Poor defense leads to Colorado’s downfall against UCF
- Matt Spivack
- 14 minutes ago
- 2 min read
Three-pointers rained down on the Colorado Buffaloes' (12-8, 2-5 Big 12) defense all afternoon, leading to a 95-86 loss to the UCF Knights (15-4, 3-2 Big 12) on Saturday.
CU’s defense was a liability throughout the game, allowing the Knights to shoot 61 percent from the floor and 62.5 percent from deep.
UCF’s defense played slightly better than Colorado’s, holding the Buffaloes to 52 percent from the field and outrebounding them by nine rebounds.
“We’re doing what we need to do offensively,” Tad Boyle said. “We’re just not good enough defensively one-on-one.”
The first half featured a back-and-forth slugfest, with neither team playing much defense. The Knights led at half (49-47) with Devan Cambridge leading the team in points (11). CU’s Barrington Hargress led all scorers in the first half, with 18 points on 6-for-6 from the field.
Colorado’s shooters started cooling off as the second half started, leaving the Knights an opportunity to strike.
UCF guard Riley Kugel did just that. The talented senior made four three-pointers in a six-minute span, helping the Knights stretch the lead to 13 points.
Despite only playing nine minutes in the first half due to foul trouble, Kugel was still able to impact the game, scoring 17 of his 22 points in the second half.
With just over six minutes to play in the game, the Buffaloes found themselves in a 15-point deficit. Without hesitation, Colorado continued to fight down the stretch, cutting the UCF lead to as little as six points.
The Buffaloes were unable to overcome the poor defensive performance, losing the game by nine points.
“It’s really frustrating because sometimes I feel like it means more to me than it does to them on that end of the floor,” Boyle said.
On the offensive side of the ball, the Buffaloes played extremely well, with Sebastian Rancik, Isaiah Johnson and Barrington Hargress all finishing with 20 points.
Johnson also led the team in assists (six) while Rancik led the team in steals (four).
The Knights also spread the love, having four players finish with two or more three pointers made, with Kugel leading the way (6-for-8 from deep).
“We want to take away three-point shooters,” Hargress said. “Some of the shooters… had three in the first half… Some of it was our defense, some of it was shots that we were willing to live with. But either way, you can’t let a team hit 15 [threes] in your home court.”
Colorado needs to continue to work on its defense as the season progresses.
The Buffs have their toughest test ahead of them, with the No. 9-ranked Iowa State Cyclones awaiting.
Colorado will be in Ames, Iowa, to take on the Cyclones on Thursday at 5 pm MT. (Fox Sports 1)