MBB Hosts Baylor, Wednesday

Game #27: vs. Baylor Bears (18-8, 6-6 Big 12); Wednesday, Feb. 27, 7:37 p.m. (mst.);

Arena: Coors Events Center (11,064); Television: FSN Rocky Mountain; Announcers: Mark Johnson, Ceal Barry, Mark Stout (sideline); Radio: Campus Radio 1190-AM/KKZN 760: Cory Lopez, Charles Johnson

** the CU men’s game will begin on AM 1190 then switch over at the conclusion of the CU women’s game at Baylor.

COMPLETE NOTES located at the bottom of page

FOR STARTERS (individual): Richard Roby enters the Baylor game in third place on the school’s all-time scoring list with 1,890 career points and fifth on the Big 12 all-time list. Roby trails Cliff Meely by 50 points for second place and Donnie Boyce by 105 points, who hails at the top. With at least five games left in the season (four conference games, one tournament game), Roby needs to average 21.0 ppg. to tie Boyce ? Marcus King-Stockton tied a career-best four blocked shots at Missouri. On the season, he has a personal-best 33 ranking seventh all-time in that category with 95 ? Roby has 99 career games (out of 113) in scoring double figures ? Three players have started every game (Roby, Hall, Higgins) with 26. If all three continue the trend, it will be the first time since 1984-85 that three players started the entire season. Roby is the last freshman to start every game in a season (30, 2004-05) ? Hall has a career-best 99 rebounds, 44 steals, 43 3-pointers in a single-season ? Roby and Hall (22nd overall w/ 1,067 pts.) are the first CU 1,000-point tandem since 2003-04 when the Buffs had four players over 1k (Stephane Pelle, Michel Morandais, David Harrison, Blair Wilson) ? Roby ranks first all-time with 110 career starts ? Hall ranks first in conference-only FG percentage (.541) ? For the first time in school history five players have at least 20 made 3-pointers in a season: Marcus Hall (43), Richard Roby (39), Levi Knutson (24), Cory Higgins (23) and Xavier Silas (20).

FOR STARTERS (team): CU did not attempt a single free throw at Mizzou last Saturday. It’s the fewest in a game since the Buffs went 0-for-1 at Iowa State on Jan. 14, 1987. Ironically, CU did not shoot a free throw in the first half at KU ? CU has used seven different starting lineups ? CU has shot 70 percent or higher from the free throw line on 14 occasions in 2007-08 ? Four of CU’s 10 losses in Big 12 play are a total of 14 points (3.5 average) ? In CU’s two Big 12 wins, they have shot .481 percent from the field, .745 from the FT line and outscored opponent 63.5-to-54.5 ? In CU’s 10 wins they have shot .505 from the field, .716 at the FT line, out-rebounded the opponent 31.8-to-28.7, and are outscoring the opposition 68-9-to-53.2 ? The Buffs have surpassed last year’s win total of seven with 10 wins ? CU’s 72 points scored in home win over Oklahoma was their most points in Big 12 play this year. CU shot 60.6 percent from the field, their second time over 60 percent in Big 12 play (61.7% at Texas A&M).

CU vs. baylor: Colorado leads the head-to-head series 13-7 dating back to 1946 and hold a 9-4 edge in Big 12 play. Baylor took a 97-83 winner in Waco last Jan. 30, however, the Buffs have won five of the last seven games since 2002. CU is 6-0 (5-0 in conference play) at the Coors Events Center against the Bears.

LAST GAME REVIEW: Marcus Hall scored a game-high 17 points and Richard Roby added 14, however the Missouri Tigers held on for 60-53 victory. Colorado was held without a free-throw attempt for the first time in school history. The Buffaloes have lost nine of 10 and have lost 19 straight conference road games, including an 0-6 record this season. Colorado was whistled for just 12 fouls and Missouri 11, with the Tigers going 4-for-9 from the line. Reserve Leo Lyons had 10 rebounds and seven points for Missouri, which recovered after squandering all but two points of an 18-point cushion at 40-22 early in the second half. Colorado cut the gap to 50-48 when Roby scored from the baseline with 4:02 to go, but Missouri scored eight of the next 10 points.

RISING FROSH: Aside from Hall and Roby dominating the headlines, freshman Cory Higgins looks to have a bright future in black and gold. In his 12 Big 12 Conference games, Higgins ranks first from the free throw line (.824) and in steals (16); second in rebounding at 4.5 rpg., third in scoring 9.6 ppg., and 3-pointers (13).

HALL PASS: Senior Marcus Hall is making the most of his final season leading the team in assists with 95 (3.7 apg.). With 390 assists, Hall is 16 from the top-five in school history passing the great Donnie Boyce (405, 1991-95). Hall also has a career-best 44 steals and 43 3-pointers.

BIG 12 TOP-10: A number of CU players are ranked among the Big 12 elite players in various categories from all games played and conference-only.

All Games

Scoring Roby t-4th 16.7 ppg.

Hall 16th 12.9 ppg.

Rebounding Roby 11th 6.3

FG% Roby 5th .492

Assists Hall 6th 3.65

Steals Hall 7th 1.69

Higgins 15th 1.27

FT % Roby 8th .769

3-pt. Made Hall 14th 1.65

Blocks King-Stockton 7th 1.29

Roby 15th 0.96

Def-Reb. Roby 9th 4.46

Asst.-Turn Ratio Hall 8th 1.64

Big 12-Only Games

Scoring Roby 5th 16.8 ppg.

