Colorado University Athletics
MBB Hosts Harvard on Saturday
FOR STARTERS (individual)...Dwight Thorne II and Cory Higgins each scored 21 points against Montana State becoming the only two players on the current roster to score 20 points in a game ... Austin Dufault netted double-digits for the second straight game (11 points); he was also 5-for-10 from the field against the Bobcats ... Levi Knutson tied his career-high with 12 points against Montana State (also tied his career FT made w/ four) ... Higgins has started every game as a Buff (34 dating back to last year) and had a career-high 11-of-14 at the FT line against MSU ... Thorne II made a career-best six field goals vs. MSU.
Complete Notes with starting lineup, additional stats located at the bottom of the page
FOR STARTERS (team)...The starting lineup scored 59 points in each of the two games ... CU has committed only 21 turnovers over the last two games equaling the 1997-98 team. The stat reflects only the first two games at the start of a season. In fact, it’s the lowest in school history since turnovers were kept as a stat starting in 1972-73 ... CU scored 82 points in Tuesday’s loss, the most points in non-conference play since a 93-47 win over Grambling State (Dec. 29, 2007) ... CU will be playing their third straight home game, a school-first since the 2001-02 season. On Tuesday, CU plays Lafayette College (Pa.) making it the first time since the 1998-99 season, the Buffs started a season with four straight home games ... Tuesday night’s overtime game to Montana State was the first home overtime game since defeating Oklahoma, 94-87 (Feb. 25, 2004) ... CU hosts Lafayette College (15-15, 6-8 Patriot League) on Tuesday wrapping up the November home slate.
CECC RECORD...maybe a school record? Sophomore guard Cory Higgins is the first CU student-athlete to lead the team in rebounds AND assists the first two games of any season since 1973-74. It’s a Coors Events Conference Center mark (building opened in 1979). The research was stopped at the 1972-73 season because assists were not kept. So, in the last 35 years, no CU player has led his team in rebounding AND assists in the first two games of the season until Higgins.
POSTER COVER...Junior walk-on Matt Favaro is today’s featured student-athlete. Matt is from Mountain View, Calif. and lettered twice in basketball. He averaged 14 points, eight rebounds and two blocks per game as a senior. Matt was an all-league and varsity most valuable player his senior year.
HARVARD UPDATE...Today is only the second meeting against the Crimson since Dec. 29, 1948. CU defeated Harvard, 81-48 on a neutral court. The Buffs are 6-1 all-time against the Ivy League.
MORE CRIMSON...Harvard opened the season with an 80-69 win at New Hampshire, Wednesday night. Harvard shot 61.4 percent (27-of-44) from the field with eight field goals from the three-point arc at UNH. Max Kenyi led the team in scoring with 17 points. Harvard also shot 18-of-22 from the free throw line (81.8).
The Crimson are coached by former Duke great Tommy Amaker. Amaker was a 1987 All-American and national defensive player of the year; he set the record for steals in a Final Four with 10 and steals in a championship game with seven; and won two titles as an assistant at Duke (1991 and 1992).
ON THIS DAY (Nov. 22)...CU is 4-0 on this date in history and last played on this date in 2002. On that day, it was the season opener and a home victory over Cal Poly, 97-69. The Buffs shot 38-of-68 from the field (.559). It was the start of five games where CU scored 90+ that season en route to the NCAA Tournament and a 20-12 record.
LAST GAME RECAP...Senior Dwight Thorne II and sophomore Cory Higgins each scored 21 points, however CU’s rally fell short in overtime as visiting Montana State escaped with an 85-82 overtime win on Tuesday. Levi Knutson added 12 points and Austin Dufault tallied 11 points for the Buffs.
Marquis Navarre’s runner in the lane with 52.7 seconds remaining in the extra period broke a tie at 80, sending the Bobcats to their sixth straight win over the Buffaloes in a series dating back to 1924.
The Buffaloes trailed by as many as 15 points in the second half, before rallying to tie late in regulation on a Knutson drive with 15 seconds remaining. In the extra session, Thorne opened up the scoring for CU with a three-pointer, however MSU’s Bobby Howard (24 points) hit a three-pointer - their 11th of the game, tying at 78.
