The Colorado Buffaloes (12-19, 3-17 Big 12) defeated the TCU Horned Frogs (16-15, 9-11) 76-56 on Senior Day. Buffs senior guard Julian Hammond III led the way offensively for the team with a 19-point performance in his final game at the CU Events Center.
Despite Colorado losing the opening tip-off, forward Trevor Baskin grabbed a defensive rebound and opened the scoring for the game with a driving layup at the other end. This set the tone for the first half as the Buffaloes played physical defense and prevented high-percentage looks for the Horned Frogs. They held TCU to just 11-of-31 shooting (35.5% in the first half).
“With TCU, like a lot of other teams, it starts with ball screen defense,” CU head coach Tad Boyle said postgame. “I think it starts with ball screen defense and having good individual performances.”
CU’s physical play allowed TCU to reach the free throw line frequently, but it was a risk the Buffs were willing to take as TCU missed its first five free throws and finished the first half shooting just 5-of-12 from the charity stripe (41.7%).
The Buffaloes held the lead through the entire first half, with their advantage growing as high as nine points with just under six minutes to play. Hammond and fellow senior guard Javon Ruffin lead the way offensively in the first half, with seven and six points, respectively. Hammond went 2-of-4 shooting in the first half and knocked down both of his free throws. For Ruffin, he generated his scoring from beyond the arc with two early 3-pointers to extend Colorado’s lead.
Towards the end of the first half, turnovers were troublesome for the Buffs. They finished with eight in the half and only generated three from the Horned Frogs. Despite this, CU continued to play physical basketball. After a devastating dunk from forward Bangot Dak that blew the roof off the CU Events Center, the Buffs firmly held a 37-31 lead and the momentum going into halftime.
Colorado got off to a slow start defensively in the second half. TCU forward Trazarien White sparked an early 11-0 run for the Horned Frogs that cut CU’s lead to just one point. Despite White finishing the afternoon with 21 points, the rest of the Horned Frogs’ offense fell dormant following a 12-0 run from the Buffaloes. Hammond was the catalyst for them offensively during this span, finishing the night shooting 5-of-9 from the field while nailing all nine of his free throws.
CU’s defense was overpowering through the final 10 minutes of the game. After TCU’s early scoring run, they were only able to record six more points before the final buzzer sounded. This defensive stand from the Buffs along with 12 points off the bench from guard RJ Smith grew their lead to 20 points.
With this lead in hand, senior scout team guard Jack Pease entered the game to a massive standing ovation. Pease has been a member of the scout team for the past four years, and despite seeing very minimal playing time, was honored today in the senior ceremony and even recorded the last points of the game on a free throw before dribbling the clock out to end his senior season.
“To me, that’s what college basketball is all about,” Boyle said. “It’s about those guys who come to practice every day, they don’t get the accolades, and get written about, and get talked about, they’re kind of behind the scenes but they’re critical to our success.”
With the win, the Buffaloes now aim to carry this momentum into Kansas City for the Big 12 Conference Tournament. Their first game of the tournament will take place on Tuesday against the 9th-seeded team in the bracket.
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