Colorado advances to Pac-12 Championship with 58-52 win over Washington State
Colorado took care of business late on Friday with a 58-52 win over Washington State to advance to Saturday's Pac-12 tournament championship game at T-Mobile Arena.
The three-seed Buffs (24-9) notched an eighth straight win and will face Oregon after they upset top seed Arizona, 67-59, on Friday. This gave CU another significant win to their NCAA Tournament resume with projectors on the fence about the Buffs. But one more win, and they won't have to worry about it, their fate, clinching the Pac-12's automatic bid. Colorado swept the regular season series with Oregon this year by a 10-point average.
Colorado led the Cougars for most of the game but needed to hold off a late surge for the victory. KJ Simpson led the Buffs with 16 points and seven rebounds. He was one of three CU players in double-figures. Tristan da Silva added 13 points, and J'Vonne Hadley chipped in 12 points to go with four assists.
Colorado's 58 points were the second-lowest point total of the season. However, defensive, it was one of their best performances. The Buffs shot 22-for-51 (43 percent) from the field, including a 3-for-15 night from beyond the arc. They also forced 19 WSU turnovers and converted them into 16 points.
Isaac Jones led the Cougars with 13 points.
"That was a helluva college basketball game," Tad Boyle said after the game. "It wasn't the prettiest game by any means, but we had two teams out there just battling and getting after it … We forced them into 19 turnovers and our pressure, I think, got to them. I'm just so proud of these guys, just the fight and the grit they played with down the stretch. We made plays when we had to make plays."
This will be the second Pac-12 title game appearance for the Buffs under Boyle. CU won the very first Pac-12 tourney title in 2012 and could win the last one with a victory over Oregon on Saturday. The Buffs could also establish the all-time program record for victories in a season with a Pac-12 title victory.
Colorado faces Oregon in Vegas on Saturday night at 9 p.m. ET on FOX.
