Boyle's Buffs Set For Saturday Home Opener Against San Diego

BOULDER — When No. 25 Colorado tips it off Saturday against San Diego in the Buffaloes' home opener at the CU Events Center (8 p.m., Pac-12 Network), one thing is a virtual certainty:

The Toreros will have the Buffaloes complete and undivided attention.

"These guys, they beat us the last two years," said CU point guard McKinley Wright IV after Friday's practice. "I've never beaten San Diego. It's going to be a big one for us. Home opener, it's a must win."

Indeed, the Toreros have tortured the Buffs over the last two seasons.

Last year, they claimed a 70-64 win in San Diego.

Two years ago, they paid a visit to the Events Center and flew home with a 69-59 win, handing CU head coach Tad Boyle a rare non-conference home loss in the process. Boyle is now 68-4 in home non-conference games in his CU tenure, with that loss to San Diego the last non-conference defeat at home.

This year, the 1-0 Buffs are determined to make sure San Diego's streak doesn't reach three in a row.

"When you play San Diego, a lot of those kids maybe weren't recruited by Pac-12 schools," Boyle said. "They've got a chip on their shoulder and they've played like it the last couple of years. Our guys can not — I don't think we will — overlook them."

It's not that the Buffs looked past the Toreros in either of their last two encounters. But both times, San Diego's deliberate offense and collapsing defense befuddled the Buffs.

"They execute their stuff on offense and defensively they're really solid," Boyle said. "They don't beat themselves. You have to make shots against them and you have to execute and have patience. They dare you to shoot the ball early. If you fall into the 'take a quick jump shot' and you're not making jump shots, it's going to be a long night. It's going to be tough to score."

Sam Scholl's Toreros are just 2-2 this year, but have won two in a row, getting a win over Fresno State at home on Tuesday before picking up a road win at Weber State on Thursday.

Most of the faces won't be familiar to Colorado, as San Diego's only returning starter, big man Yauhen Massalki, is out with an injury. But the Toreros do have three returning letterwinners, including guard Joey Calcaterra, who has scored at least 20 points in each of USD's last three games.

"Our concentration level will be tested," Boyle said. "It will be tested on the defensive end away from the ball. San Diego is very different from Arizona State (CU's opening opponent). Arizona State, the guy that had the ball was the most dangerous guy. Against San Diego it's the guy who doesn't have the ball who is sometimes the most dangerous. They cut well, they back cut, they dribble-handoff. It's a different animal."

But Boyle's Buffs should have a big advantage in terms of depth and size. The Toreros play a seven-man rotation, and they don't have anyone over 6-foot-8 in the lineup. It means the Buffs can't spend the night settling for outside shots — which is exactly what San Diego would like to see.

"We're deeper and we're bigger," Boyle said. "We have to play inside out. We can't settle for quick jump shots. If we shoot quick jump shots, we'd better be making them. If we don't we're going to be in for a battle."

With their newfound top-25 ranking — CU made it into the rankings after opening with an 81-71 win over Arizona State — the Buffs know they now have a target on their backs.

"We have to take it up another level," Wright said. "We know we're going to get everybody's best shot. We're picked second in the Pac-12 and we're the No. 25 team in the country. Everybody saw what happened to Kentucky the other night. No. 1 team lost to Evansville. Being ranked doesn't mean anything. Everybody's going to come and play their best basketball."

And it will be up to Wright to make sure CU plays its style of ball, especially on the offensive end.

"They're a good defensive team," he said. "They sit in the gaps, they help a lot and they'll make you beat them with a jump shot most of the time. But we have much more size than them and we're a deeper team. We're going to look to punch the ball inside early and play from there."

That could mean a big game for CU sophomore Evan Battey. The 6-8, 264-pounder just missed a double-double against Arizona State, finishing with 11 points and nine rebounds.

SIEWERT OFF BENCH: After starting the first 26 games last season, Colorado's Lucas Siewert came off the bench in the last 10 and proved to be an effective spark in that role.

Now, the 6-10, 230-pound senior gives CU a big presence as a reserve, a role he fulfilled nicely in CU's opening win. Siewert had nine points and eight rebounds in 18 minutes against Arizona State.

Having such an experienced and talented player come off the bench is a luxury Boyle appreciates.

"That speaks to our depth," Boyle said. "He's a guy that can make a shot. He's playing with a lot of confidence, playing with a really good pace about himself. The whole key with Lucas is to keep him positive. He can make shots and he's getting to be a better rebounder. He's got good post game. He's a matchup problem for other teams, especially when he's at the five."

STARTING LINEUP: Four of five CU's starters are relative locks. Wright, Tyler Bey, D'Shawn Schwartz and Evan Battey are players Boyle said have "separated" themselves in practice.

But the fifth spot — which was manned by sophomore guard Daylen Kountz in the opener — is by no means settled.

"I don't put a lot of stock in starting lineups," Boyle said. "I know other people do. We've got four guys who could be in that slot — Daylen, Maddox (Daniels), Shane (Gatling), Eli (Parquet). You may see it change, you may see it stay the same. It's something we don't even talk about, to be honest with you, as a staff."

ON THE AIR: The game will be televised by the Pac-12 Network with Drew Goodman and Matt Muehlebach. KOA 850 will carry the radio broadcast with Voice of the Buffs Mark Johnson on play-by-play and Scott Wilke on color commentary.

Contact: Neill.Woelk@Colorado.edu