Colorado dominates Denver, moves to 2-0

The Colorado Buffaloes (2-0) are a blast to watch. The Buffs played high-octane, fast-paced ball as they dominated the Denver Pioneers (0-2) in a 89-62 romp. They put together a superb example of how to beat the hell out of teams with Tad Ball and they flashed young potential while doing it.

The Buffs looked sharp in the opening half. Against DU’s zone defense, the Colorado guards were able to drive with ease. From this, they generated a ton of shots inside and out, and they converted both 2s and 3s at 50% clips. CU struggled some with turnovers, but they forced even more out of the Pioneers and they converted some steals into fast break opportunities. Even with DU shooting over 50% the field, the Buffs played so well on offense that they went into the break with a 43-33 lead.

The second half started off a bit dicey as Daniel Amigo caught fire, but the Buffs adjusted and ran away with the game. The Buffs played the same offense as in the first half, but the difference was that their defense suffocated the Pioneers. Aside from Amigo’s eruption in the opening minutes, Colorado’s second half defense swarmed the ball and they dominated the glass. They held DU to just 30% shooting in the second half and finished the game with a whopping 46-23 rebounding advantage. The largest lead of the game was the final score, 89-62.

The youth movement once again led the way for the Buffaloes tonight. McKinley Wright is such a joy to watch. He plays high-IQ, high-motor and he’s the perfect playmaking guard to run the CU offense. Deleon Brown was promising in his freshman year but he’s looking much more aggressive early this season. He led the Buffs with 9 points in the first half and he finished with 13 points on 5-9 shooting in 22 minutes. Lucas Siewert is another sophomore who looks like a much more complete player as he looks improved on defense and the boards. Tyler Bey and D’Shawn Schwartz are mostly defense-and-hustle players right now, but they have wasted no time contributing on both sides of the ball. The highlight of the night belongs to Bey:

Looking at the upperclassmen, they played their part as well. George King played more than the 19 minutes he played last time out and he made it count with 11 points and 7 rebounds. Namon Wright committed some crazy turnovers, but he settled down. He’s a great finisher and he’s even better drawing fouls. He had 14 points on 4-5 shooting and he shoot 5-7 on free throws. Tory Miller-Stewart’s play wasn’t very encouraging, unfortunately. He was roasted by Daniel Amigo and it’s difficult to imagine him hanging with the best of the Pac-12 and fortifying the CU defense.

Next up for the Buffs is the Quinnipiac Bobcats on Friday, Nov. 17. That game is the Buffs’ first in the Paradise Jam, which will be hosted in Lynchburg, Virginia at Liberty University. You can stream that tournament on FloHoops.com.