cubuffs.com, Woelk story
BOULDER — With a 10-7 overall mark and a 1-4 Pac-12 record, the Colorado Buffaloes are no doubt in a precarious spot as they head west this week for a two-game Bay Area road swing.
"We're certainly in a difficult place right now, losing six out of eight," head coach Tad Boyle allowed after practice earlier this week. "You can't just stick your head in the sand and pretend like that hasn't happened. That's where we are."
But Boyle still has high hopes for the Buffs, and believes they can put themselves in position to contend for an upper-tier conference finish and postseason play.
"I'm bullish on this team," he said. "I'm optimistic about this team, I believe in this team, I believe in our players. As crazy as it sounds from a coach that's lost six out of eight with his players, I think we have an opportunity to still make some noise. A lot of basketball to be played."
But if the Buffs are going to make some noise, they know it has to start this week. Colorado opens its Bay Area swing with a 9 p.m. game Thursday at Cal (Pac-12 Networks), followed by a 6 p.m. game Saturday at Stanford (FS1).
"Thursday, I would call it a must win," Boyle said of the matchup with the Bears (0-6, 5-13). "I really would, for this team to get to where we want to get, which is postseason play and compete in this league and get in the upper half. … We would like to compete for a championship. That may sound like a crazy statement, but that's our goal when we start the season. It's still an achievable one, but our margin for error for that is razor, razor thin."
Indeed, the Buffs are much closer to the bottom of the conference standings than the top. But given the current state of affairs in the Pac-12 — the third through 11th-place teams are separated by just two games — a move up is definitely possible.
The good news is the Buffs could put themselves back into the conversation of an upper-division Pac-12 finish if they can turn their fortunes around this weekend. While the opening portion of their conference schedule has been brutal — five of seven on the road — the flip side is their schedule down the stretch will see them play seven of their last 11 and five of their last seven on their home floor.
That's the formula for a strong stretch run — but it will be much more meaningful if Colorado can secure a couple of road wins this weekend.
"It's all about figuring out how do we win the next game," Boyle said. "That's all we're concentrating on. Getting better every day, and how do you win the next game."
The Buffs likely won't have a better opportunity for a conference road win than Thursday night. The 5-13 Bears (0-6 Pac-12) have lost seven in a row, and are last in the Pac-12 in scoring (70.8 points per game) and defense (allowing 79.7 per game).
But, as Boyle noted, the Buffs' 1-4 conference record — and six losses in their last eight games — also likely have the Bears having similar thoughts, and he addressed that with his players.
"We talked about it," Boyle. "Before practice, I said everybody, for just a minute, let's just think about what Cal is thinking right now. They're 0-6, they're a hungry dog — they're thinking Colorado is coming to town. The only win Colorado's got is against Washington State. Colorado's 1-4, we're 0-6, this is our opportunity to get on the left side of the ledger."
Much like the Buffs, the Bears have played well in spurts, but have been unable to sustain those stretches for 40 minutes. They had big early leads on both Washington and Arizona State — two upper-tier Pac-12 teams — but couldn't hold them.
The Bears are led by 6-7 sophomore forward Justice Sueing, who leads the team in scoring (14.1 points) and rebounding (6.3 rebounds per game). They also have a capable point guard in Boise State transfer Paris Austin (13.1 points per game) and solid scorers in guard Darius McNeil (11.7 ppg) and Matt Bradley (10.3 ppg). Bradley also leads the Pac-12 in 3-point percentage, hitting 24 of his 50 attempts this season.
"They've shown in flashes that they are a very capable team," Boyle said. "They just haven't put it together for 40 minutes much like we haven't put it together for 40 minutes outside of Washington State. Cal's dangerous from that standpoint. It's important that we come out from the get-go."
Indeed, if there's one area the Buffs need to address in a hurry, it is their recent slow starts. In back-to-back losses to Washington and Utah, the Buffs fell behind big early, then had to come back in the second half."
"We need a good start against Cal," Boyle said. "We've talked about our slow starts and sputtering at the beginning. We cannot sputter against these guys, offensively or defensively."
THE SERIES: Thursday's game will be the 31st meeting between the two programs, with both teams owning 15 wins. CU has won the last two, both in Boulder, including last year's 68-64 win. Cal has won 12 of 13 against the Buffs in Berkeley, including all five since Colorado joined the Pac-12 in 2011-12.
BROADCAST: The game will be televised by the Pac-12 Network with Guy Haberman and Ben Braun. KOA radio will carry the broadcast with Mark Johnson and Scott Wilke.
