Monday Grab Bag: Bring on the Wildcats!

The countdown is officially on.  With their Oregon sweep over the weekend, the Buffs have set up Thursday's titanic rematch with Arizona.  If you had Valentine's Day plans, cancel them, because revenge is back on the menu.

Today in the bag, I'm talking Spencer Dinwiddie's perfect Sunday night, the ladies' home sweep, and Saturday night's five OT thriller in South Bend.

Click below for the bag...


Dinwiddie's Perfect Performance Carries CU in Corvallis -

If there was ever any doubt who the leader of this team is, Spencer Dinwiddie laid it to rest with a simply perfect night in Corvallis.  The sensational sophomore point guard hit every shot he took, be it from the field or the free throw line, spurring a second half comeback that earned the Buffs a much needed 72-68 win over Oregon State. 

With the Buffs down seven with 10 minutes to go, Dinwiddie began to reel off a series of expert possessions, either scoring or assisting on five straight baskets to pull the team within a point with four minutes to go.  After freshman forward Xavier Johnson gave CU the lead via a put-back dunk, Dinwiddie again played hero, hitting all six of his free throw attempts in the final two minutes to ice the game. Speaking after the dust settled, Coach Boyle said the difference against Oregon State was simply, "we had Spencer Dinwiddie, and they didn't."  For the game he finished 6-6 from the field (4-4 from three), and 8-8 from the line as part of his 24/3/4 night.

Just another make on Spencer's perfect night.

The only imperfect aspects of Dinwiddie's game were the two quick fouls he picked up in the first half.  The fouls forced Boyle's hand into sitting Spencer for much of the opening frame.  With Dinwiddie out, OSU's Ahmad Starks was allowed to abuse the youthful CU reserves, fueling a Beaver comeback that eclipsed the Buffs' early 12-point lead.  In the second half, with Dinwiddie back on the court, Starks was stymied, and Colorado was allowed to mount their measured comeback.

Of course, it wasn't just Dinwiddie.  Freshman power forward Josh Scott also had a fantastic night, scoring 17 points to lift the squad while Spencer was seated with foul trouble.  Additionally, junior Andre Roberson chipped in 7/10 with five steals and three assists.

'Dre's defense helped slow down the hyper Beavers.  From: the BDC

The win completes a road sweep of the Oregon schools, propelling CU back into the top half of the Pac-12 standings, and laying the groundwork for a late-season chase of a spot in the NCAA Tournament.  The focus now completely shifts towards Thursday's matchup with Arizona.  A win in that game, with four of the remaining six games scheduled for the CEC, would almost assuredly put CU on the right side of the bubble headed into the Pac-12 tournament.


Women Complete Their Own Oregon Sweep -

The women finally got a chance to justify their top-25 ranking against reasonable competition, as they rolled to a pair of blowout home wins against the Oregon schools over the weekend.  The big star was Chucky Jeffrey, who post a combined 37/26 during the home stand.

Chucky was on fire over the weekend.  From: the BDC

Friday night, the ladies trounced Oregon State, cruising to a 61-47 win.  On Sunday, it was Oregon's turn to get wholloped, as the Buffs crushed the Ducks 84-59 in front of a large crowd of nearly 7,000 people that included a collection of CU alumni.

Coach Lappe and the ladies had a big weekend in the CEC.  From: the BDC

On the year, the Buffs are a perfect 16-0 against teams from outside of California. That continues to bode well for the stretch run.


Irish Eyes Smile After Five OT Thriller - 

It took five overtimes, but Notre Dame finally snuck by Louisville and a disgusted Rick Petino 104-101 Saturday night.  In one of those "you had to be there" sports moments, I got caught up in the madness starting with about seven minutes to go in regulation.  I was just hoping for an exciting finish before I settled in to watch "Goldfinger" with the roommates.  Instead, I got over an hour of Sisyphean struggle to determine a winner.

I don't know why I cared about this meaningless Big East game, but I did.

This game had everything. Jerian Grant scored 12 points in 44 seconds to bring his team back from certain defeat, Russ Smith failed to win the game in double-overtime with his "Russdiculous" 35ft jumper, and seldom used Irish forward Garrick Sherman ("the Shermanator") dropped 17/6 in overtime after not even playing in regulation.  Shit got weird.

It was far from the prettiest game ever played, but I had a blast watching it.  The only way this could've been better was if Gus Johnson was calling the broadcast.  On second though, Gus would've probably dropped dead around the close of the 3rd OT, so better it was Dickie V.


Happy Monday!