Please use this thread for all of your commentary during tonight's game. WATCH/LISTEN:
TV: Pac-12 Network (Josh Lewin, Kevin O’Neill)
Radio: KKZN AM 760 (Mark Johnson, Scott Wilke)
Watch Online: Pac-12 Now
Listen Online: CUBuffs.com, TuneIn, CU Gameday App
Live Statistics: CUBuffs.com
OPENING TIP: Colorado’s front court of Josh Scott and Wesley Gordon have combined for 30 blocked shots through their first six games. That number is equal to or more than the current total for 308 NCAA Division I teams.
ABOUT THE BUFFALOES: Colorado is 5-1 overall and on a five-game winning streak, its best since a 10-game run during the 2013-14 nonconference schedule. The Buffaloes have won at least five of their first six for the fourth straight year.
Colorado closes out a five-game home stand on Wednesday and is in the middle of a 8-of-9 at home string that leads into mid December.
Colorado is averaging 85.2 points during its five-game win streak. The Buffaloes have hit at least 80 points in all five games, the best streak of 80-plus games since March 10-22, 2011, spanning the Big 12 Tournament and NIT.
Colorado has been the most accurate 3-point shooting team to date in the Pac-12, hitting 42.3 percent from downtown. The Buffaloes have also been solid from the free throw line, ranking second on the leage charts at 72.7 percent.
Colorado is coming off back-to-back games with at least 10 3-point field goals, a first since December 2010 when the Buffaloes had 10 vs. The Citadel and 10 vs. Longwood. The 23 3-pointers in two games are the most since the Buffs had 11 vs. Baylor and 12 at Oklahoma State Jan. 18-21, 2006.
On the other side of the court, Colorado leads the Pac-12 in and ranks 10th in NCAA Division I in defensive rebounds (31.8 drpg). The Buffaloes are fourth in the Pac-12 and 16th in the nation in blocks per game at 6.2 per contest.
Senior forward Josh Scott is averaging 16.8 points and leads the team in rebounding (8.7 rpg), blocks (3.0 bpg) and field goal percentage (.630). He shook off a cold shooting night against Iowa State in the opener and has returned to his usual form. Since making just 5-of-16 against the Cyclones, Scott has made 29-of-38 over the last five games (.763).
Scott has two of the team’s three double-doubles, most recently a 14-point, 12-rebound effort in the win over Omaha. That double-double gave him 25 for his career, tying David Harrison (2001-04) for 10th on CU’s all-time list. Scott now has 72 double-figure scoring games, 29 double-figure rebound games and 33 with at least two or more blocks. He had a career-high five blocked shots in the win over Northern Colorado.
On the Pac-12 charts Scott ranks third in blocks, fifth in rebounding and field goal percentage, seventh in scoring and eighth in free throw percentage (.825).
Sophomore guard George King has led the early scoring punch, averaging 17.3 points over the first six games. He had a career and team-season high 27 points at Auburn, nearly doubling his previous best, four days earlier against Iowa State (14). King is shooting 52 percent from the field (34-of-66) including 14-of-29 from 3-point range. King, who took a redshirt year in 2014-15, also had a personal best nine field goals on 14 attempts against the Tigers while matching career numbers for 3-pointers made (4) and rebounds (7).
King is sixth in the Pac-12 in scoring while ranking third in 3-pointers made (2.3 3mpg) and sixth in 3-point percentage (.483).
Junior guard Josh Fortune has had a spectacular home stand, his first games at the Coors Events Center. He’s averaging 11.5 points and 6.5 rebounds over the last four games. In his Coors debut, Fortune recorded his first career double-double with 17 points and a team season-high 14 rebounds against Portland. He also led the Buffaloes with six assists and three steals. Fortune followed that up with 18 points on a team season-best five 3-pointers with six rebounds against Air Force. On the season, Fortune is third on the team in scoring (10.7 ppg) and third in assists (2.2 apg) and rebounding (5.8 rpg).