After the teams traded points, making it 80-80, Montana State finally pushed ahead on a pair of free throws by Danny Piepoli (19 points) giving MSU the lead they would not relinquish.
3-Point Streak...Dating back to the 2001-02 season, CU has made a 3-pointer in 197 consecutive games. Last time they failed to make at least one trey was Jan. 16, 2002 against Iowa State in Boulder. The Buffs won 63-61.
HAWAII BOUND...AGAIN...The Buffaloes will be making another trip to the Hawaiian Islands playing in the 2009-10 Maui Invitational in Honolulu. It will be CU’s first-ever appearance in the Maui hosted by Division II college Chaminade, and sponsored by EA Sports. The Buffaloes will be one of eight schools participating in the 26th edition of the tournament. Joining CU next year will be Arizona, Gonzaga, Louisville, Maryland, Vanderbilt, and Wisconsin.
TEAM TIDBITS vs. Pine Bluff...CU shot 50% from the field in both halves (51.9% for the game) against Arkansas-Pine Bluff. The last time the Buffs shot 50% in both halves was against Oklahoma (Feb. 9, 2008) ... The Buffaloes made 10 three-pointers from the new NCAA 3-point line of 20’9"... The 10 treys are the most for CU since making 10 against Oklahoma State (Feb. 3, 2007) ... The CU defense held Ark.-PB to 20 points in the first half, the lowest since allowing Iowa State 15 in Ames (Jan. 29, 2008).
CU TEAM NOTES...CU is playing a school-record eight home games before Christmas (previous high was seven set five times, most recently 1998-99) ... Entering the 2008-09 season, CU’s starting lineup may consist of freshmen and sophomores. It will be the school’s youngest starting five to play at one time since 1985-86 when four freshmen, one sophomore started three straight games ... For the 12th time in school history a CU team will have at least five freshmen on a roster ... CU plays nine non-conference home games, the most of any season since 1995-96 (nine). This season will be the first time playing Lafayette, Coppin State, George Washington (pending), Vermont (pending).
YOUTH movement...A combination of 10 underclassmen (five freshmen and five sophomores) highlight the roster matching one of the youngest CU teams in history. Back in 2006-07, CU had 10 underclassmen (eight freshmen), in addition to the 1992-93 season (four freshmen, six sophomores).
Defense through the years...Over his six years as a collegiate coach and two-plus seasons as a head coach in the NBA, Jeff Bzdelik has installed playing defense as a major part of the game. Here’s a look at his teams over the years. The 2005-06 season at Air Force was a nation’s best of all 970 collegiate schools in Division I (326), D-II (265), and D-III (379).
1986-87 UMBC 70.1 ppg. (28 gms)
1987-88 UMBC 78.0 (28 games)
2002-03 Denver (NBA) #92.4 (82 games)
2003-04 Denver (NBA) 96.1 (82 games)
2004-05 Denver (NBA) 97.4 (28 games)
2005-06 USAFA *54.7 (31 games)
2006-07 USAFA **56.0 (35 games)
2007-08 Colorado ^62.4 (32 games)
2007-08 Colorado 70.5 (two games)
* - nation’s best
** - runner up nationally (Princeton 53.3)
^ - lowest in CU history 46 years
# - franchise record (shattered mark by more than five points)
JUST A KID...Forward Trey Eckloff is perhaps the youngest men’s basketball freshman ever on any CU roster. Born April 30, 1990, Eckloff would be a senior at Cherry Creek High School in Englewood, Colo. He’s the youngest scholarship student-athlete in the Big 12 Conference, however, Nebraska non-scholarship freshman Ross Ferrarini, born May 25, 1990, is the youngest overall.
LOST FOR THE SEASON...Junior forward Trent Beckley will miss the 2008-09 basketball season with a stress fracture in his lumbar spine. According to CU men’s basketball athletic trainer Larry Willock, Beckley’s injury does not require surgery, as the bone tissue is healing. Beckley, a native of Vail, Colo., played in 10 games last season. He was a walk-on during his freshman and sophomore years, and was awarded a scholarship at the beginning of the 2008-09 school year.
