Puke and Rally

There are no words, at least ones worth putting to paper, that can adequately describe my feelings when I saw Spencer Dinwiddie collapse in Seattle on Sunday.  I was stunned into numbness.  It struck me to my very core.  Surely, much of that is borne out of, what Adam Butler termed, the 'selfish joy' of getting to watch the young man ply his trade on the hardwood, but it goes deeper than that.

I feel for him.  It's genuine heartbreak.  With the understanding that Dinwiddie is an honestly good kid who worked extremely hard to get where he is today, to see him reduced to tears for playing the game he loves... it's hard to comprehend.

With the diagnosis now official, at least there's finally some direction to the story.  Spencer is done for the year, and, after surgery, will be able to focus on his recovery.  As with all things in life, the narrative doesn't end, it just transforms.  He will be back, and we will all get to share in that 'selfish joy' once again.

Get well soon, Spencer, the whole of BuffNation is behind you.

For the Buffs, the scenario is the same.  With both Spencer and freshman forward Tre'Shaun Fletcher having succumbed to the Hec-Ed voodoo, the program has been clouded by an immediate, suffocating fog.  But that is not the end of the story.  While dreams of a league title are now pure fantasy, the season continues, and the competition isn't going to let up just because CU is wounded.  (If there was any doubt about that, go back and watch the film of the Huskies circling like a pack of wolves on Sunday). While the Pac-12 party rages on, it's time for the Buffs to puke and rally.

This is going to be the toughest coaching job of Coach Boyle's tenure at CU.  He set the terms yesterday afternoon saying:

“We don’t have the star system here. Spencer was our leading scorer and leading assist guy, he led us in steals. There’s no question he was important to our team. I’m not trying to minimize this loss, but I just want our players to realize they’re here for a reason: they’re capable as well. When one guy goes down, the door opens for one, or in this case, maybe two or three more.” -link

It's going to take a team effort to make up for the loss of Dinwiddie and Fletcher.  It's going to take a huge leadership statement from players like Josh Scott, and it's going to efficient performances from players like Askia Booker.  More importantly, it's going to take the emergence of replacement players like Jaron Hopkins and Xavier Talton.  

Colorado needs to show that they can get back on their feet, and quickly, before the season falls off the rails. The Selection Committee is watching, and have made their stance on injuries pretty clear in years past.  For CU's purposes, while they won't completely throw out the first 17 games of the season, what the Buffs from this point on will determine their fate.  They need to give the committee a reason to keep them in the field. The performance in the second half against Washington is forgivable, but the team needs to give some indication that they have a plan for life without Spencer.

Looking at the schedule, I think if Colorado can find a way to go .500 over their final 14 games they'll be in the Dance. That would put them at 21-10 (10-8), and, at least, signal that they aren't completely adrift when faced with adversity.  How does CU get to 7-7 down the stretch?  Well, look at the schedule.  I figure there are four reasonably winnable games remaining (USC, Utah, WSU, @USC), along with four games that would seemingly take a miracle for the Buffs emerge victorious in (@Arizona, @UCLA, Arizona, @Cal). That leaves six toss-up games that will determine their Tournament eligibility: UCLA, @ASU, UW, ASU, @Utah, and @Stanford.  Colorado only needs to take three of those, a doable proposition.

It has to start Thursday night against UCLA.  We're going to learn a lot in two days time, much of which will be a simple answer to the question 'what are these kids made of?'  A strong performance against the Bruins will send a clear message, and come as a huge lift to the spirits of the team and BuffNation.  Don't count the Buffs out entirely.  With the CEC and a returned student section at their backs, anything is possible...

Monday Grab Bag: Black Sunday

There are moments in sports where the outcome of a game becomes meaningless.  Such was the case Sunday when Spencer Dinwidde fell to the floor clutching his knee.  Time stopped, the game fell away, and a haze of uncertainty fell over BuffNation.

It's just not right.  From: USA Today

The obvious is that the whole situation did not look good.  The injury occurred in a non-contact situation, where Spencer's knee seemed to give out from under him as his shoe slipped on the slick floor at the Hec Ed Pavilion in Seattle.  Spencer wasn't the only one to lose his footing, and I can't help but wonder if the coaching staff should've made an issue of it.  Regardless, dreams, both individual and organizational, came to a screeching halt.

The fear is that Dinwiddie is done for the year. It's a knife to the gut, a painful reminder that success is fleeting.  In the coming days I'll be able to consider what this means going forward, but, for now, all of my thoughts and prayers go out the the 'Mayor of Buffaloes.'  Get well soon, Spencer.

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Today in the bag, I'll pick up the pieces from Seattle, check in with the spiraling women's team, and touch on the NFL playoffs.

