Colorado falls to Utah 73-68 in crucial Pac-12 matchup
The Colorado Buffaloes entered Utah's Jon M. Huntsman Center on Saturday afternoon in need of a win. They left with a 73-68 loss to the Utes, putting them in danger of missing out on an at-large bid for next month's NCAA Tournament. Prior to the game, ESPN's Joe Lunardi had Colorado and Utah joining Arizona as the three Pac-12 schools in his latest Bracketology.
A back-and-forth first half saw the Buffaloes and Utes tied at 31 going into halftime. Utah pulled away early in the second half behind the strong play of senior guard Gabe Madsen, who led Utah with 21 points. A three-pointer by Hunter Erickson with 8:34 remaining gave Utah a 13-point lead, their largest of the game. KJ Simpson, who led all scorers with 25 points, caught fire in the final minutes to cut Utah's lead down to three. The Utes, however, made their free throws down the stretch to hold on for the win.
Colorado (15-7, 6-5 Pac-12) struggled from the field most of the day, finishing 25-for-66 (37.9%) and 6-for-20 from three-point range. Four Buffaloes starters - Simpson, J'Vonne Hadley (15 points), Eddie Lampkin Jr. (11 points) and Tristan da Silva (10 points) - finished in double-figures. Julian Hammond III, who re-entered the starting lineup in place of the injured Cody Williams, had seven points.
Utah guard Deivon Smith had a near triple-double with 17 points, 11 rebounds and nine assists in the win. He joined Madsen as the only Utes players in double-figures.
The Buffaloes ended their three-game road trip dropping two of three. Tad Boyle and company will next host Arizona State (11-11, 5-6 Pac-12) on Thursday, February 8 followed by a rematch with No. 11 Arizona (16-5, 7-3 Pac-12) on Saturday, February 10.