Sophomore guard Dominique Collier is averaging 8.5 points and leads Colorado in both assists (2.5 apg) and steals (1.2 spg). Collier matched his season high with 13 points in the win over Omaha. He was 6-of-6 from the free throw line, a career-best and tied with back court mateXavier Talton for the best single-game team mark this season. Talton also achieved his 6-for-6 game against Omaha.
Junior guard Tre’Shaun Fletcher is fifth on the team in scoring at 8.2 points per game. Against Omaha, he scored 12 of his 15 points in the second half including 10 straight during a 14-2 run that gave Colorado a 10-point lead with 6:33 left in the game. Fletcher averaged 16 points in the first two home games hitting 10-of-16 from the field. He scored a career-high 17 points against Portland on 7-of-8 from the field.
Junior forward Wesley Gordon is second on the team in rebounding (7.3 rpg) and blocks (2.0 bpg). He corralled a team season-high 15 rebounds against UNC; his second-best game as a Buff just trailing his 17-rebound effort against Washington on Jan. 22, 2015. It was his 12th career game with double-figure rebounds and he became the fourth CU player to reach double-digits this year (Josh Scott-2, Josh Fortune-1).
Gordon has 30 rebounds over the last three games (10.0 rpg). On the Pac-12 charts he is eighth in blocks and 12th in rebounding.
The Buffaloes depth has continued to show itself. Talton has been a steady reserve, ranking second on the team in assists (2.3 apg) and steals (0.8 spg) to begin the season. Sophomore forward Tory Miller is coming off season-highs of seven points and six rebounds against UNC and is averaging 3.8 points and 3.5 rebounds on the season.
Colorado’s international connection of freshman guard Thomas Akyazili and sophomore forward Kenan Guzonjic are having nice start to their careers. Akyazili had a career-high eight points and four assists in the win over Air Force. Guzonjic scored his first points in a Colorado uniform with a 3-pointer late in the game against Portland.
ABOUT THE SKYHAWKS: Fort Lewis College is an NCAA Division II school located in Durango, Colo., and plays in the prestigious Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference, a league that Colorado belonged to during the first half of the 20th century. The Skyhawks have began their season with a perfect 5-0 record, averaging 85 points per game while shooting 47 percent from the field. Fort Lewis has won all five of its games by double-digits, averaging a 16.2 point margin per game. Along with their five wins, the Skyhawks also claimed a 77-69 exhibition win in overtime at Wyoming to start their season. Opponents are averaging 68.8 points, shooting just under 40 percent from the field. Fort Lewis, coming off a 20-9 season, was picked to finish third in the RMAC’s Mountain Division and sixth overall.
Fort Lewis has four players averaging double-digits in scoring led by sophomore guard Rasmus Bach at 18.0 points per game. A preseason All-RMAC selection, Bach is shooting an outstanding 61 percent from the field and also leads the Skyhawks in steals at 2.4 per game. Senior guard Cade Kloster, also a preseason All-RMAC pick, is averaging 15.0 points and 2.2 assists an outing. Junior guard Will Morse is Fort Lewis’ top scorer off the bench at 14.4 points per game and has a team-best 14 3-point field goals. Joshua Blaylock leads the Skyhawks in assists at 4.0 per game while averaging 12.2 points per contest.
Bob Pietrack is in his first full year as Fort Lewis’ head coach with a career record of 7-0.
THE SERIES: This will be the fourth meeting between Colorado and Fort Lewis. The Buffaloes have won the previous three meetings, all in Boulder. Colorado and Fort Lewis last met on Nov. 11, 2011, an 85-57 Buffaloes win at the Coors Events Center.
Tad Boyle is 1-0 against Fort Lewis as a head coach. Bob Pietrack has never faced Colorado as a head coach.
Wednesday’s game is a regular season game for Colorado, and will count in its overall record, but is considered an exhibition game for Fort Lewis and will not count in the Skyhawks official season record.
HOFMAN RETURNS TO BOULDER: Fort Lewis Emeritus coach Bob Hofman played for Colorado from 1970-74 and was assistant for the Buffaloes from 1981-83 before embarking on an 18-year head coaching career at Fort Lewis (1983-87, 2000-14) where he’s the school’s all-time leader in wins with 339. He is set to retire following the 2015-16 season.
