The Town Crier

[PointGuard]

Game #2: Missouri Tigers (1-0) @ Colorado Buffaloes (1-0)

Missouri’s primary defense is a 1-3-1 zone. C Russell Horan scored 21 and had 12 rebounds in the Tigers’ 74-66 win over Dartmouth.

Unlike in our first game, we came out strong to move out to an 11-3 lead after 2-1/2 minutes of play. We went on to take a 41-22 halftime lead as we outshot Missouri 57% to 38% and held a 15-6 turnover advantage. PF Ike Minahan scored 10.

We maintained a big lead throughout the 2nd half and cruised to an easy 65-41 drubbing of the Tigers. A big defensive effort by our entire team holding Missouri’s shooting to 33% and forcing 22 turnovers.

PF Ike Minahan scored 14 points while C LaMar Kapono hauled down 10 rebounds.

Following our two wins in the first week of the season, we were ranked 18th in the Media Poll and 17th in the Coaches Poll and our RPI is 7th best in Division I.

Pac-12 highlights:

In the 2nd round of the Preseason NIT Tourney, #3 ranked Arizona barely squeaked out an 84-82 win over New Mexico as PF Curtis Grace dropped in 30 points.
Stanford (#16 in preseason polls) held a slim 38-35 halftime lead but pulled away in the 2nd half to beat Penn State handily 83-65 with C Roger Younger recording a double-double (24 points and 11 rebounds).
#3 ranked Arizona lost to #2 ranked Oklahoma in the semi-finals of the Preseason NIT Tournament 75-61 as the Sooners’ PF Marcus Asbury scored 35 points and pulled down 18 boards.
In the Hawaiian Shootout, Oregon State jumped out to a 13 point early lead but then was lambasted 100-73 by Oklahoma State. The Beavers’ PG Michael Anderson scored 23, but the Cowboys’ C Ramsey Freymond hit 18 of 19 free throws and scored 32 while grabbing 17 rebounds.

[PointGuard]

Game #3: Villanova Wildcats (1-1) @ #18 Colorado Buffaloes (2-0)

It took 3 straight minutes of missed shots and turnovers before a field goal was scored in this game. SG Rick Coffey scored our first 8 points. SF Kenton Dunn scored our next 8 points and after 8 minutes of play we led 16-7. Coffey and Dunn combined to score all of our first 21 points in the game. We held Villanova’s shooting throughout the first half to just 20% and built a 37-20 halftime advantage. SG Rick Coffey scored 15 points and SF Kenton Dunn scored 12 in the half.

Our second half effort was rather lackadaisical, but we still won easily 73-58. We outshot the Wildcats 44% to 32% and hit 50% of our 3’s compared to 35% by them.

SG Rick Coffey finished with 23 points, PF Ike Minahan scored 15 and hauled down 11 rebounds, and SF Kenton Dunn added 14 points. PG Justin Wilson had 8 assists.

Pac-12 highlights:

#8 ranked Arizona blitzed Mississippi 87-47 with PG Tim Perry scoring 21 points.
#7 ranked UCLA travelled to #1 Kentucky and upset the Wildcats 74-64 as SG Kyle Taylor scored 21 and picked off 8 rebounds.
#12 ranked Stanford bested Brigham Young 63-54 in an ugly game in which the Cardinal hit only 32% of their shots while the Cougars made just 31% of theirs.
#25 ranked California won their 3rd straight game by beating Ohio 70-54 with the Bears holding Ohio to just 38% shooting including dropping in just 1 of 19 shots from beyond the arc.

[PointGuard]

Game #4: 5th seed, #18 ranked Colorado Buffaloes (3-0) vs 4th seed Iowa State Cyclones (2-1) (Round 1 of Palmetto Shootout)

SG Rick Coffey scored our first 6 points. The game was close throughout the entire first half, but we ended up on top 29-25 at the break. Both teams shot poorly. Iowa State controlled the boards 22-16 but we held an 11-4 turnover advantage. Rick Coffey’s 9 points led our scoring.

We continued to hold a small lead until the Cyclones tied us at 40-40 with 10 minutes to play. Then with 6-1/2 minutes left we trailed by 5 points. We struggled to catch up but still were behind 55-54 with 3 minutes remaining. The only scoring for the next 2-1/2 minutes was when Iowa State sunk a 3 pointer to give them a 4 point lead. We were forced to foul and lost 60-54. We sunk just 35% of our FG’s and only 13% of our 3’s. Overall, a poor effort on our part. We just never got up for this game. Disappointing because I was hoping to be able to play another game (and preferably two more games) against some good competition in this tournament.