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2013-14 Washington Basketball Preview #1

Wednesday night, in front of a dead crowd and a mostly-empty arena in Spokane, Washington, the Buffs played down to their competition, allowing an obviously inferior Washington State squad to push them into overtime.  Compared to the team we saw beat Oregon at their own game last weekend, I almost didn't recognize the Colorado squad on display.  However, in spite of a lethargic performance that seemed doomed to end in a loss, CU closed well down the stretch, and powered through hot shooting from the Cougars to claim a 71-70 victory.

WSU almost pulled off the upset by knocking down a shockingly high percentage of three pointers. Coming into the game, the Cougars were shooting barely over 30% from deep, but were allowed to shoot near 60% from range in Spokane.  You saw players like Dexter Kernich-Drew (26% coming in) and Royce Woolridge (18% coming in) hit trey after trey.  More than luck, it was simply a product of the Buffs leaving the shooters wide open.  Another team allowed to stay in the game through their perimeter play, *sigh*.

Anyone want to guard the shooter?

Outside of WSU's hot shooting, the story of the night may very well be the pseudo-absence of CU's talismanic point guard, Spencer Dinwiddie.  The Mayor was nigh nonexistent for most of the game, failing to take a shot in the first half, and only scoring after 32 minutes had been played.  Said Coach Boyle of the performance, 'he was not in Spokane Arena tonight mentally, physically, he was somewhere else. I don’t know where it was, but he wasn’t here.'  Athletes have off nights, but there was something almost worrying about how muted Dinwiddie was.  To my eyes, he looked like he wanted to be anywhere but playing in that game, which is not the attitude you usually see from him.

Without their best player playing to his capabilities, the Buffs had to turn to their other stars.  Josh Scott, Askia Booker, and Xavier Johnson obliged by all scoring in double figures.  It was Scott who can be said to have won the game through his dominating performance in overtime, scoring eight of his team-high 19 points in the extra frame.  Booker, while a ugly 2-12 from the field, was terrific at getting to the free throw line, going 13-14 from the stripe.  Johnson also did a good job getting to the line, and was generally difficult for WSU to matchup on defense.

Without Scott, the Buffs would've wound up losing on Wednesday.

Nights like Wednesday aren't unheard of, particularly in college sports.  While there is no excuse for letting a team like Washington State (without their best player, no less) push you around, at least the Buffs found a way to win.  I've seen versions of that game before, and in almost every one, CU has taken the loss.  No, this time, Colorado came back and escaped with the win.  A testament to their talent and will.

Hopefully, lesson learned, the Buffs will put together a better showing Sunday afternoon in Seattle. Washington has been playing better as of late, but they should still be a beatable proposition for a CU team playing somewhere in the vicinity of good basketball.  A win over the Huskies would go a long way towards erasing the doubts generated by the Scare in Spokane.

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Tip-off from the verbose Alaska Airlines Arena at Hec Edmundson Pavilion is set for 1pm on Sunday. The Broncos play at 2:40, so I don't actually expect anyone reading this to plan on watching the game.  It's OK, do your thing.  If you do still plan on watching the Buffs, however, you can find the action on FOX Sports 1, with the radio call on 760 AM.

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2013-14 Washington State Basketball Preview #1

I've always thought the phrase 'must win' has been grossly misappropriated in sporting culture.  Unless a team is facing elimination, no game is a 'must win.'  In fact, what we mean is 'better win,' as in '[random team] better win, or the consequences will be dire.'

Such is the case tonight as Colorado travels to Spokane, WA to take on the lowly Washington State Cougars.  A loss by Colorado does nothing tangibly harmful to the season.  The most important games of the season will still be played in March, and CU will still be one of the top-25 teams in the country.  There is no 'must' involved.

They had better win, however, as the consequences are awkward.  A top-15 team should not be dropping games to a team as sorry as Washington State, regardless of circumstance.  It would take a number of strong road performances to overcome the narrative damage done by a stumble against the Cougs, which is exactly why the game tonight is so important.  CU has a nice, winnable contest to ease themselves into conference road-work with.  If they can't make this three-foot putt, how are they supposed to battle the tougher greens in Tucson, Los Angeles and San Francisco?

Best to just take care of business, no questions asked, and move on.  Leave 'Coug'd it!' to the professionals.

So, just why is the game being played in Spokane?  I have no idea.  What I do know is that Spokane and the Spokane Veterans Memorial Arena is one of the eight regional sites for the 2014 NCAA Tournament. Funny enough, this may not be the only game Tad Boyle and crew get to play in the Lilac City this season... Tip-off is set for 7pm tonight.  Coverage can be found on Pac-12 Network, with the radio call on 850 KOA.

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Tuesday Grab Bag: Into the top-15

You may notice that this grab bag is being posted on Tuesday, rather than in the traditional Monday afternoon time slot. I do apologize for the abrupt scheduling change, but it was necessary.  One of the reasons I wanted to push back the bag this week was to include the national title game.  It seems simpler for me to do it in a bag format then to make a separate post simply for the purpose of wrapping up the game. Look for that at the tail end of today's post.

