Takeaways From Colorado Men's Basketball's Losing Streak-Snapping Win Over TCU

BOULDER — Sparked by a youth-centered starting lineup change, Colorado Buffaloes men's basketball snapped its six-game losing streak on Sunday via an 87-61 win over the TCU Horned Frogs.

Colorado's starting lineup featured four true freshmen who combined for 39 points, including a career-high 12 from guard Josiah Sanders. Equally as impressive, Colorado's defense held TCU to a season-low 33 percent from the field.

Takeaways Colorado Men's Basketball Buffs TCU Horned Frogs Big 12 Tad Boyle Tacko Ifaola Jalin Holland Josiah Sanders Boulder — Feb 1, 2026; Boulder, Colorado, USA; Texas Christian University Horned Frogs forward Micah Robinson (5) shoots the ball in the first half against the Colorado Buffaloes at the CU Events Center. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images | Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images

"We hadn't seen that Colorado Buffalo team in November, December or January," coach Tad Boyle said. "We finally saw it on February 1, so I told our team, 'Better late than never on that.' I was really, really proud of the response that we got from everybody involved tonight. It just shows how good this team could be."

Colorado improved to 13-9 (3-6 Big 12) with the win and will next visit the Baylor Bears on Wednesday (6 p.m. MT, Peacock).

Below are four key takeaways from Colorado's much-needed conference win:

Jalin Holland, Josiah Sanders Earn Their Keep

Each starting in their first career game, freshmen Jalin Holland and Josiah Sanders came up with several effort-fueled plays on both ends. Holland totaled five rebounds and four assists, and Sanders dished out a team-high six assists to go along with a season-high 12 points.

"Jalin Holland's been really playing his tail off," Boyle said. "One thing we know he's going to do is compete, rebound and defend. His job on (Brock) Harding tonight, their point guard who's a good player, was phenomenal. His stat line does not show the effect that he had on the game."

Defense Finds Its Rhythm

Only four days after allowing No. 8 Iowa State to score 97 points on 61 percent shooting, Colorado's defense put together its best performance of the season against TCU, which had only one player score in the double-figures (Xavier Edmonds, 13).

"It wasn't just one guy, it was all five who were on board and the energy from the bench as well," Sanders said. "We've been talking about that a lot in practice, so it was really good to come out here and see we can really do that."

3-Point Efficiency

From Boyle's perspective, Colorado found success from deep but avoided the offense-killing trap of falling in love with the 3. That approach was rewarded with an efficient 11-for-23 mark (47.8 percent) — the Buffs' second-best in conference play.

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Sebastian Rancik Keeps Head Up

Sebastian Rancik didn't let his removal from the starting lineup derail his confidence. Coming off the bench for the first time this season, the sophomore forward led the Buffs with 17 points and tied starting center Fawaz "Tacko" Ifaola for the team lead in rebounding (six).

"It doesn't matter if I agree or disagree with his (Boyle's) decisions, my job is to come out and perform," Rancik said. "He wanted to see a response from me, and I think I did that today."