TV: Pac-12 Network (Josh Lewin, Kevin O’Neill)
Radio: KKZN AM 760 (Mark Johnson, Scott Wilke)
Watch Online: Pac-12 Now
Listen Online: CUBuffs.com, TuneIn, CU Gameday App
Live Statistics: CUBuffs.com
OPENING TIP: Colorado’s front court of Josh Scott and Wesley Gordon have combined for 30 blocked shots through their first six games. That number is equal to or more than the current total for 308 NCAA Division I teams.
ABOUT THE BUFFALOES: Colorado is 5-1 overall and on a five-game winning streak, its best since a 10-game run during the 2013-14 nonconference schedule. The Buffaloes have won at least five of their first six for the fourth straight year.
Colorado closes out a five-game home stand on Wednesday and is in the middle of a 8-of-9 at home string that leads into mid December.
Colorado is averaging 85.2 points during its five-game win streak. The Buffaloes have hit at least 80 points in all five games, the best streak of 80-plus games since March 10-22, 2011, spanning the Big 12 Tournament and NIT.
Colorado has been the most accurate 3-point shooting team to date in the Pac-12, hitting 42.3 percent from downtown. The Buffaloes have also been solid from the free throw line, ranking second on the leage charts at 72.7 percent.
Colorado is coming off back-to-back games with at least 10 3-point field goals, a first since December 2010 when the Buffaloes had 10 vs. The Citadel and 10 vs. Longwood. The 23 3-pointers in two games are the most since the Buffs had 11 vs. Baylor and 12 at Oklahoma State Jan. 18-21, 2006.
On the other side of the court, Colorado leads the Pac-12 in and ranks 10th in NCAA Division I in defensive rebounds (31.8 drpg). The Buffaloes are fourth in the Pac-12 and 16th in the nation in blocks per game at 6.2 per contest.
Senior forward Josh Scott is averaging 16.8 points and leads the team in rebounding (8.7 rpg), blocks (3.0 bpg) and field goal percentage (.630). He shook off a cold shooting night against Iowa State in the opener and has returned to his usual form. Since making just 5-of-16 against the Cyclones, Scott has made 29-of-38 over the last five games (.763).
Scott has two of the team’s three double-doubles, most recently a 14-point, 12-rebound effort in the win over Omaha. That double-double gave him 25 for his career, tying David Harrison (2001-04) for 10th on CU’s all-time list. Scott now has 72 double-figure scoring games, 29 double-figure rebound games and 33 with at least two or more blocks. He had a career-high five blocked shots in the win over Northern Colorado.
On the Pac-12 charts Scott ranks third in blocks, fifth in rebounding and field goal percentage, seventh in scoring and eighth in free throw percentage (.825).
Sophomore guard George King has led the early scoring punch, averaging 17.3 points over the first six games. He had a career and team-season high 27 points at Auburn, nearly doubling his previous best, four days earlier against Iowa State (14). King is shooting 52 percent from the field (34-of-66) including 14-of-29 from 3-point range. King, who took a redshirt year in 2014-15, also had a personal best nine field goals on 14 attempts against the Tigers while matching career numbers for 3-pointers made (4) and rebounds (7).
King is sixth in the Pac-12 in scoring while ranking third in 3-pointers made (2.3 3mpg) and sixth in 3-point percentage (.483).
Junior guard Josh Fortune has had a spectacular home stand, his first games at the Coors Events Center. He’s averaging 11.5 points and 6.5 rebounds over the last four games. In his Coors debut, Fortune recorded his first career double-double with 17 points and a team season-high 14 rebounds against Portland. He also led the Buffaloes with six assists and three steals. Fortune followed that up with 18 points on a team season-best five 3-pointers with six rebounds against Air Force. On the season, Fortune is third on the team in scoring (10.7 ppg) and third in assists (2.2 apg) and rebounding (5.8 rpg).
Sophomore guard Dominique Collier is averaging 8.5 points and leads Colorado in both assists (2.5 apg) and steals (1.2 spg). Collier matched his season high with 13 points in the win over Omaha. He was 6-of-6 from the free throw line, a career-best and tied with back court mateXavier Talton for the best single-game team mark this season. Talton also achieved his 6-for-6 game against Omaha.