The other reason I wanted to push it back, however, was schedule crunch.  Between work, alumni band, and actually following basketball, I had fallen a little behind, and didn't have enough prepared to put together a quality post.  Never wanting to put up substandard product, and rather than press, I just gave myself an extra day - the benefits of not having to answer to anyone!

As tired as I am, it has all been for a good cause.  Over the past two games, the alums and I have been helping out with the basketball band in the hopes of keeping the sound amped up through the last vestiges of winter break.  If you've been at the games, I hope you enjoyed the performance emanating from the south end of the stadium. I think the eclectic mix of alums and current members made for a good group.

Yep, that's me.  H/T to @JGIsland for snapping the pic!

Of course, alumni band season is not over yet.  We'll be playing for the two women's games this week against Cal and Stanford.  They are huge games for the ladies, and the team deserves a full stadium's worth of support.  If you can, I highly suggest you make the effort to head up to the CEC.  The women play Cal Friday night, and Stanford Sunday afternoon.  I hope to see you there!

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Today in the bag, I'm talking the men's win over Oregon, the women's inconsistent trip to SoCal, the national title game, and baseball's hall of fame.

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2013-14 Oregon Basketball Preview

Well, that went about as expected.

Oregon State is a team designed to frustrate Colorado, which is exactly what they did Thursday night throughout CU's 64-58 win.  Through their zone defense (interestingly enough, a 2-3, rather than their knuckleball 1-3-1) and occasional spates of press, the Beavers do a great job shackling a fast-break team like the Buffs into uncomfortable half-court situations.  Far too often through the course of the game, CU would find themselves with a short shot clock, and little, if anything, moving towards the basket.  As a result, the Buffs became perimeter-happy and passive for large stretches, settling for desperation heaves, rather than working for quality shots underneath.

Josh could've used the ball more, as usual.  From: the BDC

For a while, it looked like CU was going to get uglied into a second-straight home loss to OSU.  The Beavers controlled much of the first half, sustaining a lead through the first 10 minutes of play.  The insertion of Xavier Talton at the point, however, seemed to kickstart the Colorado offense, as the direct point guard sped right at the OSU zone.  From then on, it was CU's game to lose, and, while it may not have pretty, they avoided the embarrassment of a loss.

Colorado was lead by a combination of Josh Scott, Askia Booker, and Jaron Hopkins.  Scott, once again, proved to be be more than capable of banging with quality big men, as he dropped 13/10 while helping to hold OSU's heralded front line trio of Devon Collier, Angus Brandt, and Eric Moreland to only 14 combined points.  Booker didn't show the efficiency he had been in recent weeks, but collected four rebounds with as many steals and two assists to go along with his 13 points; another all-around performance from Colorado's bulldog two-guard.  Finally, Hopkins provided a much needed scoring spark off the bench, notching 13 points on 5-8 shooting.

Hopkins' aggressiveness served him well on Thursday.  From: the BDC

The key here is not that CU struggled against the Beavers.  The key is that they found a way to escape with the 'W.'  They weren't able to accomplish that last season in a similar situation against Oregon St, giving me hope that the team is more capable of coping with uncomfortable situations than they were in '12-'13.

Having survived the conference opener, the attention now turns to Oregon.  In what is most certainly the marquee matchup of the first round of Pac-12 play, the #10 Ducks and the #20 Buffaloes meet in what is one of the more highly anticipated games of the entire college basketball weekend.  The winner not only gets to start out their conference slog 2-0, but will also enjoy a major boost to their national profile and Tournament resume. Regardless of who ends being that winner, I'm expecting a fast-paced, entertaining display of basketball.  Should be a hell of a show.

Tip-off from the Coors Events Center is set for 3pm on Sunday.  Coverage can be found on Fox Sports 1, with the radio call on 850 KOA.

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2013-14 Oregon St Basketball Preview

The Buffs have a good chance this week to make some noise in the Denver sports market.  With the Broncos on the bye, the Avalanche mired in a slump, and the Nuggets doing... whatever it is the Nuggets do, there is a small gap in the calendar when CU can be the talk of the town.

It's time for Colorado to defend their top-25 ranking with authority, and make a statement to the causal sports fans in the area that they are worthy of the region's love.  This is a team that the entire state can be proud of, and they deserve the spotlight.  A pair of home wins to open conference play on a quiet post-holiday weekend should be enough to make a statement, and fix the Buffs in the collective sports consciousness of this metro area, if only for a little while.

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Tip-off from the CEC is set for 8pm this evening.  For those unable to make it up to Boulder, televised coverage can be found on ESPNU, with the radio call on 850 KOA.

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