SG Rick Coffey scored 11 and PF Ike Minahan added 10 points and 8 rebounds.

The loss dropped us out of the Top 25 in the polls.

Pac-12 Highlights:

After starting the season with 3 straight wins, #25 California lost at home to West Virginia 78-64. The refs put the Mountaineers on the line 18 more times where they scored 16 more points than the Golden Bears.
California followed that up with another home court loss to Boise State 70-61. This time rather than being victimized by the refs, Cal torpedoed themselves by hitting just 33% of the FG attempts and 19% of their 3-point attempts.
Utah pasted Boston College 71-49 with C Brett Pettway scoring 37 points, pulling down 11 boards, and making 3 steals and 3 blocks.
#12 Stanford had to make a big 2nd half comeback to edge Western Carolina 73-70.

[PointGuard]

Game #5: Fresno State Bulldogs (3-0) @ Colorado Buffaloes (3-1)

Thoughts before the game:

Fresno State has 3 players averaging in double figures: SG Mark Thomas (15.3 ppg), PF Cedric Akacem (14.7 ppg), and PG Danny Takaki (11.7 ppg). Their coach, Rahim Walton, who is renowned for his success at several programs during his long career. Andre Woodley, the Bulldogs’ 1st assistant coach, is a very talented scout so I’m sure he’s done a superb job analyzing us. In their previous 5 seasons the Bulldogs have won 116 games and lost just 44 and have gone to the NCAA Tourney 3 times (reaching the Sweet 16 once) and the NIT twice, so they’re obviously an opponent we need to take seriously even though we’re playing them at home.

Comments about the game:

We played well in the first half, hitting 52% of our shots and out-rebounding the Bulldogs 28-11, but made 8 turnovers against Fresno State’s 2. We left the court at the half with a 42-36 lead. SG Rick Coffey scored 14 points and hauled in 7 rebounds. Reserve PG Ryan Baxter dropped in 13 points for Fresno State.

Behind the scoring and rebounding of PF Ike Minahan and C LaMar Kapono, we opened a 62-44 lead with 12-1/2 minutes to play in the game. Fresno State cut our lead to 10 but we then pulled away again to win by an 86-69 score. We dominated the boards 46-28.

SG Rick Coffey finished with 25 points and 8 rebounds. C LaMar Kapono had his best game in his short career thus far, scoring 16 points, grabbing 11 rebounds and blocking 3 shots. PF Ike Minahan also scored 16 points and PG Justin Wilson added 10.

Pac-12 Highlights:

#12 Stanford 85, Penn State-72 (Alaskan Classic semi-final game): Stanford’s C Roger Younger continued his outstanding play with 25 points, 9 rebounds, 4 assists, 3 steals, and 4 blocks.
#12 Stanford lost the title game in the Alaskan Classic when they were upset by Air Force 75-67. The Cardinal shot abysmally in the 2nd half and let the game slip away.
#6 Arizona stomped 23 New Mexico State 76-52 behind the 22 points scored by PF Curtis Grace and 19 points by SF Rolan Bell.
#9 UCLA ran away from #18 Alabama 80-64 with SG Kyle Taylor dropping in 28 points.

[PointGuard]

Game #6: Minnesota Golden Gophers (3-1) @ Colorado Buffaloes (4-1)

We started OK, but then let Minnesota reel off 12 straight points to open a 20-12 lead over us. We fought back to regain a 30-28 lead with 5-1/2 minutes left in the half. We then went on a roll and forged ahead by 14 points before settling for a 44-33 halftime lead. Our advantage was because we outshot the Golden Gophers 50% to 38% and held a 6-1 turnover advantage. SG Rick Coffey’s 11 points led our scoring.

We steadily increased our lead to 21 points with 5-1/2 minutes left in the 2nd half. We then coasted to an easy 80-67 victory. Minnesota tossed up 37 3-point attempts but only connected on 7 of them.

SG Rick Coffey scored 15 and had 6 rebounds, C/PF Derricus Ivener hit for 12 points with 6 boards, and C LaMar Kapono and PF Ike Minahan both scored 10 points with each grabbing 9 rebounds. PG Justin Wilson dished out 8 assists.

We remained unranked but have the 3rd best RPI. But I believe the RPI is askew…we’ve played good teams but not great teams. Pittsburgh which has the 65th best RPI which seems appropriate based on their competition thus far is 4-3 and ranked 19th in the polls, so the polls also have their problems.

Pac-13 highlights:

#6 Arizona ripped UTEP 74-43 when SF Rolan Bell went on a roll, scoring 26 points.