NO EXHIBITION GAME...For the first time since the 1985-86 season, CU did not play one exhibition game to start the season. Instead, the Buffs played a pair of closed door scrimmages against Utah and at Northern Colorado.
FROSH & SOPHOMORE STARTING...There might a time this season when the starting five could be comprised of only freshmen and sophomores. Here’s a look at youth in past seasons and how they fared.
2006-07: Three freshmen in starting lineup: Kal Bay, Jeremy Williams, Xavier Silas: four times (at KU, at BU, OSU, at KSU). The quartet went 1-3 (defeated OSU, 89-77), lost by an average of 18 points.
2006-07: Two freshmen in starting lineup: Xavier Silas/Jeremy Williams: five times; Kal Bay/Jeremy Williams - three times; Dwight Thorne II/Jeremy Williams: once; Thorne/Williams, Silas: once
1985-86: Four freshman, one sophomore started three consecutive games and lost them all by average of 29.3 points per game.
Feb. 5, 1986 at Kansas, L, 64-100
Feb. 8, 1986 at Kansas State, L, 53-79
Feb. 12, 1986 vs. Iowa State, L, 57-83
Matt Bullard ? Fr.: Started all 28 games; Ken Countryman ? Fr.: Started only three games all season; David Kuosmen ? Fr.: Started four games all season; Jeff Penix ? Fr.: Started only three games; Scott Wilke ? So.: Started nine games.
TV APPEARANCES...CU will play on television 20 times this season, six of those nationally (FSN, ESPN, ESPNU 4 times). Here are the rest ... ABC Regional: 1; FSN: 1; ESPN: 1; ESPNU: 4; Big 12 Network (previously ESPN Regional): 5; FSN RM: 8.
COACHES saY...The conference coaches have picked the Buffaloes to finish in 12th place in the 2008-09 standings. Here’s each season since 1996-97, the predicted finish and the actual placing that CU ended up ...
Season Predicted Actual
2008-09 12th ?
2007-08 12th 12th
2006-07 12th 12th
2005-06 9th 5th
2004-05 10th 11th
2003-04 6th 4th
2002-03 9th t-5th
2001-02 7th 9th
2000-01 7th 9th
1999-2000 8th 7th
1998-99 10th 8th
1997-98 9th 9th
1996-97 no poll 2nd
BIG 12 OPENER...CU opens conference play at Missouri for the first time in the 13-year history of the Big 12. It’s also the first time playing a northern division opponent since 2003-04 and first time in Big 12 play playing a northern opponent on the road.
MORE OPENER INFO...For the second straight year, CU will open conference play on the road (at Missouri). It will be the first time since 2004, CU will play against the Big 12 North. The Buffaloes have lost 11-straight conference openers. The Buffs have not won an opener since Jan. 4, 1997.
1997-2008 Big 12 Openers
Jan. 12, 2008 at Texas A&M L, 68-81
Jan. 6, 2007 Texas L, 78-102
Jan. 7, 2006 at Texas L, 64-89
Jan. 8, 2005 at Oklahoma L, 55-85
Jan. 5, 2004 KANSAS L, 62-77
Jan. 11, 2003 at Oklahoma L, 54-69
Jan. 5, 2002 KANSAS L, 85-97
Jan. 6, 2001 at Baylor L, 56-61
Jan. 8, 2000 KANSAS L, 69-84
Jan. 2, 1999 TEXAS L, 68-73
Jan. 3, 1998 OKLAHOMA L, 68-69
Jan. 4, 1997 Nebraska W, 79-73
2007-08 Review...Here are a few tidbits from last year’s team in case you missed it:
? Nine losses by an average of 4.8 points
? Defense allowed oppts. 64.4 ppg. ? lowest in 46 years
? 13.4 turnovers a game ? lowest in 28 years 12.9 turnovers in Big 12 play ? lowest by a CU team in 12-year history of the Big 12
? Conference-only games, finished third overall in FG% (.448)
? Team shot .684 percentage from the free throw line, team-best since 2000-01 (.715)
? In conference play/conference tournament, lost by: one point; two points; four points; five points; six points; seven points
? CU’s win over Baylor in the Big 12 Championship tournament marked the first time a No. 12 seed has defeated a No. 5 seed in the Big 12 tournament
? Shot over 50 percent from the field 11 times
? CU shot a season-best 62 percent from the field for the game at Texas A&M (school second-best .773 from the field in the second half)
CU During Big 12 Inception... CU saw a dramatic decrease in turnovers per game (13.4) and improvement at the free throw line (.684) under first-year head coach Jeff Bzdelik. It was also a school-low in 28 years.
