Saturday, February 8
Boulder, Colo.
2 p.m.
Colorado
59
vs
69
Houston
Julian Hammond III
Colorado Battles, But Drops Big 12 Game To Houston
February 08, 2025 | Men's Basketball
BOULDER – Colorado head coach Tad Boyle has preached the importance of defense and rebounding; it's been a pillar of his program over the past 15 years.
Saturday afternoon, the Buffaloes went against one of the elite teams in the country in those two categories, one of which proved to be the difference in the ball game.
No. 5 ranked Houston used a dominant performance on the glass to defeat the Buffaloes 69-59 at the CU Events Center.
Colorado falls to 9-14 overall and 0-12 in the Big 12 Conference. The Buffaloes have lost their last 12, their longest losing streak since the end of the 2008-09 season. Houston, 19-4 overall, maintains at least a share of the Big 12 lead at 11-1.
Julian Hammond III led all scorers with 22 points which included a career-high five 3-point field goals. He was Colorado's only player in double figures, Sebastian Rancik and Bangot Dak each had six points.
J'Wan Roberts led Houston with 20 points on 9 of 11 shooting.
All season, and especially during conference play, turnovers and inconsistent rebounding have hurt the Buffaloes. On Saturday, Colorado had 12 turnovers, tying for its lowest figure in Big 12 play, but Houston had a 38-26 edge on the boards. The Cougars had 15 offensive rebounds which led to 18 second-chance points, compared to just seven second-chance points for the Buffaloes.
Houston also had a 42-20 advantage inside the paint. The Cougars shot 48.2 percent from the field, including 60 percent in the second half. Colorado shot 41.3 percent from the floor.
"Our guys battled tonight. I can't fault them at all for their fight and their effort," Boyle said. "They gave great effort. I thought our defense in the first half was terrific. Our rotations really battled down the stretch. In terms of the stat sheet the two things I looked at immediately were turnovers. We only had 12 against Houston. If you'd have told me that before the game, I'd have taken it. We want to be 11 or fewer, but given our opponent today, I'd have taken that. But also, we knew rebounding was going to be a key to this game. To me, the difference in this game was two things. It was the rebounding differential, and obviously they outscored us 18 to seven on second chance points. The second thing is, J'Wan Roberts made plays down the stretch for them. He really put them on his back and made some tough shots."
Houston quickly pushed a four-point halftime lead to nine when Roberts scored right out of the break and Terrance Arceneaux and LJ Cryer hit back-to-back 3-pointers to give the Cougars a 39-30 lead. Hammond made back-to-back 3-pointers of his own to cut the margin to three at 39-36 with 14:44 left.
Hammond, who entered the game having hit just 1 of 10 from deep over the last three games, was 5 for 7 on his career-best day from long range.
Every time Colorado got close, it was Roberts that had the answer. He scored seven of Houston's next nine points as the Cougars once again led by nine.
Still, that didn't keep the Buffaloes from battling. Hammond and Bangot Dak hit consecutive 3-pointers to trim Houston's advantage to 48-45 with 8:49 remaining.
Arceneaux and Milos Uzan led a small 7-2 run to get Houston's lead back to 54-47. Colorado kept the pressure on Houston, getting to the foul line. Hammond, the second-best free throw shooter in the Big 12, made a pair of freebies. On the ensuing possession, Hammond got the steal, found Jakimovski who fouled by Joseph Tugler on a 3-point attempt in transition. Jakmovski made all three free throws, making it a one-possession game at 54-52 Houston with 5:49 left.
The fifth-ranked Cougars kept answering the call. Arceneaux stopped Colorado's run with a contested layup. Mylik Wilson got a steal on the next possession and went coast-to-coast for a dunk and a 58-52 lead.
Colorado stayed right with Houston. Hammond responded on another drive to the basket. Rancik aggressively drove the lane resulting in a thundering dunk with 3:45 left and the game was still a four-point contest at 60-56.
Roberts once again took over. He scored five points including back-to-back jumpers in the paint in Houston's decisive 7-0 run in the final two minutes, putting the lead in double-digits and out of reach at 67-56 with 1:12 left.
"Houston's the gold standard when it comes to defense and rebounding," Boyle said. "You guys know me well enough that that's what we aspire to be, but that's who they are. You coach this game long enough, maybe you have years like this, maybe you don't, but when you do, you just appreciate how hard it is to win a game in a league like this. We've come up short in games that are winnable down the stretch. We gotta keep the faith. I have great respect for Houston, the way they play the game and how tough they are."
Houston opened the game with a 9-0 run as the Buffaloes missed their first five shots.
Elijah Malone got the Buffaloes on the board with a three-point play. A Uzan 3-pointer and Cryer basket gave Houston a 14-3 lead at the 13:43 mark.
Colorado ramped up its intensity, scoring 11 straight to tie the game at 14-14. Javon Ruffin hit a deep 3-pointer and RJ Smith nailed a deep ball off a Dak offensive rebound. Freshman Felix Kossaras then scored five-straight points, joining the mini-3-point barrage then scoring on a slashing layup on a Dak assist to tie the game.
The Buffaloes could never get over that hump. Houston settled down to score the next seven, and kept Colorado at arm's length, eventually taking a 31-27 lead into halftime.
