BOULDER — Tad Boyle’s Colorado men’s basketball team plans to turn up the tempo a few notches this season.
Perhaps those sellout crowds at the Coors Events Center can count out the number of opposing players with their hands on their hips trying to catch their breath.
“At home, we’re going to use the altitude to our advantage,” said CU senior guard Askia Booker. “As Coach Boyle says, we should be the most in-shape team in the country. We’re going to push the ball. We’re going to push it down people’s throats.”
During four previous years under Boyle, Colorado always preferred to run but rarely forced the pace. This season, the Buffs hope to do just that.
“It’s easier to score before the defense is set,” Boyle said.
Colorado, 23-12 in the 2013-14 season, aims to add to its string of three consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances. The Buffs failed to win a game during March Madness the past two years, and they were pummeled 77-48 by Pittsburgh last spring.
Defensively, the Panthers collapsed inside on CU center Josh Scott and clogged passing lanes, and the Buffs were unable to hit their jump shots. This season, CU wants to get down the court before opponents can set up.
It will be up to the guards to make sure the pace is high.
“Once one of our guards gets into the paint, it’s going to open up everything,” Booker said. “We can get the ball to cutters, to guys posting up, to 3-point shooters.”
The cranked-up tempo should enable the 6-foot-10 Scott to get the ball before opponents can slap on a double-team. Scott runs the floor about as well as any big man in the nation.
“It’s no secret that I like to run,” Scott said. “I think we learned after the Pittsburgh game that we needed to do something (different). Coaches are putting in a new system, and it’s paying off.”
Forcing the pace has its risks. Sloppy passes leading to unforced turnovers can become an epidemic in fast-break basketball, so CU is charting its turnovers during every practice.
Then there’s the issue of shot selection. Teams that run sometimes get overexuberant and toss up wild shots.
“We want to play fast,” Boyle said. “But the whole key to playing fast is taking good shots. If we take bad shots, that (quicker tempo) is negated.”
Tom Kensler: tkensler@denverpost.com or