Junior guard Tre’Shaun Fletcher is fifth on the team in scoring at 8.2 points per game. Against Omaha, he scored 12 of his 15 points in the second half including 10 straight during a 14-2 run that gave Colorado a 10-point lead with 6:33 left in the game. Fletcher averaged 16 points in the first two home games hitting 10-of-16 from the field. He scored a career-high 17 points against Portland on 7-of-8 from the field.
Junior forward Wesley Gordon is second on the team in rebounding (7.3 rpg) and blocks (2.0 bpg). He corralled a team season-high 15 rebounds against UNC; his second-best game as a Buff just trailing his 17-rebound effort against Washington on Jan. 22, 2015. It was his 12th career game with double-figure rebounds and he became the fourth CU player to reach double-digits this year (Josh Scott-2, Josh Fortune-1).
Gordon has 30 rebounds over the last three games (10.0 rpg). On the Pac-12 charts he is eighth in blocks and 12th in rebounding.
The Buffaloes depth has continued to show itself. Talton has been a steady reserve, ranking second on the team in assists (2.3 apg) and steals (0.8 spg) to begin the season. Sophomore forward Tory Miller is coming off season-highs of seven points and six rebounds against UNC and is averaging 3.8 points and 3.5 rebounds on the season.
Colorado’s international connection of freshman guard Thomas Akyazili and sophomore forward Kenan Guzonjic are having nice start to their careers. Akyazili had a career-high eight points and four assists in the win over Air Force. Guzonjic scored his first points in a Colorado uniform with a 3-pointer late in the game against Portland.
ABOUT THE SKYHAWKS: Fort Lewis College is an NCAA Division II school located in Durango, Colo., and plays in the prestigious Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference, a league that Colorado belonged to during the first half of the 20th century. The Skyhawks have began their season with a perfect 5-0 record, averaging 85 points per game while shooting 47 percent from the field. Fort Lewis has won all five of its games by double-digits, averaging a 16.2 point margin per game. Along with their five wins, the Skyhawks also claimed a 77-69 exhibition win in overtime at Wyoming to start their season. Opponents are averaging 68.8 points, shooting just under 40 percent from the field. Fort Lewis, coming off a 20-9 season, was picked to finish third in the RMAC’s Mountain Division and sixth overall.
Fort Lewis has four players averaging double-digits in scoring led by sophomore guard Rasmus Bach at 18.0 points per game. A preseason All-RMAC selection, Bach is shooting an outstanding 61 percent from the field and also leads the Skyhawks in steals at 2.4 per game. Senior guard Cade Kloster, also a preseason All-RMAC pick, is averaging 15.0 points and 2.2 assists an outing. Junior guard Will Morse is Fort Lewis’ top scorer off the bench at 14.4 points per game and has a team-best 14 3-point field goals. Joshua Blaylock leads the Skyhawks in assists at 4.0 per game while averaging 12.2 points per contest.
Bob Pietrack is in his first full year as Fort Lewis’ head coach with a career record of 7-0.
THE SERIES: This will be the fourth meeting between Colorado and Fort Lewis. The Buffaloes have won the previous three meetings, all in Boulder. Colorado and Fort Lewis last met on Nov. 11, 2011, an 85-57 Buffaloes win at the Coors Events Center.
Tad Boyle is 1-0 against Fort Lewis as a head coach. Bob Pietrack has never faced Colorado as a head coach.
Wednesday’s game is a regular season game for Colorado, and will count in its overall record, but is considered an exhibition game for Fort Lewis and will not count in the Skyhawks official season record.
HOFMAN RETURNS TO BOULDER: Fort Lewis Emeritus coach Bob Hofman played for Colorado from 1970-74 and was assistant for the Buffaloes from 1981-83 before embarking on an 18-year head coaching career at Fort Lewis (1983-87, 2000-14) where he’s the school’s all-time leader in wins with 339. He is set to retire following the 2015-16 season.
