Colorado Buffaloes successfully endure Beavers, 61-57

After a tragic loss to Cal and a disappointing effort against the Oregon Ducks came up short, your Colorado Buffaloes travelled to Corvallis to take on the Oregon State Beavers. The Buffs looked to snap a two game skid and they finally broke the 10-conference-win barrier against the Beavers

In the first half, the Buffs saw their shooting abandon them, but defense and rebounding kept them treading water. Evan Battey found some space inside and scored 10 points in the first half, but the rest of the offense was a bit stuck and could not hit an open shot. Luckily, work on the boards and a cold Oregon State team kept the Buffs in the lead for almost all of the first half. A late Jeriah Horne three let CU take a 6 point lead into halftime.

The Buffs led almost wire-to-wire in the 2nd half. A monster half from McKinley Wright, who finished with 21 points, carried the Buffs to the win. Wright, who eclipsed 1,700 career points and 8th all time in Colorado history in this game, hit everything. Layups, floaters, threes, post moves, he showed it all today. Tough defense from Parquet and clutch free throw shooting let the Buffs survive a tough Oregon State team and sweep the season series. Winning on the road is tough in conference play, and CU has 5 conference road wins this year and 11 total.

The next two games are huge for the Buffs. USC and UCLA visit Boulder for the final two home games of the year (pending an ASU reschedule), and if CU can win one or both, that will have big NCAA Tournament implications.