Starters, from left to right, Xavier Talton, Josh Scott and Askia Booker stand dejectedly after a loss for their last home game of the 2013-2014 season against the Arizona Wildcats. Fans are looking to Friday’s game against Drexel to shed light on how the Buffs will do in their upcoming 2014-2015 season. (Kai Casey/CU Independent)
Colorado men’s basketball kicks off its 2014-2015 season in a home match-up against the Drexel Dragons on Friday at the Coors Events Center. On paper, the game should appear to be an easy “W” for Colorado, but the Dragons have a few tricks up their sleeve.
“I see a team that’s extremely tough mentally, physically,” head coach Tad Boyle said in practice on Wednesday. “I see a bunch of tough kids from Philadelphia, Baltimore. They’ve got guys from tough neighborhoods. Their coach is a tough guy; Bruiser Flint. He’s been around a long time and I’ve got a lot of respect for him. I see a well-coached, tough basketball team.”
It’s the first game of the year, so predictions at this stage may be a bit inaccurate, especially when taking into account newcomers and players who may have left. But if Drexel is anything like the team it was last year, Friday’s game won’t be an easy one for the Buffs.
On paper, Drexel appears to be an easy team to beat. During the 2013-14 season, the Dragons finished with a 16-14 record and went 8-8 in the Colonial Athletic Association conference. But when you dig a little deeper, you’ll find out that’s far from reality. Drexel has some aces.
Yes, a 16-14 record isn’t that good. It’s decent at best. But, much like the Buffs last year, the Dragons lost one of their best players early in the season to an ACL tear. In the semifinals of the 2013-14 NIT Season Tip-Off tournament, sophomore guard Damion Lee ended his season when he tore his knee against Arizona.
The year before, Lee averaged 12 points and 4.4 boards a game. This year, he’ll be returning to the court for the first time since the injury. It’s something that’s been on the Buffs’ radar in the weeks leading up to Friday’s game.
“Damion Lee’s a good player, there’s no question about it,” Boyle said.
Drexel’s match-up against Arizona is perhaps the biggest indication of just how tough they can be. Late in the first half of their fifth game of the season, the Dragons led the fourth-ranked Wildcats 27-8 before the Wildcats managed to come back and win by a margin of four, 66-62.
This year Drexel’s team is relatively young with four freshmen on the roster. But their upperclassmen return with an abundance of experience. Right now it’s tough to gauge a team that hasn’t played a single game yet.
“I don’t have a real feel for their skill level, but I know they got good size in the perimeter and they’ve got some good players,” Boyle said. “They’ve got some guys in the wings that can put the ball in the basket. We’ve got our hands full. This isn’t your normal opener with Little Sisters of the Poor, this is a real team.”
As for the Buffs, Boyle hopes his new offensive strategy will play out effectively and that his team is up to the challenge.
“As a coach, you just hope your team is ready and the first game, you never know,” Boyle said. “We’ll find out. If we play hard, we play smart and we play together, we’ll be fine. But we have to do those three things and we got to do them at a relatively high level.”
The Buffs and the Dragons will take the court at 6 p.m. Friday at the Coors Events Center. Doors open at 5 p.m.
Contact CU Independent Staff Writer Alissa Noe at Alissa.Noe@colorado.edu.