BOULDER — With a 10-7 overall mark and a 1-4 Pac-12 record, the Colorado Buffaloes are no doubt in a precarious spot as they head west this week for a two-game Bay Area road swing.
"We're certainly in a difficult place right now, losing six out of eight," head coach Tad Boyle allowed after practice earlier this week. "You can't just stick your head in the sand and pretend like that hasn't happened. That's where we are."
But Boyle still has high hopes for the Buffs, and believes they can put themselves in position to contend for an upper-tier conference finish and postseason play.
"I'm bullish on this team," he said. "I'm optimistic about this team, I believe in this team, I believe in our players. As crazy as it sounds from a coach that's lost six out of eight with his players, I think we have an opportunity to still make some noise. A lot of basketball to be played."
But if the Buffs are going to make some noise, they know it has to start this week. Colorado opens its Bay Area swing with a 9 p.m. game Thursday at Cal (Pac-12 Networks), followed by a 6 p.m. game Saturday at Stanford (FS1).
"Thursday, I would call it a must win," Boyle said of the matchup with the Bears (0-6, 5-13). "I really would, for this team to get to where we want to get, which is postseason play and compete in this league and get in the upper half. … We would like to compete for a championship. That may sound like a crazy statement, but that's our goal when we start the season. It's still an achievable one, but our margin for error for that is razor, razor thin."
Indeed, the Buffs are much closer to the bottom of the conference standings than the top. But given the current state of affairs in the Pac-12 — the third through 11th-place teams are separated by just two games — a move up is definitely possible.
The good news is the Buffs could put themselves back into the conversation of an upper-division Pac-12 finish if they can turn their fortunes around this weekend. While the opening portion of their conference schedule has been brutal — five of seven on the road — the flip side is their schedule down the stretch will see them play seven of their last 11 and five of their last seven on their home floor.
That's the formula for a strong stretch run — but it will be much more meaningful if Colorado can secure a couple of road wins this weekend.
"It's all about figuring out how do we win the next game," Boyle said. "That's all we're concentrating on. Getting better every day, and how do you win the next game."
The Buffs likely won't have a better opportunity for a conference road win than Thursday night. The 5-13 Bears (0-6 Pac-12) have lost seven in a row, and are last in the Pac-12 in scoring (70.8 points per game) and defense (allowing 79.7 per game).
But, as Boyle noted, the Buffs' 1-4 conference record — and six losses in their last eight games — also likely have the Bears having similar thoughts, and he addressed that with his players.
"We talked about it," Boyle. "Before practice, I said everybody, for just a minute, let's just think about what Cal is thinking right now. They're 0-6, they're a hungry dog — they're thinking Colorado is coming to town. The only win Colorado's got is against Washington State. Colorado's 1-4, we're 0-6, this is our opportunity to get on the left side of the ledger."
Much like the Buffs, the Bears have played well in spurts, but have been unable to sustain those stretches for 40 minutes. They had big early leads on both Washington and Arizona State — two upper-tier Pac-12 teams — but couldn't hold them.
The Bears are led by 6-7 sophomore forward Justice Sueing, who leads the team in scoring (14.1 points) and rebounding (6.3 rebounds per game). They also have a capable point guard in Boise State transfer Paris Austin (13.1 points per game) and solid scorers in guard Darius McNeil (11.7 ppg) and Matt Bradley (10.3 ppg). Bradley also leads the Pac-12 in 3-point percentage, hitting 24 of his 50 attempts this season.
"They've shown in flashes that they are a very capable team," Boyle said. "They just haven't put it together for 40 minutes much like we haven't put it together for 40 minutes outside of Washington State. Cal's dangerous from that standpoint. It's important that we come out from the get-go."
Indeed, if there's one area the Buffs need to address in a hurry, it is their recent slow starts. In back-to-back losses to Washington and Utah, the Buffs fell behind big early, then had to come back in the second half."
"We need a good start against Cal," Boyle said. "We've talked about our slow starts and sputtering at the beginning. We cannot sputter against these guys, offensively or defensively."
THE SERIES: Thursday's game will be the 31st meeting between the two programs, with both teams owning 15 wins. CU has won the last two, both in Boulder, including last year's 68-64 win. Cal has won 12 of 13 against the Buffs in Berkeley, including all five since Colorado joined the Pac-12 in 2011-12.
BROADCAST: The game will be televised by the Pac-12 Network with Guy Haberman and Ben Braun. KOA radio will carry the broadcast with Mark Johnson and Scott Wilke.
