Fast break
Why the Buffs won: CU shot 50%, outrebounded Cal 40-31, and held the Bears to a 9-for-31 mark on 3-pointers.
Three stars:
1. CU’s KJ Simpson: Continued his torrid pace by collecting 27 points, eight assists, seven rebounds and four steals.
2. CU’s Tristan da Silva: The senior was just 1-for-5 from long range but went 6-for-8 on 2-pointers, finishing with 22 points, seven rebounds and six assists.
3. Cal’s Jaylon Tyson: Helped keep the Bears in the game with 25 points, five rebounds and four assists.
Up next: CU plays its final regular season home game on Sunday against Stanford (7 p.m., FS1).
Once again, California refused to go away without a fight.
This time, the Colorado men’s basketball team had an answer.
The Buffaloes took another step forward in attempting to put together a late-season surge by holding off the Cal Golden Bears for an 88-78 Pac-12 Conference victory on Wednesday night at the CU Events Center.
It was the third consecutive win for the Buffs and their seventh consecutive home win against Cal. The Buffs also improved to 15-1 at home this season.
CU led its game at Cal last month by 20 late in the first half and 19 early in the second half, but it was a 14-point lead for the Buffs at halftime in Berkeley. That was the halftime lead once again for the Buffs on Wednesday, giving CU head coach Tad Boyle an ominous sense of déjà vu as the teams entered the break.
Cal again made a run against the shorthanded Buffs, who played without Julian Hammond III (knee) and freshman Cody Williams (ankle). This time, though, the Buffs responded.
“We talked at halftime about the game in Berkeley when we were up 14 at half,” Boyle said. “As I walked off the floor, I look up and, oh, it’s a 14-point game again. I’ve got to remind them of that. They came in the second half and I think (Cal) scored on 11 of their first 13 possessions in the second half. Not too proud of that. Three of the first four were dunks. Once our guys locked in defensively, we got some stops and extended the lead and then finished it off strong.”
CU led 45-31 at halftime but Cal wasted little time putting together a rally, battling to within five points on a 3-pointer from Jaylon Tyson with 12 minutes, 56 seconds remaining. The Bears remained within eight points following three free throws from Jalen Cone with 8:05 to play, but CU answered with a 9-2 run to re-establish a 15-point edge with less than 5 minutes remaining.
“With a couple guys down, we knew as leaders we wanted to pick it up and have our play and go out there and exemplify it out there on the court,” CU guard KJ Simpson said. “Tristan (da Silva) started off really good in the first half, so I knew I needed to pick it up. That’s why I kind of got going in the second half. But with guys down, you have to rise to the level of play.”
CU shot an even 50%, giving the Buffs a run of four consecutive games shooting at least 50% for the second time this season. It was a curious game defensively for the Buffs, as Cal shot just .333 in the first half while knocking down six 3-pointers. The Bears then shot .500 overall in the second half but went just 3-for-12 from long range.
Simpson and da Silva both turned in superb all-around games, with Simpson finishing with 27 points, eight assists, seven rebounds and four steals. Da Silva recorded 22 points with seven rebounds, six assists and a pair of steals.
Da Silva and Simpson combined to go 15-for-28 from the field and 16-for-18 at the free throw line.
“I thought offensively we were efficient pretty much the whole night,” Boyle said. “KJ, he was terrific down the stretch. I’ve said it before, those are All-American numbers. He’s bringing it every night. His defense tonight on Jalen Cone, holding him to 1-for-10 from the field—Cone had 17 (against CU) in Berkeley.”
CALIFORNIA (13-16, 9-9 Pac-12 Conference)
Aimaq 5-13 1-3 11, Celestine 4-10 0-0 11, Cone 1-10 4-4 6, Kennedy 6-10 0-0 13, Tyson 9-19 5-5 25, Newell 1-2 1-2 4, Brown 2-4 0-0 6, Curtis 1-1 0-0 2, Larson 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 29-69 11-14 78.
COLORADO (19-9, 10-7)
da Silva 7-13 7-7 22, Lampkin 6-11 0-2 12, Hadley 4-8 5-7 13, O’Brien 2-7 0-0 6, Simpson 8-15 9-11 27, Diop 0-1 2-2 2, Ruffin 2-3 0-0 6. Totals 29-58 23-29 88.
Halftime — Colorado 45-31. 3-point field goals — California 9-31 (Celestine 3-6, Brown 2-3, Tyson 2-7, Newell 1-2, Kennedy 1-4, Aimaq 0-3, Cone 0-6), Colorado 7-16 (O’Brien 2-3, Ruffin 2-3, Simpson 2-5, da Silva 1-5). Rebounds — California 31 (Aimaq 11), Colorado 40 (Lampkin 8). Assists — California 10 (Tyson 4), Colorado 18 (Simpson 8). Turnovers — California 12 (Aimaq 5); Colorado 12 (da Silva 4). Total fouls — California 20, Colorado 14. Technicals — Lampkin, Aimaq. Attendance — 6.926.
