Buffaloes Look To Take Down Maryland In Game Two Of The Puerto Rico Tip-Off

The Colorado Buffaloes are set to take on the Maryland Terrapins in their second game of the 2011 Puerto Rico Tip-Off today at 4:30 p.m. The Buffs fell to the Wichita St. Shockers yesterday in a game that stayed relatively close throughout, but was never in danger of an upset. Carlon Brown led the Buffaloes with 15 points and freshmen Spencer Dinwiddie and Askia Booker had solid games with 7 and 5 points respectively. 

Maryland has struggled in the first two games of new head coach Mark Turgeon's time with the Terps. After scraping out a 9 point win against North Carolina-Wilmington in the season opener the team was steamrolled by a strong Alabama team that won 62-42. The team was expected to struggle this year after losing Jordan Williams, the Atlantic Coast Conference's leading rebounder, to the NBA draft, starting forward Dino Gregory to graduation and 6-foot-6 forward Haukur Palsson, who was versatile enough to play inside or out, announced he was leaving school to pursue a basketball career professionally in Europe. The team is now moving forward with just seven scholarship players and is struggling to find leadership during the brief beginning to the 2011-12 season. 

This is the second time that Colorado head coach Tad Boyle and Mark Turgeon, former college teammates at Kansas under Larry Brown, will meet on opposite sides of the hardwood. Even after playing together, the pairs paths have crossed multiple times throughout their careers with Boyle playing a role in two of Turgeon's staffs at Jacksonville State and Wichita State (Turgeon is credited with helping Boyle land his first college coaching gig as well).

If Colorado can hold the Terrapins to 25% shooting as Alabama did yesterday then the team should be able to pull off a win going away, but a second performance that poor is unlikely. Andre Roberson needs to be a big force on the boards once again and Nate Tomlinson must lead the offense and distribute better than he has so far this season. The time is now for the Buffaloes to get a victory over one of college basketball's most storied programs, but they must stop the careless possessions that plagued them against the Shockers.

Buffs to head to Charleston in 2012: The University of Colorado men's basketball team will be one of eight schools invited to participate at the 2012 DIRECTV Charleston Classic presented by Foster Grant, Nov. 15, 16 and 18 at TD Arena in Charleston, S.C.

The tournament to be held Thursday, Friday and Sunday, features the Buffaloes, Baylor, Boston College, Charleston, Dayton, St. John's and Southern Illinois.