Five keys to Colorado securing a huge road win over Utah
With a matchup against the Utah Utes (14-7, 5-5 Pac-12) on Saturday in Salt Lake City, the Colorado men’s basketball team (15-6, 6-4) has another chance to stir up its season’s destiny.
The two teams’ first meeting of the season comes with great importance as they both currently sit on the brink of March Madness with similar overall, home and away records. Both Utah and Colorado are coming off trips to the Pac-12’s Washington schools. The Utes were swept while the Buffs split with a win over Washington.
While both teams sit around the same place situationally, their recent performances have differed. Colorado has won four of its last five games while the Utes have lost two straight and three of their last five.
Tipoff is set for 3 p.m. MT on the Pac-12 Network.
Here are five keys to the Buffs getting the best of the Utes on Saturday afternoon:
Abuse the replacements
The Utes have had to lean on its bench with Rollie Worster (lower leg) and Lawson Lovering (ankle) battling injuries across the last four games. Lovering is currently questionable for his first reunion with his old team and Worster was available against Washington due to Deivon Smith being banged up. With Utah having to find replacements for its missing pieces, the slightly healthier Buffs need to capitalize on whoever Utah head coach Craig Smith sends in.
Get active on the glass
It’s no secret that Utah is tall. In fact, it has never been a secret because the Utes are always tall. With their height, they’ve found themselves averaging almost 40 rebounds per game this season. However, four of Utah’s losses have come in the six games where it has given up 38 or more rebounds. With the aforementioned 7-foot-1 Lovering questionable for the contest, getting on the glass should be a lot easier for a Buffs team that already focuses heavily on outrebounding its opponents.
Move the ball with urgency
When Colorado passes the ball, the Buffs are hard to beat. When they can’t (14 or fewer assists), they are just 4-7. While ball movement is crucial for the Buffs, their ability to pass becomes even more important against a taller, slower team such as the Utes. To drive the ball and create open shots against a lengthy team, CU needs to move the ball quickly around the perimeter in combination with quick outlet passes.
Big Julian Hammond III game
While he hasn’t completely been himself after suffering a back injury against Arizona, Julian Hammond III has enjoyed some much-needed rest with Colorado having six days off between games. With Luke O’Brien not producing as much offensively as he did earlier in the season and Hammond rounding out head coach Tad Boyle’s consistent seven-man rotation, the Buffs’ backup point guard needs to find his scoring spark and unselfish playmaking ability off the bench.
Limit any 3-point bursts
Whether it was Washington State’s Andrej Jakimovski or Colorado State’s Joe Palmer, a timely 3-point outburst from an opposing team’s top shooter — or the team itself in the case of California — has derailed the Buffs in almost every one of their losses. This season, the Utes are shooting a scorching 37% from 3-point range behind Gabe Madsen (42.3%), Branden Carlson (34.8%) and Cole Bajema (40.2%). With an array of snipers on the opposition, the Buffs must make sure they can get guys out on shooters, specifically Carlson as his height creates an odd matchup.
