Colorado’s cold start against Arizona State in its first true road game of the season Saturday proved insurmountable as the Buffs could never rally while losing 81-61 in Tempe, Arizona.

Coming off a competitive challenge to No. 3 Iowa State back on Dec. 30 in a 10-point loss, the Buffs didn't have the same fight in this one, falling behind by 23 points late in the first half.

Colorado (9-4) couldn’t hold off the Sun Devils' effective 3-point shooting with their 13 3-point makes (46.4 percent), and while the Buffs did close that first half on a 10-0 run to cut the deficit to 13, Arizona State (10-3) controlled the momentum immediately in the second half with a15-5 run.

Ultimately, the Buffs fell flat offensively while shooting just 34.8 percent (23-of-66) with only three made 3-pointers.

A lot of that came down to the struggles of Julian Hammond, Colorado's leading scorer this season who was coming off a 21-point game against Iowa State and averaging 13.8 points per game overall. Hammond went 0 for 7 from the field in 30 minutes for his first scoreless game of the season.

Trevor Baskin was the bright spot as the lone Colorado player in double figures with a season-high 23 points on 9-of-14 shooting, 10 rebounds (5 offensive) one block and four steals.

The Buffs have relied heavily on Bangot Dak in the backcourt, but he did not make an appearance in the second half due to an apparent injury. Arizona State then went on to smother CU in the second half shooting 52.0 percent from the field (13-of-25) with seven 3s.

Midway through the second half, ASU starting guard BJ Freeman was called on a flagrant 2 after colliding with Baskin. He led the Sun Devils in points (19) despite his ejection midway through the second half, but he had plenty of help.

Generating stops proved to be a difficult task for the Buffs while four Sun Devils eclipsed double-digits in scoring in Freeman, Basheer Jihad (17), Jay Quaintance (11) and Amier Ali (10).

For Colorado to stay afloat on the road, it is going to take more than Baskin to secure wins in volatile Big 12 environments. The Buffs also had Andrej Jakimovski back in the lineup after he missed the Iowa State game due to an illness. However, the Buffs needed more from him on offense (and everyone really) as he finished with nine points (4-of-14 from the field).

The Buffs head back on the road when they visit Central Florida for their first meeting against the Knights in almost eight years on Jan. 8 at 5 p.m. MT.