What has been a predictably unpredictable first month of the 2022-23 Colorado men’s basketball season continued to follow a familiar theme Friday – a resounding highlight following a debilitating setback.
The Buffs even managed to do so with a little flair, too.
In a 103-75 rout of No. 24 Texas A&M at the Myrtle Beach Invitational, Colorado turned in one of its best offensive outings in recent memory. On their way to an emphatic 28-point victory, the Buffs shot 57.6% from the field, 50% from 3-point range and scored 103 points on 73 possessions, a ridiculous average of 1.41 points per possession.
It was Colorado’s highest point total in a regulation game since a 104-59 victory in 2010 against Longwood, which came in Tad Boyle’s first season in Boulder. Nearly half of the team’s points came from 3, with 16 made shots from beyond the arc on 32 attempts.
It was an output that was visually appealing beyond just a box score. The Buffs’ offensive sets hummed. There was constant moving and cutting. The passes were crisp and decisive. Ball-handlers like KJ Simpson dribbled with a purpose. And, yeah, when the shots fall the way they did, a team tends to look pretty good.
That offensive showcase stood in direct contrast to how the Buffs looked on the same court in Conway, S.C. fewer than 24 hours earlier. In a 66-63 loss Thursday against UMass, Colorado was anemic, making just 34.2% of its shots and being held to 63 points on 77 possessions.
One day later, it was not only able to score at will, but do so against a ranked opponent that entered the day 34th nationally in adjusted defensive efficiency, according to KenPom.com.
The Buffs made more 3s in the opening 17 minutes Friday than they did in the entirety of the UMass loss and surpassed their point total from the previous day with 16:56 remaining Friday. In every sense of the phrase, it was truly night and day.
Game ball
Piloting that barrage of points was KJ Simpson. He entered the afternoon as the Buffs’ leading scorer, at 16.5 points per game, but even that couldn’t have prepared Texas A&M for what it saw Friday.
Simpson poured in a career-high 30 points and was efficient in doing so, making 11 of his 17 shots and four of his eight 3s. He added to those impressive figures with a team-high seven rebounds and an absurd six steals, the latter of which was a career-high and matched his combined total from his first four games this season.
The sophomore guard’s point total came just five days after he scored what had been a career-high 23 points in a victory against then-No. 11 Tennessee. In a season in which he has emerged as Colorado’s go-to offensive weapon, Simpson has saved his best play for the biggest moments. In two matchups against ranked opponents this season, he has averaged 26.5 points, 8.5 rebounds per game and only two turnovers per game while shooting 54.5% from the field and 40% from 3.
Simpson came into the season with the hope of potentially morphing into a star. So far, he looks to be doing just that.
Turning point
Hard as it might be to believe given the final score, the Aggies actually led at one point, with a 12-10 advantage with about 14 minutes remaining in the first half. From that point, however, Colorado scored 17 of the game’s next 21 points, with Simpson accounting for seven and Ethan Wright adding six.
While Texas A&M would pick things up a bit offensively from there, the Buffs’ lead only grew. By the time halftime came, Colorado was up by 21, 54-33, and had outscored its opponent by a 42-19 margin in the final 14 minutes of the half.
In the second half, the Buffs’ lead grew to as large as 33 and never got smaller than 21.
Strong, but short-handed
One of the most impressive aspects of Colorado’s offensive outburst Friday wasn’t just what it did, but who it managed to do it without.
J’Vonne Hadley, the team’s No. 4 scorer entering the day at 9.8 points per game, did not dress for the game after suffering what appeared to be a shoulder injury in Thursday’s loss against UMass.
Additionally, Tristan da Silva, the Buffs’ second-leading scorer at 11.8 points per game, was in foul trouble for much of the afternoon and played just 15 minutes, his fewest minutes in a game since his freshman season in 2020-21. The junior forward picked up three fouls in the first 11:07, limiting him to just seven minutes in the first half. He was called for his fourth foul just 50 seconds into the second half.
Still, even without him manning the low post, Colorado managed to outscore the Aggies by 14 points when he wasn’t on the court.
Numbers of note
7: Number of different Colorado players who made at least two shots and scored at least five points in the first half
25: The average KenPom ranking of the two teams Colorado has beaten in the past 10 days at the time of the respective matchups
239.5: The average KenPom ranking of the two teams Colorado has lost to in the past 10 days at the time of the respective matchups
83.3: Wright’s shooting percentage in the Buffs’ win, his second-highest in a game in his career with at least five attempts. He made five of his six field goal attempts Friday, all of them 3s.
14: Points for Javon Ruffin, a career high. The freshman entered the game averaging 4.3 points per game in his first four games with the Buffs.
What’s next
Colorado will face off against the winner of a matchup tonight between Loyola Chicago and Boise State. That game, which will be for fifth place in the tournament, will tip off at 5 p.m. MT on Sunday.