Colorado continues Big 12 action on Tuesday, Feb. 11, at Kansas, at 7 p.m. MT (ESPN2/KOA 850 AM & 94.1 FM).
Saturday afternoon, the Buffaloes went against one of the elite teams in the country in those two categories, one of which proved to be the difference in the ball game.
No. 5 ranked Houston used a dominant performance on the glass to defeat the Buffaloes 69-59 at the CU Events Center.
Colorado falls to 9-14 overall and 0-12 in the Big 12 Conference. The Buffaloes have lost their last 12, their longest losing streak since the end of the 2008-09 season. Houston, 19-4 overall, maintains at least a share of the Big 12 lead at 11-1.
Julian Hammond III led all scorers with 22 points which included a career-high five 3-point field goals. He was Colorado's only player in double figures, Sebastian Rancik and Bangot Dak each had six points.
J'Wan Roberts led Houston with 20 points on 9 of 11 shooting.
All season, and especially during conference play, turnovers and inconsistent rebounding have hurt the Buffaloes. On Saturday, Colorado had 12 turnovers, tying for its lowest figure in Big 12 play, but Houston had a 38-26 edge on the boards. The Cougars had 15 offensive rebounds which led to 18 second-chance points, compared to just seven second-chance points for the Buffaloes.
Houston also had a 42-20 advantage inside the paint. The Cougars shot 48.2 percent from the field, including 60 percent in the second half. Colorado shot 41.3 percent from the floor.
"Our guys battled tonight. I can't fault them at all for their fight and their effort," Boyle said. "They gave great effort. I thought our defense in the first half was terrific. Our rotations really battled down the stretch. In terms of the stat sheet the two things I looked at immediately were turnovers. We only had 12 against Houston. If you'd have told me that before the game, I'd have taken it. We want to be 11 or fewer, but given our opponent today, I'd have taken that. But also, we knew rebounding was going to be a key to this game. To me, the difference in this game was two things. It was the rebounding differential, and obviously they outscored us 18 to seven on second chance points. The second thing is, J'Wan Roberts made plays down the stretch for them. He really put them on his back and made some tough shots."
Houston quickly pushed a four-point halftime lead to nine when Roberts scored right out of the break and Terrance Arceneaux and LJ Cryer hit back-to-back 3-pointers to give the Cougars a 39-30 lead. Hammond made back-to-back 3-pointers of his own to cut the margin to three at 39-36 with 14:44 left.
Hammond, who entered the game having hit just 1 of 10 from deep over the last three games, was 5 for 7 on his career-best day from long range.
Every time Colorado got close, it was Roberts that had the answer. He scored seven of Houston's next nine points as the Cougars once again led by nine.
Still, that didn't keep the Buffaloes from battling. Hammond and Bangot Dak hit consecutive 3-pointers to trim Houston's advantage to 48-45 with 8:49 remaining.
Arceneaux and Milos Uzan led a small 7-2 run to get Houston's lead back to 54-47. Colorado kept the pressure on Houston, getting to the foul line. Hammond, the second-best free throw shooter in the Big 12, made a pair of freebies. On the ensuing possession, Hammond got the steal, found Jakimovski who fouled by Joseph Tugler on a 3-point attempt in transition. Jakmovski made all three free throws, making it a one-possession game at 54-52 Houston with 5:49 left.
The fifth-ranked Cougars kept answering the call. Arceneaux stopped Colorado's run with a contested layup. Mylik Wilson got a steal on the next possession and went coast-to-coast for a dunk and a 58-52 lead.
Colorado stayed right with Houston. Hammond responded on another drive to the basket. Rancik aggressively drove the lane resulting in a thundering dunk with 3:45 left and the game was still a four-point contest at 60-56.
Roberts once again took over. He scored five points including back-to-back jumpers in the paint in Houston's decisive 7-0 run in the final two minutes, putting the lead in double-digits and out of reach at 67-56 with 1:12 left.
"Houston's the gold standard when it comes to defense and rebounding," Boyle said. "You guys know me well enough that that's what we aspire to be, but that's who they are. You coach this game long enough, maybe you have years like this, maybe you don't, but when you do, you just appreciate how hard it is to win a game in a league like this. We've come up short in games that are winnable down the stretch. We gotta keep the faith. I have great respect for Houston, the way they play the game and how tough they are."
Houston opened the game with a 9-0 run as the Buffaloes missed their first five shots.
Elijah Malone got the Buffaloes on the board with a three-point play. A Uzan 3-pointer and Cryer basket gave Houston a 14-3 lead at the 13:43 mark.
Colorado ramped up its intensity, scoring 11 straight to tie the game at 14-14. Javon Ruffin hit a deep 3-pointer and RJ Smith nailed a deep ball off a Dak offensive rebound. Freshman Felix Kossaras then scored five-straight points, joining the mini-3-point barrage then scoring on a slashing layup on a Dak assist to tie the game.
The Buffaloes could never get over that hump. Houston settled down to score the next seven, and kept Colorado at arm's length, eventually taking a 31-27 lead into halftime.
Colorado continues Big 12 action on Tuesday, Feb. 11, at Kansas, at 7 p.m. MT (ESPN2/KOA 850 AM & 94.1 FM).
Players Mentioned
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