Hargress leads Buffs to blowout win over UTSA

Barrington Hargress finished with a career-high five three-pointers made against UTSA. (Photo by Jacob Hock/Sko Buffs Sports)

The Colorado Buffaloes (9-1) defeated the UTSA Roadrunners (4-6) 88-64 on Saturday behind a dominant second-half performance and 23 points from guard Barrington Hargress.

The first half was sloppy as both teams committed a slew of mistakes. It began on the Buffs’ first possession as center Elijah Malone turned the ball over on a dunk attempt. UTSA followed that up with a turnover of its own, a sequence that set the tone for the early going.

Malone was blocked again on a subsequent possession, but he fought to the ground and walked away with a jump-ball and a possession arrow to the Buffs. The new shot clock opened the door for Hargress to drain his first three-pointer of the game.

Hargress caught fire down the stretch of the first half, as he recorded 11 points on 4-for-6 shooting and 3-for-4 from beyond the arc. This came off the back of aggressive charges to the rim that forced defenders on their heels, clearing the way for open three-point looks.

“I’m unselfish enough to realize when my guys are clicking more than I am,” Hargress said postgame. “...Then there’s times where it’s a little bit slow and I’ve just got to use my offensive ability to create for myself.”

His first-half aggressiveness was on display defensively as well, and as the half wound down, he got in a heated exchange with UTSA guard Macaleaub Rich. Rich and Hargress had to be separated following a defensive foul on the latter. Despite the foul, the tone set by Hargress was what maintained his team’s lead going into halftime.

Amid the sloppy play, UTSA finished the half with 13 fouls and 10 turnovers. But behind 12 points from star guard Jamir Simpson, the Roadrunners only trailed 35-32 at halftime.

“[Simpson] is a really aggressive but capable scorer,” Hargress said. “He thrives in all areas of scoring, and we just tried to keep him in positions he doesn’t like.”

Hargress carried his momentum into the second half as he knocked down an early three to open CU’s scoring and followed it up with a tough step-back jumper just outside the paint. He gave his team its biggest lead of the night to that point with another three-pointer to extend Colorado’s advantage to 47-39.

His scoring once again had the Roadrunners on their heels as they recorded five fouls in the first five minutes of the second half.

Colorado capitalized on those mistakes by recording 11 points at the charity stripe and 

13 points off turnovers by the 13-minute mark in the second half.

As the Roadrunners focused more heavily on Hargress defensively, his teammates quickly found success of their own. Forwards Sebastian Rancik and Bangot Dak both finished with double-digit points, recording 15 and 10, respectively. Rancik also added a team-leading seven rebounds while freshman guard Josiah Sanders recorded six.

“[Sanders’] energy and his rebounding were instrumental off the bench for us tonight,” Colorado head coach Tad Boyle said postgame. “He gave us great energy.”

The Buffs extended their lead to 20 (65-45) before Dak threw down an emphatic jam over a pair of UTSA defenders. 

While Simpson continued his scoring success, finishing the night with 20 points, his team struggled to stop anything the Buffs threw its way. 

Colorado’s large lead allowed forward Fawaz ‘Tacko’ Ifaola and guard Andrew Crawford to see playing time for just the fourth time this season. 

As they gained valuable experience, the Buffaloes salted away the clock and sealed their ninth victory of 2025.

The Colorado Buffaloes’ next game will take place on Wednesday against the Portland State Vikings (6-3) at the CU Events Center, with tip-off scheduled for 7 p.m. MT (ESPN+)