Hall 16th 13.0 ppg.

Rebounding Roby 12th 6.5

FG % Hall 1st .541

Roby 7th .500

Assists Hall 8th 3.25

FT % Higgins 6th .824

Steals Higgins t-13th 1.33

3-Pt. Made Hall t-15th 1.58

Blocks King-Stockton 2nd 1.67

Roby t-11th 1.08

Asst.-Turn Ratio Hall 6th 1.56

Def. Rebounds Roby 9th 5.17

Trends after 26 games

In Wins (10) In Losses (16)

PPG. 68.9 57.7

FG % 50.5% 42.0%

3-pt. FG % 38.3% 33.5%

FG made 24.3 20.7

FT% 71.6% 68.0%

Turnovers 13.4 13.8

Assist/TO Ratio +1.5 +0.9

Off. Rebounds 8.5 8.4

Def. Rebounds 23.3 20.9

Assists 15.4 11.8

Steals 7.8 5.2

Blocks 4.4 4.1

In 10 wins: Roby: 17.0 ppg., 6.7 rpg.,; Hall: 14.4 ppg., 3.1 rpg., 3.4 apg.; Silas 10.7 ppg., 3.9 rpg.

HALL or ROBY: Through 26 games, Richard Roby and Marcus Hall have led the majority of games in scoring. Roby has led 13 times (one shared), Hall 10 times (one shared). Cory Higgins has done it in back-to-back games (at Texas A&M, Nebraska). Xavier Silas (24 pts. vs. Florida A&M) has performed it once. In his 13 games, Roby averages 20.4 ppg., while Hall is 17.8 ppg. over his 10 games.

3rd all-time & CLIMBING: Richard Roby enters tonight’s game in third place with 1,890 career points. Roby trails Cliff Meely for second place just 50 points away. Roby is 105 points from Donnie Boyce, who hails at the top. With at least five games left in the season, Roby needs to average 19.8 ppg. to tie Boyce.

1. Donnie Boyce 1,995 18.8 1991-95

2. Cliff Meely *1,940 24.3 1969-71

3. Richard Roby 1,890 16.7 20004-pre.

* played three years

FT SHOOTING: In recent years, CU was not a very good free throw shooting team. This year, the Buffaloes are shooting almost 70 percent (.695), a feat only accomplished once in the last 12 years (2000-01, .715).

FOUR IN A ROW? - Richard Roby is on the verge of becoming only the third player in school history to lead the team in scoring four consecutive seasons. From 2004-05 (16.0 ppg.), 2005-06 (17.0) through last year (17.3), Roby has made it three straight. Here are the others:

Donnie Boyce 1991-95 4-straight

Shawn Vandiver *1988-91 3-straight

Emmett Lewis 1975-79 4-straight

Cliff Meely *1968-71 3-straight

Pat Frink ^1964-65, ’66-68

(3 of 4 years)

* - Played only three years

^ - did not play 1965-66 season

IRON MAN: Marcus Hall has six games this season playing all 40 minutes. Hall ranks second in the Big 12 Conference behind Martin Zeno of Texas Tech, who has nine 40-minute games (6 conference and 3 non-conference). Hall has three straight Big 12 games (KU, at OSU, OU) and three straight non-conference games (at Air Force, Stanford, at Wyoming).

CU AOW: Richard Roby has four honors during the 2007-08 season tying him for fourth all-time in single-year Athlete of the Week honors. Roby has 11 honors his career. Roby’s 11 career honors moves him out of a tie with Shaun Vandiver for the most career honors for men’s basketball players and into a tie for second place on the all-time list with current track and cross country standout Jenny Barringer. Adam Goucher, a former track and cross country standout holds the record with 14.

BUFF BITS: Hall’s consecutive playing streak ended at 163:58 dating back to the Iowa State game on Jan. 29. It’s his second consecutive streak of 160 minutes. Hall played 161 consecutive minutes from Nov. 29-Dec. 22 ? Richard Roby’s streak of 15 consecutive games of double figures came to an end at KU (his longest string of games during his four-year career) ? Levi Knutson scored eight points off the bench vs. OU matching his Big 12 high set in home win over Nebraska ? Cory Higgins had a season-best five steals, four in the first half at Iowa State. His five steals were a CU high in the 12-year conference history vs. the Cyclones ? Roby’s season-best 14 rebounds against Mizzou tied his output of 14 boards earlier this season against New Orleans; his 13 defensive vs. Missouri was a career-high ? Richard Roby has tallied double-figures 23 of 26 games, Marcus Hall 19 of 26 games ? Hall, Higgins and Roby have started every game (26) ? Hall, Higgins, Knutson and Thorne II are the only players with more assists than turnovers ? For the first time in school history, CU beat both Oklahoma and Nebraska at home in football AND basketball in the same year ? Commissioners Honor Roll (3.0 or better): Freshman Levi Knutson (business), Redshirt sophomore Casey Crawford (political science) ? Jermyl Jackson-Wilson was named one of 12 Big 12 Conference student-athletes to the 2007-08 Winter Sports Good Works Team in February.

CU During Big 12 Inception: After 26 games, CU not only has won more games this season than last, but their 3-point field goal percentage, free throw shooting and limiting their turnovers per game rank near the top over the last 12 years.

Year PPG FG % 3-Pt.% FT% To W’s

2007-08 62.0 .452 .353 .695 13.6 10

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

3-Point Streak: Dating back to the 2001-02 season, CU has made a 3-pointer in 189 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.

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