Colorado (15-5, 9-4 Pac-12) finally built a lead and managed to hang onto it, winning, 78-49 in a fashion that didn't warrant a panic-induced nail-biting session down the stretch of the second half.
The Buffs out-rebounded the opposition for the first time in five games. Oregon State's pesky 2-3 zone defense had many more holes in it than has traditionally been the case in the immediate past when the Beavs and Buffs have matched up.
If you ask Tad Boyle, there's more than one statistic from the game to critique — 13 turnovers and plus-one on the glass being prime examples — but overall, Colorado chalked up a convincing win at just the right time.
The Buffs undoubtedly will hit the road for Stanford this upcoming Thursday with a bit of pep in their collective step.
Tristan da Silva turned in a performance he'll remember for a long time:
Freshman forward Tristan da Silva likely doesn't go a day without some sort of reference to his older brother and Stanford standout, Oscar; how the two compare, what it's like playing in the same conference as him, etc.
Against the Beavers, da Silva took a big initial step towards forging his own unique identity on the college basketball court.
Asked to step up in the absence of fellow freshman forward Jabari Walker for the next few weeks, da Silva did much to inspire confidence in his ability to hang with the big dogs on Monday, via his career-high 15 points and perfect 6-of-6 shooting performance from the floor.
All in all, da Silva will likely remember this game as his collegiate breakout night for a long time to come.
"I feel great out there," da Silva said. "I really love this group, to be honest, and it's really fun to play with them...coach Boyle has a lot of confidence in me and I'm just glad that they give me the opportunity to make plays, go out there and play my game."
Jeriah Horne continues to flex his offensive wizardry:
If there's one thing about senior forward Jeriah Horne, it's that he certainly does not need to be comfortable, planted or undefended to drain shots.
He continues to impress with his ability to knock down junk shots and put the ball in the hoop in general.
There just hasn't been much that's phased him so far this year. Whether he's come off the bench or started, Horne finds a way to score the ball.
And his defense has been better than advertised in terms of what kind of player he was expected to be for the Buffs: a notch down on the defensive side of things from Tyler Bey but an added three-point threat for the team.
Horne is far from a long range specialist though. He can drive and hit a floater, convert on midrange jumpers and make his presence known in the paint.
"Jeriah's a very efficient player," Boyle said after the game. "He's got the ability to make tough and bad shots. Not everybody has that...Jeriah's a crafty offensive player and we want him to get aggressive. You just can't put a lot of hinderances on his game because he is so creative and crafty. You want him to play free and play his game."
Horne finished the night with a team-high 16 points on 6-of-8 shooting and was tied with Dallas Walton for the team lead in boards with seven.
Bounce back game for Dallas Walton:
Recently, 7-foot senior forward Dallas Walton has without a doubt not been playing at the same level we saw back in mid-December, when he averaged 16 points per contest over a three-game stretch.
Then, the injury bug hit him, keeping Walton sidelined for six straight games.Against Oregon State, Walton had 12 points, his most since scoring 22 vs. Washington on Dec. 20 in Las Vegas.
In an overall efficient offensive performance by the Buffs, Walton fit right in with his 5-of-6 (83%) make rate on the night.
McKinley Wright IV and Evan Battey remain a bit banged up:
Boyle took junior forward Evan Battey and senior point guard McKinley Wright IV out of the game with 9:25 to play, opting to sit them for the rest of the way in what was a blowout by that point.
Wright IV's shot was noticeably off all night and he went just 3-of-8 from the floor, scoring six points.
Battey, in foul trouble early, played just 12 total minutes on a sore ankle, scoring a lone point in an otherwise forgettable night at the office.
With a Thursday night draw a Stanford kicking off a four-game road trip, Boyle aims to have both players as fresh and rested as possible.
"With Evan, that ankle is just not where we need it to be, so certainly, both those guys are banged up," Boyle said after the game. "We need them healthy as we head down the stretch here. Because we have three games this week, we're going to take tomorrow off...It's not going to be a team practice like we normally would."
"My goal is to keep this team fresh, mentally, physically, spiritually and emotionally as we head through February."
