Boulder, CO – Who said this team was done? The Colorado Buffaloes pulled off an electric 76-74 win over Baylor on Saturday, snapping a four-game losing streak and sending Buff Nation into a frenzy at the CU Events Center. For a team that has struggled mightily in Big 12 play, this one felt extra sweet.
Andrej Jakimovski showed out with a season-high 17 points, draining five triples and proving why you need veteran leadership when games get tight. He also led CU in rebounds (seven) and assists (five), stuffing the stat sheet in a performance that had head coach Tad Boyle singing his praises.
"Andrej deserves a lot of credit," Boyle said. "To have 17 points and seven rebounds and five assists and zero turnovers, plus he made some threes that were big. That's what seniors do down the stretch of their senior year, and you need your seniors to play well."
Talk about stepping up when it matters most.
With just under six minutes left in the second half, the Buffs found themselves in a tight one. But a 12-2 run flipped the script, giving CU the cushion they needed to close it out.
A pair of clutch free throws from RJ Smith in the final seconds sealed the deal, despite some late drama from the Bears.
"We made that a little bit harder than we needed to down the stretch," Boyle admitted. "There's no doubt about that. We made it interesting, but it shouldn't have been. So we've got to learn from that. But I was proud of our guys' fight and competitiveness."
Hey, a win is a win, coach. We’ll take it.
If there's one thing that has plagued the Buffs all season, it’s defense. But on Saturday, they turned in one of their best defensive performances of the year, holding Baylor to a rough 36% shooting (25-for-69) from the floor. That’s the second-lowest percentage by any team against CU in Big 12 play. Locking in on the defensive end was the key to this win, and it’s something the Buffs will need to replicate if they want to keep this momentum going.
But, there’s not much time to celebrate.
The Buffs have a brutal test ahead as they host the Kansas Jayhawks on Monday night at 9 p.m. MT. If CU can build on this momentum, they just might make things interesting down the stretch of conference play.
For now, let’s enjoy this one. It’s been a tough season, but wins like this remind us why we love college basketball.