Colorado University Athletics
MBB Host Cornhuskers
vs. Nebraska Cornhuskers
(13-7, 3-4 Big 12 Conference)
Wednesday, Feb. 4, 8:37 p.m. (MST.);
Arena: Coors Events Center (11,064)
Television: FSN RM; Announcers: Drew Goodman (p-b-p), Ceal Barry (analyst), Allan Rizzo (sideline)
Radio: KKZN 760; Announcers: Mark Johnson, Charles Johnson
Internet: ESPN360.com
COMPLETE NOTES at the bottom of page ...
NU UPDATE... The Cornhuskers are 3-4 in Big 12 play with wins over Missouri and Kansas State at home and at Texas Tech. Ade Dagunduro and Steve Harley are each averaging 11.8 points per game for third year head coach Doc Sadler. NU returns four starters from a year ago and 11 letterwinners. Dagunduro has led NU in scoring seven times
CU vs. NU...Nebraska leads the all-time series, 74-68, however the Buffaloes hold a 40-24 edge in Boulder. CU has won the last three games in Boulder and hold an 8-4 advantage in Big 12 games played in Colorado since 1996.
POSTER FEATURE... Tonight’s poster feature is freshman guard Nate Tomlinson. The 6’2” starting point-guard from Sydney, Australia is CU’s first-ever basketball student-athlete from DownUnder. He’s second overall in assists (54, 3.0 apg.) and fourth in scoring (8.1 ppg.).
CU NATIONALLY...(as of Feb. 1)... Cory Higgins ranks among the nation’s elite players in four categories, while the CU team is ranked in two.
45th Higgins 85.4 Free Throw %
41st Higgins 2.2 steals per game
88th Higgins 17.5 points per game
99th Higgins 49.8 Field Goal %
Team
44th in field goal percentage (.454)
51st in free throw percentage (.728)
KELLEY UPDATE... Freshman guard Ryan Kelley will not need surgery after injuring his left knee in a Jan. 22 practice. The MRI report on Wed., Jan. 28 determined Kelley has a minor ligament sprain and no surgery is required. He could return to play in 2-to-4 weeks. The minor injury does not involve the knee cap, it’s a minor ligament sprain of the knee.
LAST GAME RECAP... Junior Dwight Thorne II scored 18 points and sophomore Cory Higgins added 15 points to help the Colorado men’s basketball team nearly overcome a 21-point second half deficit in a 66-61 loss at Kansas. Higgins also grabbed five rebounds and five assists. Senior Jermyl Jackson-Wilson recorded 12 points and five rebounds, and freshmen Nate Tomlinson and Austin Dufault each scored seven points for the Buffs.
SiX Big 12 games... CU’s last three losses are by an average of five points ... CU’s last two games, averaging 7.5 turnovers after averaging 20.3 during the first four Big 12 contests ... CU is number one in Big 12-only FT percentage (.728), second in steals (9.5 per game) and rebounding defense (32.2) ... Cory Higgins (16.5 ppg.) and Dwight Thorne II (15.0 ppg.) lead the team in scoring ... The 1-5 start in the conference matches last year’s record after six games ... Jermyl Jackson-Wilson is shooting .552 from the field (16-of-29), while Thorne is shooting .508 from the field (31-of-61) ... Higgins leads the team in rebounding (4.5 rpg.), steals (3.5 spg.) and assists (3.2 apg.) ... Thorne II has 12 treys ... Higgins is 39-of-44 from the FT line (.886) ranking fifth in conference only games.
BUFF TIDBITS (team)... CU has made a 3-pointer in 215-straight games dating back to the 2001-02 season ... Five games (Western State, SMU, at Missouri, Iowa State, Kansas), CU failed to record a blocked shot in a game.
UP NEXT... CU travels to Norman to take on Oklahoma on Saturday, Feb. 7. CU has lost 22-straight games at OU dating back to Feb. 9, 1980 (60-59). The Buffaloes are 12-47 dating back since 1948 and are 4-11 in Big 12 play against OU (0-6 in Norman) and 3-3 since 2004 ... CU has lost 24-straight Big 12 regular season games on the road. Last road win occurred Jan. 21, 2006 (at Stillwater over Oklahoma State, 80-78, ot).
BUFF TIDBITS (individual)... Cory Higgins and Dwight Thorne II have recorded double-digits in the same game 13 times this season ...Trey Eckloff is not the youngest scholarship MBB player in the Big 12 as stated earlier in the notes. CU freshman Ryan Kelley is. That means, CU has the two youngest scholarship student-athletes in the Big 12 ... Cory Higgins was the lone CU player in double figures against Iowa State, that’s the third time this season (Western State, TCU) with only one players 10 or more points ... Of the six game category (points, rebounds, 3-pters., assists, steals, blocks), Cory Higgins has been shutout once (Stanford). He has led CU in at least one category in each game. At TTU, he led the Buffs in points, rebounds and assists just once ...14-straight games with the same starting lineup (Tomlinson, Higgins, Dufault, Thorne II, Jackson-Wilson) ? Dufault, Higgins, Thorne II have started all 20 games.
FT RECORD HOLDER... Cory Higgins reigns as the CU and the Big 12 free throw record holder with 45-straight free throws over eight games. Since then, he has rattled off another 23-straight over three games ending at Texas Tech. On the season, he’s .863 (120-of-139, 36th nationally).
