BOULDER — Following a disappointing 7-5 record against nonconference foes, Colorado players knew it was imperative to get off to a fast start in Pac-12 play, beginning Friday night with the conference opener against UCLA at the Coors Events Center.
That challenge became more difficult with CU’s best player, 6-foot-10 junior Josh Scott, leaning back in his seat at the end of the bench.
Scott, a preseason all-conference pick averaging 14.8 points and a team-best 7.7 rebounds, suffered from back spasms and couldn’t give it a go after trying to move around during pregame warm-ups.
Colorado (8-5, 1-0 Pac-12) needed big efforts from others, and several key players came through down the stretch in a 62-56 victory over the Bruins — Colorado’s first win in five tries over UCLA (8-6, 0-1) since the Buffs joined the Pac-12.
CU senior guard Askia Booker scored 20 points and fed sophomore Jaron Hopkins for a dunk with 2:01 remaining to give the Buffaloes some cushion at 58-53. Booker bagged two free throws with 19.3 seconds left for a 62-56 lead that iced the game.
“We didn’t have Josh Scott,” Booker said. “But I gathered the team together on the court and said we were guaranteed to win if we played hard and played together.”
Buffs forward Wesley Gordon made up for the absence of Scott by recording a double-double of 11 points and 14 rebounds. The 6-9 sophomore also blocked seven shots. Junior forward Xavier Johnson contributed 14 points with inspired play underneath.
“We needed all five guys to compete to win,” Johnson said.
Forced to play small ball, Colorado replaced Scott with 6-7 Dustin Thomas and struggled to keep up with the Bruins on the boards. But CU’s defense remained aggressive, and a horrid shooting night by UCLA sophomore Bryce Alford prevented the Bruins from sustaining a spurt.
An 11-0 run by Colorado, sparked by Johnson’s seven points with spirited play along the baseline, put the Buffs up 48-43 with 7:30 to go. But it took UCLA only two minutes to close the gap.
CU coach Tad Boyle finally notched his 100th victory with the Buffs on his third try after Colorado entered the game having lost all four meetings against UCLA since the Buffaloes joined the Pac-12.
Despite committing 11 turnovers and getting outrebounded during a sloppy first half, Colorado took a 28-27 lead into the break.
UCLA is in a transition year, having lost Zach LaVine, Jordan Adams and Kyle Anderson to the first round of the 2014 NBA draft. But the Bruins have an impressive array of young talent, including 6-4 freshman guard Isaac Hamilton, who scored 16 points.
UCLA senior guard Norman Powell led all scorers with 22 points.
Colorado remains at home for a Sunday afternoon game against Southern California. UCLA plays that day at Utah.
Tom Kensler: tkensler@denverpost.com or