#6 Arizona then was upset by Cincinnati 76-71 when they let the game get away from them in the 2nd half.

Utah travelled to Madison, WI and beat up on Wisconsin to the tune of 85-74, led by C Brett Pettway’s 21 points and 11 rebounds.

[Wayne23]

I rarely if ever find RPI accurate for my teams.

[PointGuard]

Game #7: Colorado Buffaloes (5-1) at #10 Maryland Terrapins (6-1)

Maryland has played extremely well thus far with their only loss coming at the hands of #2 ranked Syracuse in the semi-finals of the Preseason NIT Tournament. Playing them on their home court makes our challenge even greater.

The game was close the first 10 minutes but in the final 10 minutes of the first half we exploited the Terrapins interior which was weakened by C Terrence Eldridge playing at less that 100% while he is recovering from a bruised sternum injury. We held Maryland’s shooting to 29% and forced them to turn the ball over 12 times as we took a 34-20 halftime lead. PF Ike Minahan scored 11 points and had 6 rebounds and PG Justin Wilson had 8 points and 6 assists.

As our defense continued to be strong, we took a 60-40 lead with 7 minutes left in the game. Our bench players were able to maintain the margin and we came away with an impressive 70-51 beatdown of Maryland. We dominated all aspects of the game.

Leading our scoring was PF Ike Minahan who had 17 points and 8 rebounds. SG Rick Coffey chipped in 12 points and C LaMar Kapono finished with 9 points and 14 rebounds. For Maryland SG Ed Friel scored 18 points but C Terrence Eldridge (who had been averaging 17 ppg) was limited to just 6 points even though he played 33 minutes.

Thus far this season we’ve allowed our opponents to score just 58.6 ppg which is 6th best in the nation and we are averaging 39.5 rpg (5th best in Division I), 8.9 bpg (6th best in Division I) and just 11.4 topg (20th best in the country).

Pac-12 highlights:

Washington travelled to Atlanta to take on #18 ranked Georgia Tech. The Huskies were only able to score 17 points in the first half and fell behind by as much as 23 before losing 67-53. A 19-9 turnover disadvantage doomed Washington even though their SF Thomas Richardson scored 23 points.
Oregon played #2 Syracuse on the road. While the Ducks remained close throughout the game, Syracuse was in control the entire way and beat Oregon 83-76. C Darrell Hamilton scored 22 points and had 12 rebounds for the Ducks.
California also went on the road to take on #9 Indiana but the Golden Bears were in a deep hole the entire game and lost 91-75. SF Gary Mack scored 23 points for California.
#8 UCLA took on #20 Temple in Philadelphia. The Bruins kept the game close all the way but never took the lead and lost 85-78. PG Darelle Denson tossed in 26 points and C Leon Foster had 21 points for UCLA but the Bruins were outshot 53% to 39%.
#11 Stanford used their home court advantage to dismantle Mississippi by a score of 82-67 with C Roger Younger tallying 17 points, 7 assists, 7 rebounds, 5 steals and 2 blocks.
#5 Arizona continued to play impressively as they buried Tennessee 81-59 with C Cliff Rivera scoring 20 points and pulling down 12 rebounds.

[PointGuard]

Game #8: Southern Illinois Salukis (4-2) @ Colorado Buffaloes (6-1)

A quick start with some hot shooting put us ahead 18-5 with 14:18 remaining in the 1st half. But the Salukis then went on a 9-0 run to let us know we had a ball game to play. While we were able to maintain a small lead throughout the rest of the half, we were unable to pull away again and finished the half ahead 37-32. Southern Illinois outshot us 46% to 38% and hit 50% of their 3’s compared to our 27% shooting from beyond the arc. An 11-5 turnover advantage was our salvation. C LaMar Kapono and PF Ike Minahan both scored 10 points.

SG Rick Coffey scored our first 7 points of the 2nd half to give us a 44-34 lead. Midway through the 2nd half we expanded our lead to 20 points. Even though the Salukis began hitting from outside (14 of 29 from 3 point range for the entire game), they were never able to mount a serious threat and we won handily 88-70. Our forcing Southern Illinois to turn the ball over 21 times while we had just 6 turnovers was a major reason we won this game.

C LaMar Kapono, PF Ike Minahan, and SG Rick Coffee each scored 16 points and our other starters, SF Kenton Dunn and PG Justin Wilson scored 14 and 11 points, respectively. Rick Coffee also had 9 assists, 4 rebounds, 4 steals and 2 blocks. Southern Illinois’ SG Kerry Fischer scored 19 points.
Following our win we moved back into the Top 25 in the polls at #24.