FT PERFECTION... Cory Higgins has performed perfection at the free throw with a 12-of-12 performance for the second time this season, this time against Kansas. The other was a 12-of-12 effort against Coppin State (Dec. 28). The first 12-of-12 was second only to a pair of 16-of-16 efforts in CU history, Jo Jo Hunter versus Iowa State in 1980 and Chauncey Billups against Oklahoma in 1996.
Work in progress... Although Coach Bzdelik and his team have had their ups and downs in his second year (9-11, 1-5 Big 12) and with the tough conference season ahead, let’s take a look at three of the school’s all-time winningest coaches in football, men’s and women’s basketball in their second season.
Football: Bill McCartney, 13 seasons (1982-1994), 93-55-5 (.624): 4-7 in second year.
Men’s BB: Sox Walseth, 20 seasons (1957-76), 261-245 (.516): 8-15 in second year.
Women’s BB: Ceal Barry, 22 seasons (1983-2005), 427-242 (.638), 6-22 in second year.
30+ MINUTEMEN... Only four CU players have played 30+ minutes of each game. Cory Higgins has played 30+ minutes in 19 of 20 games; Nate Tomlinson 15 of 19 games (missed a game due to injury); Austin Dufault and Dwight Thorne II 14 of 20 games, and Jermyl Jackson-Wilson played his first game of the season over 30 minutes against Kansas State with 32 (three mins. in OT).
35+MINUTE MEN... More impressively the same four players have recorded 35-plus minutes a number of times. Cory Higgins in 16 games; Dwight Thorne nine games; Nate Tomlinson eight times and Austin Dufault four games.
40+MINUTES... Cory Higgins and Dwight Thorne are the only ones to have played 40-plus minutes this season. Higgins played 44 of 45 minutes in the overtime loss to Montana State and all 40 minutes against Louisiana-Monroe and Kansas. He also played the entire game (45 mins) in the overtime loss to K-State. Last season Higgins played over 40 once, 46 minutes in the double-overtime win over Baylor at the Big 12 Basketball Championships. Thorne played 40 of 45 minutes in the overtime loss to K-State Jan. 24.
FTs 5 MINUTES TO PLAY... Sophomore Cory Higgins is the team’s most experienced from the free throw line with under five minutes to play (including OT) making 47-of-58 (.810).
BROADCAST... The Colorado men’s basketball team can be heard live on KKZN AM 760. Mark Johnson and Charles Johnson call the action including the pre- and postgame. Live internet audio of all CU basketball games is available through Yahoo! Sports. Colorado’s games will also be streamed live on CUBuffs.com through the BuffsTV subscription service.
FG%... During non-conference play, the Buffs shot above 50 percent from the floor eight out of 14 games, going 6-2. That is the most .500 shooting games since the 2000-01 season when the Buffs recorded eight games of .500 or better shooting. The last time CU recorded more than eight games of shooting .500 or better from the floor in non-conference play was the 1985-86 season when they went 8-2 in 10 games. Ironically, the Buffs were also 8-6 after non-conference play in the 1985-86 season, Tom Miller’s first as Colorado’s head coach, unfortunately the Buffs finished the season on a 17-game losing streak going 0-15 in conference play (0-1 in the Big 8 Tournament).
CU SINCE 1996-97... In the 13-year history of the Big 12 Conference, CU is shooting a team-best from the field and from the free throw line so far this season. Those two stats are the best of any CU team since 1996-97.
Years PPG FG % 3-Pt.% FT% To W’s
2008-09 65.8 .468 .347 .728 14.2 9
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
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).
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;
Austin Dufault: cousin-in-law, Fred Hoiberg played with the Indiana Pacers, Chicago Bulls, and Minnesota Timberwolves. Currently the Assistant General Manager of the Minnesota Timberwolves.
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 currently plays with the Atlanta Hawks, and great uncle, Ernie Banks played with the Cubs.
RAINBOW CLASSIC RECAP... CU went 1-2 over the three days with its lone win coming on the opening day against Coppin State. CU sophomore Cory Higgins was named to the All-Tournament team leading the Buffaloes in scoring in every game and averaging 18 points a game. He also recorded his first career double-double (21 pts., 10 rebs.) against Coppin State. CU averaged 66.3 ppg., shot .489 from the field (69-of-141) with an impressive .852 from the free throw line (46-of-54). All-Tourney Team: Cory Higgins, Colorado; Calvin Betts, Buffalo; Roderick Flemings, Hawai?i; Mike Trimboli, Vermont; Marcus Walker, Colorado State; Andy Robinson, Buffalo (MVP).
CECC RECORD...maybe a school record? Sophomore guard Cory Higgins was 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.
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.
VOLUNTEERS... One Saturday, Dec. 6, the CU men’s basketball team and more than 150 community volunteers teamed up to deliver gift baskets to nearly 1,000 low-income families. The CU men’s team visited the Golden West senior residence in Boulder. The program was associated with RSVP of Boulder County.
HAWAII BOUND...AGAIN... The Buffaloes will be making another trip to the Hawaiian Islands playing in the 2009-10 Maui Invitational. The dates are Nov. 23-25 (Mon.-Wed.) of Thanksgiving week. It will be CU’s first-ever appearance in 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, Cincinnati, Gonzaga, Maryland, Vanderbilt, and Wisconsin.
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.
MORE CU TIDBITS... 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) ... CU played a school record eight home games played before Christmas.
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.
“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.