Loyola Marymount @ Colorado preview
CU Events Center
No. 21 Colorado was accused by coach Tad Boyle of playing with a “turkey hangover” in Saturday’s sloppy win over visiting Sacramento State. Now, the Buffaloes have to guard against looking ahead as they host Loyola Marymount on Wednesday night.
Looming next is a Saturday showdown against No. 3 Kansas on the road, but the Colorado players insist they’re focusing on the Lions. That’s especially imperative coming off Saturday’s game which featured a season-high 19 turnovers, a 2-of-9 shooting performance from 3-point range and nine missed free throws for the Buffs in a 59-45 win. “I’m sure every player thinks about (the Kansas game) a little bit,” Colorado point guard McKinley Wright said Saturday. “But our job is (taking care of) business against Loyola Marymount. There are (ranked) teams around the country who lose on their home floor. We don’t want that to be us.” The Lions, of the West Coast Conference, come to Boulder off a 61-51 home win over Southern Utah, but they had dropped four of five prior to that.
TV: 10 p.m. ET, Pac-12 Network
ABOUT LOYOLA MARYMOUNT (3-4): The Lions are shooting 50.7 percent from the field as a team to rank 13th nationally but are averaging only 69.3 points and have only three players averaging more than eight points per game. Forward Ivan Alipiev leads the way with 13 points per outing but has scored 11 points on 5-of-19 shooting over his last two games. Guard Eli Scott is averaging 12.9 points and a team-best 5.7 rebounds and 5.9 assists while backcourt mate Erik Johansson is LMU’s top 3-point threat, having connected on nine of 19 attempts (47.4 percent).
ABOUT COLORADO (6-0): The Buffs continue to struggle with offensive flow and efficiency and are averaging 14.0 turnovers and 12.5 assists on the season while putting up 67.9 points and shooting 41.3 percent from the field. Swingman Tyler Bey, averaging 14.2 points and 12.5 rebounds, has been Colorado’s best player and has posted double-doubles in five of six games so far. Wright (11.8 points, team-leading 3.5 assists) and fellow guard D’Shawn Schwartz (11.7 points, 50-percent 3-point shooting) also are averaging double figures while big man Evan Battey is contributing 8.8 points and 6.3 rebounds per outing.
TIP-INS
1. Colorado has won 11 straight and 18 of its last 20 home games dating back to last season.
2. The Buffs rank eighth nationally in scoring defense (55.0 points allowed per game), and are forcing an average of 17 turnovers per outing while outrebounding the opposition by an average of 7.2 per contest.
3. Loyola Marymount ranks 318th (out of 350 teams) nationally in free-throw percentage at 61.9.
PREDICTION: Colorado 74, Loyola Marymount 54