Colorado
15-12,7-9Pac-12
Arizona State
18-9,9-7Pac-12
Buffs Rally In Second Half To Win At ASU, End Road Skid
February 16, 2023 | Men's Basketball, Neill Woelk
TEMPE, Ariz. — Colorado closed the game with a decisive 17-3 run Thursday and the Buffaloes ended a six-game road losing streak with a 67-59 win over Arizona State at Desert Financial Arena.
Tad Boyle's Buffs improved to 15-12 overall and 7-9 in Pac-12 play while ASU fell to 18-9, 9-7.
The victory also helped the Buffs avenge a home loss to the Sun Devils in early December, a game in which ASU came back from a 15-point deficit to get the win.
Tristan da Silva led CU with 23 points, including a huge 3-pointer with 1:11 left to play that gave the Buffs a 64-59 lead. KJ Simpson added 12 points, Javon Ruffin came off the bench to score 10 and grab seven rebounds and Luke O'Brien had nine points and 10 rebounds in his second career start.
DJ Horne led ASU with 15 points.
The Buffs trailed for most of the first half before closing the period with an 8-0 run to tie the game at 32-32, getting a Simpson 3-pointer at the buzzer. CU then momentarily took the lead midway through the second half before the Sun Devils rallied with a 12-3 surge to take a 56-50 lead with just under six minutes to play.
But the Buffs had one more rally in their pocket as they closed with their 17-3 run. CU switched to a zone defense and limited the Sun Devils to just one basket in the final six minutes while da Silva and Ruffin both added a pair of 3-pointers in the game-clinching run.
Colorado shot just 42 percent from the floor (24-for-57) but held ASU to 37 percent shooting (24-for-65), including an 8-for-29 effort from long range. The Sun Devils hit four of their first six 3-point tries, but made only four of their next 23 the rest of the night.
CU also held a 42-34 edge on the boards and hit 10 of 11 free throws.
"The reason you get into coaching is for the young men," Boyle said. "It's not for you and your record, it's about the kids you coach and the experience they're having. One thing about this team, they've kept their heads up, they've kept their spirits up. Nobody likes to lose but this team hung together and tonight they showed some real toughness down the stretch."
HOW IT HAPPENED: After closing the first half with an 8-0 run to tie the game at 32-32, Colorado finally took the lead with an 11-4 burst. O'Brien drained a corner 3-pointer, then added a three-point play inside and with 13:02, Colorado held a 47-44 edge.
"Luke played his tail off tonight," Boyle said. "He played with great energy and really rebounded the ball for us and was aggressive."
But CU couldn't hold the lead. ASU put together a 12-3 burst while the Buffs hit just one of their next 10 field goal tries and the Sun Devils regained the lead, 56-50, with six minutes to play.
Colorado, though, answered again. Ruffin hit a pair of 3-pointers and da Silva added one to fuel an 11-3 Colorado surge that gave the Buffs a 61-59 lead with 3:19 to play.
"Ruff made some big shots down the stretch," Boyle said. "He's a guy that I really have confidence in. He's going to make shots when he's open and he did."
Defensively, the Buffs put the Sun Devils on their heels with their switch to a zone defense, as ASU hit just one of its last 10 field goal tries in the stretch. Arizona State also finished just 8-for-29 from long range after hitting four of its first six attempts from beyond the arc.
"About midway through the first half, (assistant coach) Rick Ray said, 'They're not going to keep making those,'" Boyle said. "I was hoping he was right."
Instead, it was the Buffs who made their 3-pointers when they needed them — and none proved to be bigger than da Silva's dagger with just more than a minute to play.
Da Silva kept a CU possession alive with an offensive rebound, took a pass at the top of the arc and then buried the shot.
"I knew that the shot clock was at about five, six seconds," da Silva said. "I felt like that was a good look late in the shot clock and I just took it."
Da Silva then added a free throw 20 seconds later and Ruffin hit two charity tosses with 30 seconds remaining to extend CU's run to 17-3 and its lead to 67-59.
"Players make plays at the end of the game," Boyle said. "Tonight our players made those plays."
The Buffs then ran out the clock after another ASU miss to clinch the win.
Colorado managed to stay in the game the first half despite giving up 10 second-chance points and nine points off turnovers in the opening 20 minutes.
Colorado fell behind early after an 8-0 ASU run and the Buffs played catch-up the rest of the half. The Buffs struggled on the offensive end while the Sun Devils hit four of their first six 3-point attempts and with 1:39 remaining in the half, ASU held a 32-24 edge.
But the Buffs closed on a strong note with their own 8-0 run to tie the game at the half, 32-32. Da Silva had a pair of free throws to start the run, Simpson added a three-point play with 40 seconds on the clock and then delivered a 3-pointer from the top of the arc at the buzzer to tie the game.
Da Silva, who scored just six points in CU's loss to Utah last Saturday, had 11 in the first half while Simpson scored 10 to go with four rebounds.
TURNING POINT: Just after the Sun Devils had seemingly regained control with a 12-3 run to take a 56-50 lead, the Buffs answered. Colorado put together an 11-3 run to take the lead for good as CU's defense strangled the Sun Devils over the final six minutes.
WHAT IT MEANS: The Buffs ended their longest road losing streak in the same season since 2014-15 and maintained their hold on seventh place in the Pac-12 standings. If that holds, they would play the No. 10 seed in the opening round of the Pac-12 tournament on March 8.
KEY STATISTICS: Colorado shot just 42 percent from the floor (24-for-57) but held ASU to 37 percent shooting (24-for-65), including an 8-for-29 effort from long range … The Sun Devils hit four of their first six 3-point tries, but made only four of their next 23 the rest of the night … After giving up 10 second-chance points in the first half, the Buffs did not yield a single point off an ASU offensive rebound in the final 20 minutes … CU also held a 42-34 edge on the boards and hit 10 of 11 free throws.
NEXT UP: The Buffs finish their trip to the desert Saturday with a 6 p.m. game at No. 8 Arizona (ESPN2). They then return home for three games to wrap up the regular season: Feb. 23 vs. USC (7 p.m.), Feb. 26 vs. UCLA (2 p.m.) and March 4 vs. Utah (3:30 p.m.).
The Pac-12 tournament then follows, running March 8-11 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
Contact: Neill.Woelk@Colorado.edu
