Buffs fall to No. 19 Jayhawks, suffer fourth-straight loss

Liam Howard
Jan 21
3 min read

CU guard Isaiah Johnson — Colorado guard Isaiah Johnson recorded his second-straight double-digit point night when in the starting lineup, finishing with 19 points against Kansas. (Photo by Christian Blanco/Sko Buffs Sports)

The Colorado Buffaloes (12-7, 2-4 Big 12) fell at the hands of the No. 19 Kansas Jayhawks (14-5, 4-2 Big 12) 75-69 on Tuesday. The Jayhawks were without head coach Bill Self, but interim coach Jacque Vaughn and his team still picked up a win for him in a packed CU Events Center.

The three-ball was prolific for both teams early in the first half. Colorado guard Isaiah Johnson opened the scoring with a three-pointer, but Kansas’ fellow freshman guard Darryn Peterson quickly gave the Jayhawks the lead on a three of his own.

The Buffs and Jayhawks finished the half with six made three pointers. Kansas was just as lethal, making the same number of threes on two fewer shots.

“Hitting the open guys and making the right play was working for us,” Johnson said postgame. “We were able to hit down shots.”

Johnson’s three-point shooting fueled a team-high 19-point night for the freshman in his second start of the season.

With just over 15 minutes until halftime, the pendulum of momentum swung fully to the Jayhawks. Star center Flory Bidunga recorded an emphatic block over CU forward Bangot Dak, and Jayhawks guard Melvin Council Jr. followed it up with a three-pointer. It was at that point that Kansas saw its largest lead of the first half (eight).

Rebounding was killing Colorado during that stretch, as it trailed the rebounding battle 9-4 with just over 13 minutes to play.

However, Colorado used the three-ball to claw back into the game and cut the lead to three with less than seven minutes before halftime (29-26).

Tough defense kept the scoring at a minimum, and Colorado had the final possession of the first half. Trailing 40-36, Johnson put up a contested jumper with time expiring, but it clanked off the rim. However, a second-chance tip by guard Barrington Hargress beat the buzzer and sent the Buffs into the locker room only down two.

The Buffaloes lost center Elijah Malone in the first half due to an undisclosed injury. He did not return to the game.

“He went to the hospital,” Colorado head coach Tad Boyle postgame. “He’s doing better; he’ll be sore for a day or two, but he’s going to be okay.”

The defense for both teams was more present in the second half.

Kansas took away the three-pointer from Colorado’s arsenal, holding the Buffs to a 3-for-17 clip from beyond the arc in the second half. Additionally, guard Tre White led Kansas with 15 rebounds, as the Jayhawks out-rebounded CU 45-33 for the game.

While Kansas didn’t take as many shots from three-point range in the second half as it did in the first, Colorado held the Jayhawks to an inefficient 2-for-7 clip.

The Buffaloes kept pace with the Jayhawks early in the second half, tying the game on the first possession out of the break. Kansas broke the tie quickly, but Colorado had an opportunity to draw back even with a wide-open three-pointer from guard Felix Kossaras. However, he missed the open look, and Kansas built a lead.

A series of fouls and a tough hook shot from Bidunga gave Kansas a 58-52 advantage.

Colorado responded defensively by forcing turnovers and offensive fouls. The Buffaloes capitalized on each stolen possession and cut the lead back to one point at 60-59.

Dak continued the momentum by forcing a turnover on Kansas’ subsequent possession, but the Buffaloes were unable to convert on two-straight field goal attempts afterwards.

Kansas scored off the second miss, and on the following inbound, a controversial turning point in the game took place. Colorado’s inbound was ruled stolen by Kansas guard Melvin Council Jr., and he quickly sank a layup to extend his team’s lead.