p.m. game at the Coors Events Center (FS1).
Wednesday's game is the first of three in a row for Colorado against teams currently in the top four of the Pac-12 standings — and the Trojans (19-9, 10-5) may be as talented as any team in that stretch. They boast one of the nation's top point guards in Jordan McLaughlin, a standout big man in Chimezie Metu, and a solid supporting cast.
McLaughlin is a do-everything point guard who is third in the nation in assists (7.7 per game) and fifth in the Pac-12 in steals (1.7 per game) while also averaging 12.2 points per game. That last number, though, is somewhat misleading — he scored 20 points in USC's 70-58 win over Colorado in January, and he is coming off a pair of games in which he recorded a points-assist double-double in each.
"He's one of the top three (point guards) in the country in my mind," head coach Tad Boyle said. "The way he controls the game, runs his team, his ability to score on all three levels, his ability to pass the ball — he's as good a passing point guard as I've seen in quite some time. He finds his teammates, he throws lobs, he bounce passes. He's a terrific, terrific player."
Metu, meanwhile, offers a different problem inside. The 6-foot-11 junior averages 15.8 points and 7.4 rebounds. In his last two games against Colorado — both USC wins — he has averaged 19 points and 9.5 rebounds.
"Talented," was Boyle's assessment. "(Arizona's) DeAndre Ayton is DeAndre Ayton, but Metu is not too far behind. He may not be physically where Ayton is, but skill-wise, length, athleticism, he can play. He's a good player."
In their first meeting this year, the Buffs played relatively well on the Trojans' home court. Colorado led late in the first half and trailed by just one early in the second half before turnovers became too big of a problem to overcome. The Buffs committed 22 miscues, which led to 25 USC points. Colorado did outrebound the Trojans, 39-31, and shot a respectable 43 percent (10-for-23) from 3-point range.
"We did enough good things to win that game," Boyle said. "Our effort was good, our focus was good, our intensity was good, but we just didn't take care of the ball, giving them the ball 22 times."
CU fans may also remember the game as one that saw USC coach Andy Enfield call timeout with just 21 second remaining and a 12-point lead. Enfield didn't make any substitutions, and there were more than a few folks who believed he was making a statement in the wake of Boyle's comments earlier that week after a win over Arizona. Boyle had referred to the current FBI investigation into college basketball — one in which a USC assistant coach was indicted and ultimately fired by the school — and Enfield evidently took exception to the comments.
After the game, Boyle said he and his players wouldn't forget the slight. But now, with the Colorado battling to end a two-game losing streak and aiming to gather some momentum down the home stretch, Boyle said the Buffs have far more important things on their minds.
"It's the last thing I've thought about," Boyle said with a shrug. "I may think about it between now and Wednesday night, but until you brought it up, I haven't even thought about it."
If the Buffs can cut down on their turnovers and improve their overall shooting even slightly, they will have a good chance to come away with their first win over the Trojans since 2015 (they played just once in each of the last two seasons).
But they will need senior George King to duplicate the performance he had in their first meeting (21 points, 10 rebounds) and get a more consistent performance from point guard McKinley Wright IV. The Buffs freshman had one of his rare off nights against the Trojans, finishing with just seven points on 2-for-9 shooting while finishing with more turnovers (5) than assists (4) — something that has happened only twice in Pac-12 play.
"This team is resilient," Boyle said. "One of the good things about being young is these guys bounce back. They have short memories and that sometimes can serve them well."
THE SERIES: Colorado leads the all-time series, 9-6, including a 7-3 edge since joining the Pac-12 in 2011-12. The Trojans, however, have won the last three meetings, including last year's 71-68 decision in Boulder. Colorado's last win in the series was an epic 98-94 victory in three overtimes in Los Angeles in 2015.
BROADCAST: The game will be televised by FS1 with Aaron Goldsmith and Steve Lavin. KOA 850 AM radio will carry the broadcast with Mark Johnson and Scott Wilke.
UP NEXT: The Buffs close out their regular season home schedule Sunday with a 2 p.m. game against UCLA.
Contact: Neill.Woelk@Colorado.edu
