RebKell's Junkie Boards

[unkiemark]

Two teams with identical records in (1-3) and out (12-5) of conference play. And two teams badly in need of a win. Will it be the Buffs or will it be the Jayhawks who will have the mental toughness Tuesday night in Boulder?

KU is coming off their first conference win while the Buffs are coming off their third consecutive conference loss. CU has a height and talent advantage in the post will they be able to effectively use it?

The game is scheduled to be televised on Fox Rocky Mountain @ 7 pm MST.

http://www.cubuffs.com//ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=600&ATCLID=1372563

_________________
MarkW
HoopScoop.net

[KatValeska]

Ah, I should have known. The problem with Colorado is the same as the past five years ... yes folks, give it up one more time for the hoariest excuse in college sports ... that's right ... the Buffs are ... young.


http://www.buffzone.com/news/2008/jan/22/colorado-basketball-growing-pains-resurface-for/

[unkiemark]

[unkiemark]

Buffs win an ugly game 59-41. There must have been a world record number of travels called, primarily on Kansas.

The first half was really brutal for the Buffs we they looked to have taken a big step back. No ball movement and too many silly turnovers. One big issue was that the Buffs were too focused on getting the ball to Jackie McFarland and the result was a lot of stagnation and little scoring.

Overall, I thought CU played poorly, but they did figure out what they needed to do on offense from the end of the first half through the rest of the game. It was encouraging to see three freshmen make a big difference in the game. Spears was more or less her usual self (14 points, 8 rebounds 3 steals), but Courtney Dunn and Britney Blythe played their best games of the season. Both really helped settle down the offense and made few mistakes. And both hit shots with the shot clock running down. Dunn played 25 minutes and had 9 points and five rebounds with only one turnover. Blythe played 21 minutes and scored 8 points while assisting twice and committing zero turnovers.

The Buffs three-point shooting has headed south and really needs to return. They were 3-18 for the game, including 0-8 in the second half. Boy do they need it to return and soon.

Earlier in the game CU still had issues on defense, especially stopping dribble penetration. At one point in the first half they went into a 2-3 zone.

Aija Putnina went down at the end of the first half with what turned out to be an injury to her had and did not play in the second half. It is possible that it is a break - not good news for the Buffs.

Kansas has a long, long way to go on offense. They were hands down the worst team the Buffs have played in the conference this season.

The Buffs are now 13-5 overall and 2-3 in conference.

Box score:

http://www.cubuffs.com/ViewArticle.dbml?SPSID=3909&SPID=258&DB_OEM_ID=600&ATCLID=1373299

_________________
MarkW
HoopScoop.net

[KatValeska]

What a strange game. For the first twelve minutes I was trying to recall the last time Colorado looked this incompetent on offense. Huge props to head coach Kathy McConnell-Miller for making the necessary personnel adjustments. I think this may have been her best in-game coaching job to date.

According to this Daily Camera Aija Putnina broke a finger and then sat out the second half due to trouble breathing. Get well soon Aija.

http://www.buffzone.com/news/2008/jan/23/youngsters-lead-buffs-by-kansas/

Fortunately, the Buffs' best depth is in the post. I'm sure all Buff fans look forward to seeing a lot more of post Courtney Dunn and Britney Blythe. They both appear to have star potential.

I reckon I can accept the ugliness of this game given CU finally showed the mental toughness that seemed to be lacking the past three games. Granted there are still strides to be made with that intangible aspect of the game.

Last thought is that Colorado won't get away with 12 minutes (or even five minutes) of offensive impotence Saturday night at Texas Tech.