Top seeded Washington can punch their ticket to the Pac-12 Tournament Championship game with one more win. Standing in their way is fifth seeded Colorado.
Who: Colorado Buffaloes (21-11, 10-8) vs. University of Washington Huskies (25-7, 15-3)
When: Today, 6 PM Tip-Off
Where: Pac-12 Tournament @ T-Mobile Arena – Las Vegas, Nevada
How to Watch: Pac-12 Networks (7 day free-trials available on streaming apps FuboTV & Sling)
Colorado Notes:
Colorado upset fourth seeded Oregon State 73-56. The Buffaloes took a 43-22 lead early in the second-half but saw that 21 point lead shrink to as little as 6 before pulling away late. Since their loss to Washington last month the Buffs have won five games in a row beating their rival Utah by 8, UCLA by 25, USC by 11, Cal by 5 and now Oregon State. The Buffaloes have won 10 of 12.
The Buffs have two All-Pac-12 players. Point guard McKinley Wright IV is their leading scorer averaging 13.2 ppg, 4.9 rpg and 4.8 apg. He scored 17 points, grabbed 5 rebounds and dished 4 assist against the Beavers. Tyler Bey in addition to being voted All Pac-12 was selected as the conference’s Most Improved Player. Bey more than doubled his scoring average from 6.1 ppg as a freshman to 13.2ppg as a sophomore. He also increased his rebounding from 5.1rpg to 9.7rpg.
Keys to the Game
Battle on the Boards
The Huskies have struggled to rebound this season and were outrebounded by 9 in their 3 point win over USC. Colorado leads the Pac-12 and is 23rd in the nation (out of 351) in rebounding margin at +6. The last time the Huskies played the Buffs they were out rebounded 39-28. One reason the Huskies struggle to put teams away is the number of offensive rebounds and second-chance points they give up
Who is going to defend better?
The Buffs were actually much sharper on Thursday than they were on Wednesday against Cal when they turned the ball over 23 times. Washington and Colorado are second and third respectively in scoring defense. The Buffs held a strong OSU team to 34% from the field and 3 of 18 from behind the arc.
Will the Huskies have more legs?
Washington shot 46.4% from behind the arc against the Trojans but are playing their second game in two days. The Buffs are playing their third game in three days and have a very short rotation. Washington would love to take advantage of Colorado’s lack of depth, a big turning point in the last meeting was when Colorado’s 6’8”, 264 freshman Evan Battey fouled out taking away the Buffaloes primary inside threat.
The Last Time: February 23rd, 2019, UW 64 @ Colorado 55
Mattise Thybulle dominated on both ends of the court scoring 17 points while blocking 5 shots to go with 6 steals. Bey led the Buffs with 20 points and 11 rebounds. The Huskies had 12 steals and 9 blocks on the night, never allowing Colorado to get into any sort of offensive rhythm.
Prediction: One reason the Buffaloes are setup for a tournament is because they don’t rely on outside shooting (second fewest 3’s in the Pac-12). They are a gritty bunch with no issue winning “ugly.” I think Washington’s depth will help them to outlast the Buffs but I expect another close battle. It’s never easy to beat a team three times in a row.
Final: Washington 68 Colorado 66
Last Game’s Prediction: Washington 77, USC 65
Actual Prediction: Washington 78, USC 75
