Just when the Buffaloes thought their season couldn’t get any worse, the hits kept coming. After an ugly 72-58 road loss to Oregon State on Saturday, the Buffs hit a season low with a 12-14 record.
And that’s not even the worst part.
During the first half of the contest, the Buffs only managed to shoot a paltry 14.3 percent from the field as they only made three field goals for 12 total points. The Beavers, on the other hand, took advantage of the Buffs shooting inefficiency and scored 34 points off of 52 percent shooting.
To make things even worse, the Buffs set the season-high record in turnovers with 22. Their ball-handling put the nail in the coffin that their shooting already dug the hole for. The 12 point first half was the lowest in the Tad Boyle era, and the second lowest scoring half in the last decade.
Despite the 14-point road loss and abysmal shooting percentage in the first half, the Buffs battled back as hard as they could to overcome the deficit. But, as with every similar loss this season, that number was too great.
For the entire matchup, the Buffs shot 34.6 percent from the field, marking their sixth straight game shooting under 37 percent. They shot 48.4 percent in the second half. While the Beavers shot 48.9 percent.
No doubt the turnovers were what really did the Buffs in.
For the first three bittersweet minutes of the game, the Buffs held the lead after Wes Gordon sunk a jumper just a minute in. But, as can be guessed from the outcome, that was the last they’d see of the lead.
To finish out the half, the Beavers outscored the Buffs 34-10, meaning the halftime score read a pitiful 34-12.
Despite the awful shooting and butterfingers, Colorado tried its hardest to fight back in the second half. But, in the end, the 44-38 scoring tangent in the second half wasn’t enough to even come close to beating the numbers.
The final score read 72-58, and the Buffs fell even harder with a 12-14 overall record and a 5-9 standing in the Pac-12.
Just in time to host the best team in the conference. The Buffs return to their home floor Thursday, Feb. 26 as they brave the No. 7 Arizona Wildcats at 7 p.m.
Contact CU Independent Basketball Writer Alissa Noe at alissa.noe@colorado.edu.
