No. 21 Colorado Blows Out USC 83-62

Colorado rushed out to a 20-2 lead over USC and never looked back today at the Coors Event Center as they controlled the game every minute and won 83-62 over the Trojans. It was the Buffs' first win without Spencer Dinwiddie and every player stepped up as 11 Buffaloes scored. Askia Booker arguably had his greatest game this season with 13 points, six assists and four rebounds. Josh Scott was quietly dominant and finished with 20 points and seven rebounds.The Buffs are now 15-4 overall and 4-2 in Pac-12 play.

Things the Buffaloes did well:

Everything went right today. The scoring was distributed evenly and the bench stepped up along with the starters. Askia Booker's performance stood out the most as he was 3-of-5 from the field and 6-of-6 from the free-throw line and was so patient throughout the game. He got into the lane, set up his teammates and dictated the pace. Going forward, he'll need to play like this for the Buffs to keep winning. Josh Scott didn't have any memorable plays, but did his usual excellent work in the post with 20 points on 8-of-13 shooting. After a poor game Thursday, Wesley Gordon was outstanding on both sides of the floor hitting jumpers and blocking shots. He only scored five points, but had five blocks and eight rebounds. Jaron Hopkins used his length and athleticism to finish with 10 points on 3-of-7 shooting and had some nifty moves in transition. Off of the bench, Dustin Thomas, George King and Eli Stalzer all contributed combining for 16 points.

Although USC certainly isn't an elite team, the Buffs did what they needed to do today. They won and didn't let the Trojans ever have a chance. On defense, they forced 11 turnovers, only allowed five offensive rebounds and limited USC to a 25 percent shooting clip from beyond the arc and 36 percent clip from the field. They also had eight steals and 10 blocks.  On offense, Colorado was just as good. At the charity stripe, the Buffs made 19 out of 22 attempts and shot 50 percent from the field and 37 percent from three on 6-of-16 shooting. They gained multiple second chances as they picked up 11 offensive rebounds and had great ball movement with 15 assists.

Things the Buffaloes struggled with:

The only questionable thing was the shot selection in the first half, but that could be related to the Buffs still trying to figure out their offense without Spencer Dinwiddie. For the most part, however, it was a complete performance.

Up Next:

This win was so crucial because Colorado travels to Arizona this week to take on the best team in the country. They'll face the Wildcats on Thursday at 7 p.m. to try to pull off what would be an incredible upset and hand Arizona their first loss of the year.