Sophomore forward Tristan Da Silva guards the ball from Oregon State players during the game at the CU Events Center. Feb. 5, 2022. (Io Hartman/CU Independent)
The Colorado Buffaloes (14-9) defeated the (3-17) Oregon State Beavers 86-63 at the CU Events Center on Saturday, February 5th. Head Coach Tad Boyle discussed how the lopsided win may have been due to the many injuries, and also reviewed what he told his team in the post-game meeting.
“Much needed win for us,” Boyle said. “Mentally and emotionally. We caught a wounded Oregon State team. Obviously they didn’t have their point guard tonight, they didn’t have (Warith) Alatishe, but we needed this. We shot the ball well, and hopefully we gained some confidence from this. I told our team after the game, ‘We have to prepare ourselves for the nights when the ball does not go in, when the ball does go in like it did tonight it makes things a lot easier and cures a lot of ills.'”
Sophomore guard Keeshawn Barthelemy led the Buffaloes in points for a second straight game as he finished the day with 16 points. 40 additional points came from the helpful trio of sophomore forward Jabari Walker (15), sophomore guard Nique Clifford (15), and sophomore forward Tristan da Silva (10).
Freshman guard KJ Simpson and sophomore guard Luke O’Brien continue to show they’re reliable off the bench as they combined for 16 points and 12 rebounds. Jabari Walker mentioned how younger role players train just as hard as the starters, which is important when rotating players in and out of games.
“That’s what we emphasized today,” said Walker. “Just having a good time. It’s basketball. Most importantly, you want to have fun while still being competitive at the same time. Getting guys in at the end of the game like that is amazing because they work so hard at practice and they’re in the gym just like we are. They get to show it off a little bit which is a great feeling.”
CU walked away from this contest as the better team as it seemed they couldn’t miss a shot from the field. The Buffs shot 57.1% from the field and 56% from behind the three-point line. They also were flawless at the free throw line shooting 8-8 (100%). They also dominated the Beavers in the rebounds (40:23), assists (19:4), and blocks (3:1). Walker also noted how his team’s hard work after practice contributed to the large-margin victory.
“After every practice there’s a set time for everyone to get shots up” Walker said, “a lot of the guys come back after practice to get shots up. All the guys are putting in work and when we’re open, we’re gonna knock it down.”
Prior to this matchup, Colorado had won just two of their last eight games (2-6). The win over Oregon State, who sits in last place in the Pac-12 conference, marks the ninth consecutive games against Pac-12 opponents. The Buffaloes will exclusively play Pac-12 opponents for the rest of the season, as the last game to be played against a team outside of the Pac-12 conference was canceled back in December. Walker additionally explained how the lack of preparation for the road trip is to blame for the inability to win on the road.
“I think that road trip was tough,” Walker said. “A lot of people underestimate how hard a road trip like that is, I don’t think we got any worse or decline. It’s just mental fatigue and our body’s wear and tear. We just have to be more prepared when we go on a road trip like that. I think we’re still getting better as a team and tonight showed that.”
The Colorado Buffaloes will face the Utah Utes on Feb. 12, at 6:00 p.m MST for a home game taking place at the CU Events Center.
Contact CU Independent staff writer Brett Polley at brett.polley@colorado.edu.
