Junior forward Austin Dufault lays the ball in over an Oregon State defender during the first half of the Buffaloes' 83-57 win over the Beavers on Saturday at the Coors Events Center. (CU Independent/Patrick Ghidossi)
Colorado men’s basketball (4-3) beat the Oregon State Beavers (3-4) 83-57 at the Coors Events Center in Boulder Saturday night.
“This was a good test for us,” said senior guard Levi Knutson. “We’ve a few games we thought we should have had already, and we’re not where we want to be, so it was a great test.”
Knutson led all scorers with 22 points, shooting 8-of-10, with six three-pointers. Sophomore guard Alec Burks had 15 points, going 7-of-12.
Senior guard Marcus Relphorde, and junior forward Austin Dufault, had 12 points, with Relphorde making eight assists – his career high. Oregon State was led by guard Jared Cunningham, who had 16 points.
Colorado shot 58.6 percent and had 20 assists to the Beavers’ nine. They won the rebound battle, 33-30.
In a surprise move by Colorado head coach Tad Boyle, Knutson started over both Shannon Sharpe and the banged-up Nate Tomlinson.
Knutson said he was not phased by Boyle’s decision.
“I always love to be out there, and I love to play, but whether I come off the bench or start, it doesn’t really matter to me,” Knutson said. “I’ve played in a lot of games, and I’m just trying to contribute whenever I’m out there.
Colorado was not at its best in the early going, turning over the ball and missing open shot. Down 9-7, the team managed to get things back together and went on an 11-0 run to take the lead.
The Buffs cruised the rest of the half and took a 37-18 lead into the locker room, after a buzzer beater layup by Dufault.
Cunnigham led all scorers in the first half with nine points, going 3-of-4 from the floor. Dufault and Knutson led the Buffs with eight points apiece.
The Buffs came out of the locker room with all the momentum and the crowd behind them. They never let the game get close, scoring 46 second- half points. Stretching the lead to as many as 28, Oregon State was left scrambling, and the Buffs looked comfortable with their 26 point victory.
After the game Boyle said he was happy to see his team is finally understanding his system.
“This is just one game, but I sense that the guys are really starting to buy into the idea that if we stop people, we give ourselves a chance,” Boyle said.
Although it is still early, Oregon State is disappointed by the loss.
“You don’t want to lose games,” said Oregon State head coach Craig Robinson. “I think all losses are bad, it depends on how well we bounce back from it.
The game was the Finale of the Big 12/Pac-10 Hardwood Series. The Big 12 Won the series 7-2.
Colorado will remain at home for their next game, where they will take on in-state rival Colorado State on Dec. 8 at 8 p.m.
The Buffs are determined to get a victory after last year’s defeat.
“I don’t think anyone is happy about what happened last year,” Dufault said. “We got embarrassed last year and and that is something we’ve had to think about for a long time.”
Contact CU Independent Sports Editor Brent New at Brent.new@colorado.edu.
Contact CU Independent Staff Writer Mark McNeillie at Mark.mcneillie@colorado.edu.
