Buffs men’s basketball to face UMass in Myrtle Beach Invitational opener
Fresh off a big win over then-No. 11 Tennessee in Nashville on Sunday, the Buffs are set to kick off the Myrtle Beach Invitational on Thursday morning against UMass.
The early-season double-elimination tournament brings together Colorado, UMass, and six other programs in Murray State, Texas A&M, Boise State, Charlotte, Loyola-Chicago and Tulsa in a bid to both lift a trophy by the beach and to prepare for conference play.
As it stands, if Colorado wins against the Minutemen on Thursday, it’ll play the winner of an intriguing Texas A&M-Murray State matchup on Friday. In the event of a CU loss, the Buffs will play the loser of that game on Friday.
As for the game at hand, though, Colorado holds a considerable advantage over UMass in both depth and size. The Buffs showed that in their win on Sunday, getting lifts from Jalen Gabbidon and KJ Simpson, the former tallying eight points, two steals and a block in his first start for Colorado.
Aside from Gabbidon and Simpson, who earned Pac-12 Player of the Week accolades, Tristan da Silva put up 14 points while J’Vonne Hadley was good for 10 rebounds and three blocks in only 13 minutes. Lawson Lovering should be a solid inside presence against UMass center Wildens Leveque on Thursday, and his ability to pass out of the post should prove to be an asset.
As for where you can catch the game, ESPNU will have coverage for the 11:30 a.m. tipoff.
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