Oregon St. @ Colorado preview

Oregon St. at Colorado

Last Meeting ( Mar 14, 2019 ) Colorado 73, Oregon St. 58

Colorado is riding high after Thursday night’s Pac-12-opening win over No. 6 Oregon – its second victory over a ranked foe in its last three games. But the Buffaloes don’t have to look that far back to realize the potential hazard ahead as they prepare to host Oregon State on Sunday.

A year ago, the Buffs also defeated Oregon, a team that would go on to win the Pac-12 Tournament, in Boulder, but only after losing to Oregon State on the same homestand. In that 76-74 win, the Beavers overcame a nine-point Colorado lead to come away with the road victory. “We’re expecting a high-level game, a dogfight,” Buffs coach Tad Boyle said. “It’s league play. You take nothing for granted. We can’t, and I don’t think our team will.” Oregon State started the season 9-1 but has dropped two of its last three – road losses at Texas A&M (64-49) on Dec. 21 and at Utah (81-69) on Thursday night.

TIME: 6 p.m. ET. TV: ESPNU

ABOUT OREGON STATE (10-3, 0-1 Pac-12): Forward Tres Tinkle nearly matched his team-leading scoring average (20.3) with 19 points Thursday night, but he hit only six of 17 shots as the Beavers finished with a 38.8 team field-goal percentage, including 3-of-21 from 3-point range. Guard Ethan Thompson (15.8) and center Kylor Kelley (11.1) also are averaging in double figures for Oregon State, which is averaging 77.7 points but has been held to 69 or fewer in all three of their losses. Behind the 7-foot Kelley, who ranks second nationally with 4.38 blocked shots per game, the Beavers present defensive problems in the half court, but they have struggled defending in transition as Utah scored nearly a third (25) of its 81 points Thursday on fast-break opportunities.

ABOUT COLORADO (12-2, 1-0): Junior point guard McKinley Wright is averaging a team-most 13.4 points and 4.5 assists, but he’s elevated his game even higher in the Buffs’ wins over ranked foes (Dayton and Oregon) averaging 25 points, 7.5 rebounds and five assists. Forward Tyler Bey is contributing 12.6 points and a team-leading 9.7 rebounds and he came through Thursday with his first double-double in more than a month with 15 points and 14 rebounds against the Ducks. Defensively, Colorado ranks second in the conference in allowing 60.9 points per outing, and opponents are shooting 39.5 percent from the field, including 31.5 percent from 3-point range.

BUZZER BEATERS

1. Since joining the Pac-12 in 2011, Colorado has won nine of 15 games against Oregon State, including three in the Pac-12 Tournament. The most recent meeting was the Buffaloes’ 73-58 win in the Pac-12 quarterfinals last season as Wright scored 17 points.

2. Tinkle remains the only Pac-12 player in the top 10 in scoring (second), rebounding (ninth, 7.2), assists (10th, 3.9) and steals (fifth, 1.6).

3. Colorado looks to have the edge on the glass, owning a 7.7 average rebound margin while Oregon State sits at 0.3.

PREDICTION: Colorado 72, Oregon State 66