Colorado
7-1,0-0Pac-12
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Kansas
7-1,0-0Big 12
No. 20 Buffs Fall At No. 2 Kansas
December 07, 2019 | Men's Basketball, Neill Woelk
LAWRENCE, Kan. — Colorado's offense never got untracked and Kansas dominated inside Saturday as the No. 20 Buffaloes fell from the unbeaten ranks with 72-58 loss at Allen Fieldhouse.
Colorado fell to 7-1 while No. 2 Kansas improved to 7-1.
The Buffs never led in the game. Kansas jumped out to a quick 6-0 lead and though the Buffs managed to cut the deficit to one with 14 minutes to go in the half, the Jayhawks used a 9-0 run to regain control and take a 12-point lead at intermission, 34-22.
CU then managed to stay within striking range until midway through the second half, when Kansas finally started to pull away for good, increasing its lead to as much as 23.
The Buffs had just one player in double figures, with Evan Battey scoring 14 points and grabbing seven rebounds. Tyler Bey had five points and nine rebounds and McKinley Wright IV had eight points and seven rebounds.
Ochai Agbaji, one of three Jayhawks in double figures, led Kansas with 20 points.
The Buffs shot just 18-for-60 from the field (30 percent), including an ice-cold 7-for-34 from 3-point range. Kansas shot 27-for-51 (52.9 percent) and hit six of its 13 3-point tries. KU also had a 39-36 rebounding edge and a dominating 38-22 edge in points in the paint.
The Buffs finished with 17 turnovers but also forced 21 Kansas turnovers.Â
"We had a lot of good looks that didn't go in," CU coach Tad Boyle said. "You have to make those shots … But I was really proud of our guys' fight and their toughness and competitiveness. But we couldn't make shots tonight."
HOW IT HAPPENED: The Buffs did manage to keep it close early, pulling to within 10-9 on back-to-back 3-pointers from Lucas Siewert with 14 minutes to go in the first half.
But the Jayhawks answered with a 9-0 run to take control and Colorado never came closer than seven again, with Kansas pushing the cushion to 12 at the half.
The Jayhawks' defense collapsed in the paint all night, double-teaming CU's big men at every opportunity and forcing to CU to shoot from the outside. The Buffs did get some open looks but they couldn't connect, going 1-for-11 from the floor in a key first-half stretch.
"We missed a ton of shots we have to make," Wright said. "We had at least eight wide-open threes that just didn't fall. We got some paint touches, we have to finish in the paint. We're not playing our best basketball yet, but it will come."
Battey was the only consistent shooter for the Buffs, hitting five of his eight field goal tries, including a couple putbacks off of his four offensive rebounds. The only other Buff to hit at least half of his shots was Eli Parquet, who was 2-for-4 from the floor.
The rest of the Buffs combined to shoot 11-for-48.
Bey, who entered the game as CU's leading scorer at 14.0 points per game, was limited to just three field goal attempts as the Jayhawks made sure to surround him every time he touched the ball inside.
Battey played well against Kansas big man Udoka Azubuike, who finished with 12 points and six rebounds, both under his season average.
"Evan is a warrior," Boyle said. "He's smart, he's tough. He loves the challenge and you know Evans is one of those guys as a coach, you will go to battle with him — win, lose or draw. McKinley is the same way. I feel that way about our whole team. We just have to have some guys get a little bit tougher, a little bit better."
Agbaji did the most damage offensively for Kansas, hitting all four of his 3-point attempts in the second half as Kansas pulled away down the stretch. While CU held Kansas to 0-for-6 shooting from long range in the first half, the Jayhawks were 6-for-7 from beyond the arc after intermission.
CU did close the deficit to 12 with just more than eight minutes to play when a Wright 3-pointer cut Kansas' lead to 54-42. But the Jayhawks then opened up the cushion, building their lead into the 20s over the final minutes.
Colorado's 34 3-point attempts were 10 more than the Buffs' previous season high.
"That's not like us to shoot 34 threes in a game," Boyle said. "But that's what was open tonight because KU does such a good job of protecting the basket. They have two bigs in there and they're good shot blockers."
TURNING POINT: Just after Colorado seemed to be finding its offensive touch after pulling to within 10-9 six minutes in, the Jayhawks put together a 9-0 run and the Buffs never came closer than seven again.
WHAT IT MEANS: CU's first loss may not hurt the Buffs' ranking too much when the polls are released Monday. But their real concern will be finding a way to get their offense on track, as they have shot better than 44 percent from the field just twice this season.
KEY STATISTICS: The Buffs shot just 18-for-60 from the field (30 percent), including an ice-cold 7-for-34 from 3-point range. Kansas shot 27-for-51 (52.9 percent) and hit six of its 13 3-point tries. KU also had a 39-36 rebounding edge and a dominating 38-22 edge in points in the paint.
QUOTEWORTHY: "We talked as a coaching staff with the team after the game. We have to learn from KU what makes you successful. They're very efficient offensively and they're very sound defensively. We're very sound defensively, but we're not very efficient offensively right now. Part of that's making shots. The other part is passing the ball and taking care of the ball … I see it in practice. So I know it's there."Â
NEXT UP: Colorado returns home Tuesday for a 7 p.m. game against Northern Iowa, then travels to Fort Collins next Friday for a 6 p.m. game against Colorado State.
Contact: Neill.Woelk@Colorado.eduÂ
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