Pac-12 highlights:

In the Golden State Classic underdog USC upset #21 Gonzaga 67-60 but then fell to Villanova 79-69.
Behind C Shamel Pringle’s 18 points and 16 rebounds, Washington got by Denver 64-54.
#11 UCLA crushed Arkansas 84-65 as PG Darelle Denson hit for 28 points and picked off 7 rebounds.

[PointGuard]

Game #9: St. Johns Red Storm (7-2) @ #24 Colorado Buffaloes (7-1)

The Red Storm’s only losses have been to #3 Syracuse and #13 Maryland. PF Cliff Owens is averaging 17.0 ppg and 7.4 rpg.

We held a small lead throughout most of the first half by outshooting the Red Storm 42% to 34% and then expanded our lead in the late going to build a 44-35 halftime advantage. SF Kenton Dunn scored 14 points.

Kenton Dunn continued to lead us offensively in the 2nd half and we gradually expanded our lead all the way to the end of the game as we downed the Red Storm 87-63. We hit 43% of our FG attempts while St. Johns was limited to 32%.

SF Kenton Dunn played his best game of the year and finished with 30 points. C LaMar Kapono scored 13 and PF Ike Minahan had 10 points and 12 rebounds.
We moved up to #21 in the polls. Our RPI is now tops in the nation!

Pac-12 highlights:

SF Rolan Bell scored 35 points and recorded 9 rebounds, 4 assists, 5 steals and 4 blocks and C Cliff Rivera hit for 25 points plus yanked down 23 rebounds as #5 Arizona manhandled Monmouth 86-66.
#25 Utah travelled to Columbus, OH and whipped #24 Ohio State 85-65 as C Brett Pettway scored 29 points and PF Marc Fife had 17 points and 16 rebounds.
Oregon State downed Purdue 78-66 with PG Michael Anderson finishing with 19 points and PF Kyle Webb hitting for 18 points while pulling down 9 boards.
Washington had 6 players scored in double figures to lead the Huskies to a 74-65 win over Colgate.
In the Caribbean Classic #7 UCLA’s starting guards Kyle Taylor and Darelle Denson scored 20 and 19 points, respectively and the Bruins buried Mississippi 75-52. The Bruins followed that up with an 84-65 beatdown of Fresno State with Taylor and Denson scoring 23 and 20 points, respectively. Then in the tournament championship game, UCLA went ahead by 23 points before #11 Temple rallied to make the final score 65-57 in favor of the Bruins as Taylor and Denson were toned down to 17 points and 12 points.
C Roger Younger continued his dominance with 22 points and 17 rebounds for #12 Stanford as the Cardinal pounded Jacksonville State 98-70.
#7 UCLA steadily pulled away from #19 LSU and won with ease 78-56. PG Carelle Denson poured in 30 points while SG Kyle Taylor dropped in 23 points.
Oregon’s PF Ronald Greenwalt scored 25 and had 9 rebounds as the Ducks pulled away from East Carolina in the 2nd half to win 83-58.
#12 Stanford fell behind by 19 at the half while visiting #21 Florida, then cut into the lead but still lost 85-76.
C Shamel Pringle of Washington scored 21 and had 9 rebounds and 5 blocks to lead the Huskies to a 64-54 victory over South Carolina State.
#25 Utah romped over California-Santa Barbara 103-54 with C Brett Pettway scoring 28 and getting 10 boards.
SG Kyle Taylor scored 31 points and PG Darelle Denson hit for 27 points to lead #7 UCLA to a 90-80 victory over Texas A&M.
Washington beat Baylor 60-54 in the opener of the Hoops for Troops Tourney, then edged Houston 71-68 with PG Scott Edwards scoring 23, but lost in the championship game 69-66 to Vanderbilt.

[PointGuard]

Pre-Conference Pac-12 Recap:

Going into conference play, five teams are ranked in the top 25 in the Media Poll: UCLA (#1), Arizona (#5), Stanford (#13), Colorado (#21), and Utah (#23).

Eight teams have RPI’s in the top 100: Colorado (#1), UCLA (#5), Utah (#18), Oregon (#33), USC (#41), Arizona (#42), Washington (#51), and Stanford (#55).

Seven teams came out of pre-conference play with very good records: UCLA (10-1), Colorado (8-1), Arizona (9-2), Stanford (9-2), Utah (8-2), Washington (8-3), and Oregon (6-3).

Looks like this will be another tough Pac-12 season where no one is safe from being beaten by any other team.