Utes raRRy stu s Buffs
For the second straight game, the Colorado Buffaloes went into cruise control with a big secondhalf lead.
This time, it cost them dearly. Postseason plans and a run at the Pac-12 Conference title are goals that were forced into a dramatic pause Saturday, as the Buffaloes suffered one of the more shocking setbacks of the Tad Boyle era. With a win all but assured in the latter stages of the second half, CU watched visiting Utah rally from a 19-point deficit with less than 9 minutes remaining to hand the Buffs a stunning 77-74 defeat at the CU Events Center.
CU led 65-46 after a pair of free throws by McKinley Wright IV with 8 minutes, 46 seconds remaining, but Utah senior Alfonso Plummer shot the Utes back into the game almost single-handedly as Utah outscored the Buffs 31-9 the rest of the way.
“It’s not like we didn’t talk about the way they could get back in the game. But at some point you’ve got to stop talking about things and you’ve got to do them,” Boyle said. “That was the epitome of not finishing. Plummer got going and we had no answer.”
Plummer didn’t score in the first half and was on the floor for just 1:29 after picking up two quick fouls. He finished with 23 points, going 4-for-6 on 3-pointers, the first three of which he hit while Utah reeled off 18 of 20 points to start its 31-9 finish. Plummer’s final 3-pointer resulted in a go-ahead 4-point play with 3:25 to go as he connected while getting fouled by CU senior Maddox Daniels. That play was part of a 26-4 Utah run that turned that 65-46 CU lead into a 72-69 edge fortheUtes.
Wright tied the game at 72-72 on a 3-pointer, but Utah regained the lead on a driving layup from Plummer. After Wright missed on another 3-point attempt, Plummer drained a tough fade-away to give Utah a 76-72 lead with 13.8 seconds to go.
Wright kept the Buffs within two points with a layup, and Utah’s Timmy Allen made just 1of-2 free throws with 6.1 seconds left to give CU a final gasp. But a long 3-point attempt from Wright at the buzzer was blocked.
CU’s perimeter defense has struggled of late, and those struggles continued Saturday. Utah shot 50% overall and 51.6% in the second half. The Buffs have led the nation in free-throw shooting for much of the season but were outscored at the line by the largest margin this year, with Utah going 16-for-19 while CU was just 5-for-6.
“We lost track of (Plummer) in some scramble situations and we’re not aware of who’s who,” Boyle said. “We talked about there was two ways they could get back in this game. Number one is if we foul them and put them at the foul line. And number two is if they get hot from three. And they did both.”