Buffs Move Up To No. 20 In AP Poll; LMU Visits Wednesday

BOULDER — After reviewing the film from Saturday night's 59-45 win over Sacramento State, Colorado coach Tad Boyle found a few more positives in his Buffaloes' performance.

"You're never as good as you think you were when you play well," Boyle said of his weekend film review. "You're never as bad as you think you were when you don't play well."

The 6-0 Buffs certainly weren't at their best offensively against the Hornets, as they shot just 44.4 percent from the field (20-for-45) while committing a season-high 19 turnovers. But they were once again stellar on the defensive end, holding Sacramento State to just 28.3 percent shooting (17-for-60) while also holding a solid 41-32 edge in rebounding.

It was enough to give them a bump in Monday's weekly polls, as they moved up to No. 20 in the Associated Press national rankings and No. 21 in the USA Today/Coaches poll. The Buffs will be back on the floor Wednesday when they play host to Loyola Marymount (3-4) in an 8 p.m. game at the CU Events Center (Pac-12 Networks).

Monday morning, the Buffs spent a good portion of their practice working on their offense, particularly their halfcourt sets. While the Buffs have had no problem scoring in transition, they have struggled when forced to settle into their halfcourt offense.

"Its moving the ball side-to-side, getting the ball swung from one side of the floor to the other and getting the ball in the paint," Boyle said. "When we do those two things, we usually have good offensive possessions. When we struggle is when we take quick jump shots. We haven't swung the ball, we haven't gotten the ball inside … The bottom line is we have to be able to execute the halfcourt when we can't get out in transition."

Colorado's starting five actually shot the ball well against the Hornets, hitting 59 percent of their shots (16-for-27), but the reserves were just 4-for-18.

"Right now we're not doing a good job of getting everybody shots," junior point guard McKinley Wright IV said. "We have to do a better job of. We have to get D'Shawn (Schwartz) more touches. Tyler (Bey) took three shots, we have to get him more touches. We have to get Evan (Battey) more touches on the block and we have to find a way to get Maddox (Daniels), Lucas (Siewert) and Shane (Gatling) more threes."

Still, even when the offense is struggling, the Buffs have thus far shown they can fall back on the two foundational tenets of Boyle's program — defense and rebounding. Colorado is currently eighth in the nation in scoring defense, holding opponents to just 55 points per game, while out-rebounding opponents by a 39-32 edge. CU is also forcing an average of 17 turnovers per game.

"That's what's really good about our team," Wright said. "Everybody's really bought into the defensive end … We're just going to keep hanging our hat on defense and rebounding."

Another area in which Boyle wants to see improvement this week — especially with a trip to No. 2 Kansas looming on the horizon Saturday — is turnovers. After averaging less than 11 per game over the previous three contests, that number ballooned to 19 against the Hornets.

"Offensively, I expect more, I think our players expect more, I think our fans expect more," he said. "And we can't turn it over 19 times. We all know that."

BEY ON THE BOARDS: Colorado junior Tyler Bey currently leads CU in rebounding and scoring, averaging 14.2 points and 12.5 rebounds per game. He is tied for fifth in the nation in double-doubles (five), is fifth in rebounding and third in defensive rebounds (9.33).

Those are the kinds of numbers that have Colorado fans comparing Bey to former CU standout Andre Roberson, the last Buff to average a double-double for a season. Roberson averaged 11.6 points and 11.1 rebounds in 2011-12, then followed that with a 10.9/11.2 season a year later.

"He's rebounding the ball at a high level defensively," Boyle said. "I still want to see him more active on the offensive boards … but yes, Tyler's just cleaning up the glass like Andre used to."

QUICK LOOK LMU: The Lions are coached by former Metro State and Charlotte Bobcats head coach Mike Dunlap, who also had a stint as a Denver Nuggets assistant as well as collegiate stops at Arizona and Oregon. LMU is 3-4 this season, with a win over Southern Utah in its last game. The Lions earlier this season lost 74-64 at home to Colorado State and beat Air Force, 78-64.

Former CU assistant Derrick Clark, who worked for three seasons under former Buffs head coach Jeff Bzdelik, is an assistant with the Lions.

TICKET DEAL: Wednesday will be "Friends Night Out" at the Events Center. Fans can get two chairback seats and two drinks for $40.

Contact: Neill.Woelk@Colorado.edu