Freshman guard has Wright stuff during Buffs’ fast start

BOULDER» On the heels of his MVP performance at the Paradise Jam, freshman guard McKinley Wright easily could have grown frustrated with part of his game Sunday against Air Force.

But that just isn’t Wright’s style. Colorado’s new floor general finished Sunday’s victory with five turnovers, the largest total of his young career. Yet he continued to display maturity beyond his years by not allowing those giveaways to affect other aspects of his game, eventually finishing with 19 points.

“For me personally ... I’m a little out of shape and was winded tonight,” Wright said. “But overall as a team, I think we’re playing pretty well. I don’t think (the layoff ) affected us real well. I think we’re in good position.”

Wright posted 16 assists against just two turnovers in the final two games of the Paradise Jam last week, but he recorded only two assists against Air Force. However, Wright still went 5-for-9 from the floor with an 8-for-8 mark at the free throw line, spearheading CU’s 19-for-20 mark on free throws. Wright also finished with a season-high five rebounds, a mark he has reached three times already.

Wright has reached double-figures in points in all six games, becoming the first CU freshman to accomplish that since Alec Burks did so in his first 20 collegiate games in the 2009-10 season.

“McKinley is tough-minded,” coach Tad Boyle said Sunday. “He overpenetrated some tonight. I think he was maybe playing for the whistle instead of to the whistle, something we’ve talked about with our guys. For him (whistles) didn’t come tonight. Five turnovers, you have to get better.”

Notable.

Playing against his hometown team, Colorado Springs native D’Shawn Schwartz enjoyed a solid game off the bench, going 3-for-4 with seven points. The freshman guard has committed only one turnover this season in 80 minutes. … Sophomore forward Lucas Siewert missed his second consecutive game due to an ankle injury. … CU’s 19-for-20 effort at the free-throw line was the program’s best since a record 26-for26 performance against Georgia on Dec. 28, 2013. … Sophomore guard Deleon Brown posted only three assists through the season’s first five games but recorded three against Air Force.