BOULDER — The past 10 years, Colorado’s opening-game opponents for men’s basketball have included Fort Lewis, Idaho State, North Carolina-Wilmington and Arkansas-Pine Bluff twice.
CU coach Tad Boyle doesn’t expect a walkover this time with Drexel in town Friday night for the Buffaloes’ season debut (6 p.m., Pac-12 Network) at the Coors Events Center.
A member of the Colonial Athletic Association, Drexel is coached by Bruiser Flint. Despite compiling a 16-14 record in 2013-14, the Philadelphia-based Dragons earned a solid RPI power ranking of 130.
“They’ve got some tough Philly kids,” Boyle said. “Kids in that part of the country know how to play basketball.”
A year ago, Drexel made an early Western swing and took two top 25 Pac-12 teams to the wire, losing to No. 22 UCLA (72-67) and No. 4 Arizona (66-62). Boyle is concerned about the threat of Drexel’s two wing shooters, 6-foot-6 guard Damion Lee and 6-7 forward Tavon Allen.
But Colorado, aiming for its fourth consecutive appearance in the NCAA Tournament, comes in bursting with confidence. The Buffs (23-12 in 2013-14) lost Spencer Dinwiddie to the NBA but return proven scorers in junior forward-center Josh Scott (14.1 points per game last season), senior guard Askia Booker (13.7) and junior forward Xavier Johnson (12.0).
Look for sophomore forward Wesley Gordon (5.9) and junior guard Xavier Talton (4.9) to complete the starting lineup. Helping to provide depth will be two freshmen, 6-9, 240-pound forward Tory Miller and 6-2 guard Dominique Collier, although Collier, a former Denver East star, has been slowed during preseason drills by a sprained ankle.
“We’re more than ready to get started,” Booker said.
The Buffs are expected to debut a new, quicker-tempo offense designed to spread the court and make it difficult for teams to double-team Scott and others down low, as Pittsburgh did last March in a 77-48 beatdown of the Buffs in the NCAA Tournament.
“We’re worlds better (with offensive execution) this year,” Scott said. “I love what we’re doing. We’re moving better. It’s going to be easier for us to make plays.”
Tom Kensler: tkensler@denverpost.com or
