Dallas – Colorado’s hopes to land an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament disappeared early Friday in the Buffaloes’ 86-53 loss to Texas A&M in a Big 12 Tournament quarterfinal.
Fifth-seeded Colorado (20-9) couldn’t stop a 23-2 flurry by the fourth-seeded Aggies midway through the first half and never challenged after falling behind 38-24 by halftime.
A promising start to the Buffaloes’ season feels like a distant memory. Colorado began its Big 12 schedule with a 5-2 record, including road victories over Missouri and Oklahoma State. With a senior-laden roster, the Buffs stood 15-3 on Jan. 28.
“We hit our peak, I think, in the middle of the season, and that’s not good,” said sophomore Richard Roby, CU’s all-conference guard.
CU coach Ricardo Patton said he believes his team still deserves to be considered for an NCAA Tournament bid. Realistically, the Buffs likely will settle for the National Invitation Tournament after losing by such a wide margin in what was perceived by many experts to be an “elimination game” for the NCAA Tournament.
Colorado athletic director Mike Bohn hopes to land a home game next week in the NIT’s opening round. Air Force could be a possible opponent. The NIT bracket will be announced tonight.
Devastated at coming so close to an NCAA Tournament bid and likely missing out, some CU players wondered if they cared to play in the NIT. Patton said the decision already has been made, and it didn’t come from a poll of the players.
“We’re going to play in whatever tournament is available to us,” Patton said. “I think to still be playing basketball in March is an honor, regardless of what tournament it’s in.”
Bohn put an end to rumors that Patton’s job was in jeopardy Thursday night, and reiterated his support of the coach Friday after sitting through the 33-point blowout.
“We ran into a hot team,” Bohn said of the Aggies. “That was a very fired-up and spirited club. My hat’s off to them. Am I disappointed and upset? Yes. Do I realize the improvement that must be made? Yes.
“But this (CU) team was picked for ninth (in a Big 12 coaches preseason poll) and won 20 games for the fourth time in this school’s history.”
Colorado needed a big game from Roby, but he must have left his shot at the team hotel. Harassed by Texas A&M’s switching defenses, including a trapping zone, Roby went 3-for-18 from the field, 1-for-7 on 3-pointers and finished with 12 points. The Buffs’ No. 2 scoring option, senior forward Chris Copeland, finished 2-for-11. As a team, CU hit 30 percent, including 16 percent from beyond the arc.
Aggies Dominique Kirk and Chris Walker stayed in Roby’s face. But Patton said CU had enough open looks.
“When two of your better shooters are 5-for-29, it is very difficult,” Patton said. “When guys who normally shoot the basketball well are struggling, it affects them on defense, affects your rebounding.”
At the other end, Texas A&M (21-7) hit 55.3 percent and has a reason to look forward to the “Selection Sunday” unveiling of the NCAA Tournament bracket with anticipation. The Aggies extended their winning streak to eight games, all against conference teams. They will meet top-seeded Texas (26-5) today in a semifinal.
Texas A&M won a league tournament game for the first time since the 1994 Southwest Conference Tournament. The Aggies had been the only team never to win a game in the Big 12 Tournament. They haven’t played in the NCAA Tournament since 1987 but can probably start making travel plans.
Sophomore center Joseph Jones powered through the paint for 21 points. The 6-foot-9, 250-pounder managed just eight points against CU in a 61-58 Aggies victory on Feb. 8 in College Station, Texas. This time, he already had 12 points by halftime.
“I was trying to do everything I could to give my team a low-post presence,” Jones said.
Staff writer Tom Kensler can be reached at 303-820-5456 or tkensler@denverpost.com.
COLORADO (20-9)
Obazuaye 5-8 2-4 12, Copeland 2-11 0-0 5, Hall 0-2 0-0 0, Roby 3-18 5-7 12, Ashby 2-3 0-0 4, Eddy 1-5 2-2 5, Osborn 0-3 0-0 0, Senger 0-1 0-0 0, Coleman 1-5 0-0 2, Freeman 3-3 3-6 10, Williams 1-1 1-2 3, King-Stockton 0-0 0-0 0, McGee 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 18-60 13-21 53.
TEXAS A&M (21-7)
Law IV 3-6 3-4 11, Walker 1-3 3-4 6, Kirk 3-4 2-2 11, Jones 8-10 5-8 21, Pompey 0-1 2-4 2, Bennett 0-1 0-0 0, Green 0-0 0-0 0, White 2-7 4-4 9, Smith 2-4 2-4 6, Johnston 0-0 0-0 0, Carter 5-6 1-1 15, Muhlbach 0-0 0-0 0, Kavaliauskas 2-5 0-0 5. Totals 26-47 22-31 86.
Halftime – Texas A&M 38-24. 3-point goals – Colorado 4-25 (Freeman 1-1, Eddy 1-3, Copeland 1-7, Roby 1-7, Obazuaye 0-1, Osborn 0-2, Coleman 0-2, Hall 0-2), Texas A&M 12-21 (Carter 4-5, Kirk 3-4, Law IV 2-3, Kavaliauskas 1-1, Walker 1-3, White 1-5). Rebounds – Colorado 35 (Copeland, Roby 6), Texas A&M 37 (Kavaliauskas 9). Assists – Colorado 10 (Hall 3), Texas A&M 20 (Law IV 5). Total fouls – Colorado 22, Texas A&M 21. A – 18,464.
