BOULDER — Colorado junior guard Dwight Thorne II didn’t reach 30 points this time. He got something better — a victory.
By beating Iowa State 55-49 on Tuesday night at the Coors Events Center, Colorado (9-10, 1-4 Big 12) became the last team in the conference to win a league game.
“We needed this,” Thorne said. “We got a little spark at the end.”
Thorne scored a career-best 30 points Saturday in an overtime loss to Kansas State but was held in check for much of this evening by Iowa State. But Thorne sure came up big in crunch time.
He scored five of his nine points inside the final two minutes, giving the Buffaloes breathing room when his old-fashioned three-point play with 1:58 remaining made it 50-46.
Then, with 48 seconds to go, Thorne converted both ends of one-and-one free throws to make it an eight-point cushion.
“We made some timely (defensive) stops, and we made some timely shots,” CU coach Jeff Bzdelik said. “We were solid.”
Bzdelik’s game plan couldn’t have worked much better. He told his team that Iowa State’s 6-foot-10 sophomore forward Craig Brackins would probably get his points.
“But don’t let anybody else have an all-star night,” Bzdelik said.
Brackins finished with 24 points, bettering his average of 19.3 but well below the 42 he dropped on Kansas on Saturday. None of Brackins’ teammates managed more than six.
“Coach said (Brackins) would get 20 (points) by accident,” Thorne said. “But I think overall we played good defense.”
Colorado committed just seven turnovers (compared to 15 for the Cyclones) and won its first regular-season Big 12 game since defeating Iowa State in Boulder on March 1. Dating to last season, the Buffs snapped a six-game losing streak in regular-season league play.
Iowa State (12-8, 1-4) lost for the 11th time in 13 trips to Boulder in Big 12 play.
“We’d been in games (recently); this time we wanted to finish it,” said CU sophomore Cory Higgins, who scored 19 points.
CU’s Bzdelik threw as many players at Brackins as were available, with seldom-used, 6-7 freshman Toby Veal getting some time in the first half.
“There was only one guy scoring baskets, and we had to get it to him every possession,” an unhappy Iowa State coach Greg McDermott said.
Neither team led by more than three points in a back-and-forth first half. Iowa State took a 28-26 advantage into the break when a lazy pass by CU’s Higgins turned into a fast-break layup by Diante Garrett just before the buzzer.
Colorado plays at Kansas on Saturday.
IOWA ST. (12-8, 1-4 Big 12)
Brackins 11-16 2-4 24, Hamilton 2-5 0-0 4, Staiger 2-4 0-0 6, Garrett 1-4 0-0 2, Petersen 2-4 0-0 6, Boozer 1-4 0-0 3, Buckley 0-0 0-0 0, Haluska 0-1 1-2 1, Eikmeier 0-1 0-0 0, Thompson 1-3 0-0 2, Vanderbeken 0-0 1-2 1. Totals 20-42 4-8 49.
COLORADO (9-10, 1-4)
Jackson-Wilson 0-1 0-2 0, Dufault 2-5 2-4 7, Tomlinson 3-6 1-2 9, Higgins 6-14 5-5 19, Thorne II 3-9 3-3 9, Coney 0-1 0-0 0, Veal 0-1 0-0 0, Knutson 3-3 0-0 6, Crawford 2-6 0-0 5, Eckloff 0-3 0-0 0. Totals 19-49 11-16 55.
Halftime — Iowa St. 28-26. 3-point goals — Iowa St. 5-13 (Petersen 2-3, Staiger 2-3, Boozer 1-3, Brackins 0-1, Eikmeier 0-1, Garrett 0-2), Colorado 6-19 (Higgins 2-4, Tomlinson 2-4, Dufault 1-2, Crawford 1-4, Coney 0-1, Eckloff 0-2, Thorne II 0-2). Fouled out — Jackson-Wilson. Rebounds — Iowa St. 28 (Brackins 9), Colorado 28 (Tomlinson 6). Assists — Iowa St. 11 (Petersen 4), Colorado 6 (Higgins 2). Total fouls — Iowa St. 17, Colorado 13. A — 3,004.
Tom Kensler: 303-954-1280 or tkensler@denverpost.com