Years PPG FG % 3-Pt.% FT% To W’s
2008-09 79.0 .500 .366 .685 10.5 1
2007-08 62.4 .451 .343 .684 13.4 12
2006-07 69.1 .417 .313 .655 17.5 7
2005-06 76.8 .434 .342 .646 14.0 20
2004-05 71.6 .435 .353 .629 14.4 14
2003-04 74.2 .464 .372 .621 14.6 18
2002-03 75.2 .443 .326 .669 14.0 20
2001-02 79.7 .453 .357 .677 17.0 15
2000-01 80.6 .460 .359 .715 16.5 15
1999-00 75.2 .426 .339 .686 14.3 18
1998-99 73.1 .414 .344 .702 14.7 18
1997-98 71.4 .404 .346 .688 14.3 13
1996-97 73.1 .420 .362 .681 13.9 22
SUN, BEACH & X-MAS... Colorado is one of eight teams participating in the 45th year of the 2008 Outrigger Hotels Rainbow Classic, Dec. 27-30. The Classic, celebrating its 45th year, is the longest running eight-team tournament in the country.
The Rainbow Warriors open the tournament on Dec. 27 against Colorado State at 7:30 p.m. Preceding that game is George Washington and Vermont at 5:00 p.m. On Dec. 28, Buffalo and Pepperdine meet at 5:00 p.m., followed by Colorado and 2008 NCAA Tournament participant Coppin State at 7:30 p.m. The first-round winners advance to the tournament’s championship rounds, Dec. 29-30, while the losers will play in the consolation rounds.
UH and Colorado State, former Western Athletic Conference rivals, have met 43 times before. This will be Colorado State’s third appearance in the Classic. Colorado and Pepperdine will each be making their second appearances. Colorado finished third in the 1999 Classic and Pepperdine finished fourth in the 2003 edition. Buffalo and Vermont will be making their inaugural appearances in the tournament, as well as Coppin State, though this will be the third visit to the Stan Sheriff Center for the Eagles in as many years.
The Rainbow Warriors have captured five of the last seven titles, including four straight from 2001-04. Last year, Saint Mary’s of the West Coast Conference captured the championship with Hawai?i finishing in eighth place.
Rainbow Classic History Notes
-Since 1964, 153 teams have participated in the annual Rainbow Classic.
-Host Hawai?i has won the most championships (11), including four consecutive from 2001-04.
-North Carolina ranks second to UH with three titles, followed by Purdue and Illinois with two.
- Hawai?i is 72-60 (.545) all-time in the Rainbow Classic.
- Hawai?i has reached the championship game 19 times in 44 years.
- The Classic boasts a rich history of all-time great players, including “Pistol” Pete Maravich, Isiah Thomas and Michael Jordan.
CU IN THE PRO WORLD...There is a number of CU basketball members with ties to the professional ranks. From head coach Jeff Bzdelik to the four student-athletes.
Coach Bzdelik: Head Coach of the Denver Nuggets (2002-05);
Casey Crawford: father, Steve played with the Boston Red Sox;
Cory Higgins: father, Rod played in the NBA from 1982-95, currently the general manager of the Charlotte Bobcats;
Dwight Thorne II: cousin, Acie Law IV played for the Texas A&M Aggies and great uncle, Ernie Banks played with the Cubs.
CU Assistants...Joining Coach Bzdelik on his staff for his second year is a trio of the finest basketball minds in the game today.
Steve McClain, Associate Head Coach
- 22 years of coaching experience
- Won 157 games in nine years as the head coach at the University of Wyoming;
recorded the most regular season victories (60) of any Mountain West Conference head coach
- Four NIT appearances, One NCAA Appearance
- Led Hutchinson to the Junior College 1994 National Championship and earned National JC Coach of the Year honors
Derrick Clark, Assistant Coach
- Brings 11 years of coaching experience and his fourth season with Coach Bzdelik
- Helped direct Air Force to a 50-16 record during his two-years in Colorado Springs
- Assisted USAFA to the 2005-06 NCAA Tournament and 2006-07 NIT Final Four
- As an assistant at Metro State, helped the Roadrunners to a pair of NCAA Division National Championships
Charles Baker, Assistant Coach
- Brings 20 years of coaching expertise
- Returns to the Big 12 Conference after
spending six years with K-State (2000-06)
- At K-State, helped assemble a trio of Top 25 recruiting classes and assisted the recruiting of three consensus Top-100 players
- Only head coaching stint, turned Shorter Junior College into a consistent winner lead
ing his teams to four consecutive Arkansas State Junior College championships, and four-straight 20-win seasons.
20012-13 CLASS... On Nov. 12, the CU mbb team announced that Alec Burks, Keegan Hornbuckle, and Shane Harris-Tunks officially signed National Letters of Intent to continue their education at CU.
“With the signing of these three young men, once again we have taken a major step toward creating the vision for this program,” Bzdelik said. “All three are highly skilled, highly intelligent and play with a competitive spirit.”
Burks is a 6-foot-5 shooting guard from Grandview, Mo., is a skilled left-handed player who is capable of playing point-guard and will fit CU’s system because of his ability to shoot from distance and slash to the basket.
He committed to CU over Kansas State.
“Alec has the potential to be a 6-5 point-guard because of his athleticism and passing ability,” Bzdelik said. “Not only is he an excellent shooter, he has great vision.”
Burks earned first-team all-Suburban Mix Six League honors as a junior after averaging 19.9 points and 4.8 rebounds per game. Rivals.com lists Burks as the No. 31st point-guard in the class of 2009.
Hornbuckle is a 6-foot-6 small forward from Los Angeles, Calif., is a smooth shooter with deep three-point range and the ability to finish above the rim in transition. Hornbuckle helped Campbell Hall High to a 31-5 record as a junior in 2007. He is rated as the No. 34 small forward/shooting guard by Scout.com.
Hornbuckle selected CU over Arizona and Arizona State.
“Keegan is a long, skilled and athletic perimeter player that fits our system,” Bzdelik said.
Harris-Tunks is a 6-foot-11 center/forward from Sydney, Australia, will join current CU freshman guard Nate Tomlinson, who also hails from Sydney.
Harris-Tunks is the third recruit to sign with the Buffaloes, selected CU over Vanderbilt and Gonzaga.
“Shane comes to us with an abundance of international experience,” Bzdelik said. “He is a wide-big body who will provide us with a defensive post presence, defensive rebounding and shot blocking. From an offensive standpoint, he gives us a physical presence who can also pass and shoot the ball from the perimeter.”
Harris-Tunks spent the last year and a half at the Australian Institute of Sport, a prestigious academy that has college like demands both athletically and academically.
Why is the University of Colorado known as CU and not UC or U of C? The same applies at Kansas-KU, Missouri-MU, Nebraska-NU, Oklahoma-OU and Denver-DU. “Midwestern casualness,” says the former and late-CU historian Fred Casotti. It has always been this way at Colorado, for whatever reason, and at the other five listed above-but seemingly nowhere else in the USA. In the 1950s, there was a concerted effort to eliminate the use of “CU” on the Boulder campus, both as a symbol and in speech, but Casotti said that no one would buy into it. “Nobody would change,” he said. “It’s easier to say than U of C, UC sounds like slang or something (as in ?you see’), and it was traditional. By trying to eliminate it, they reinforced it.”