Barrington Hargress has seen his share of memorable college basketball venues.
While playing for UC Riverside, Colorado’s point guard played games at North Carolina’s Dean Center and UCLA’s Pauley Pavilion. Hargress also isn’t completely unfamiliar with Big 12 Conference gyms, having visited BYU and Utah during his time at Riverside.
Hargress wasn’t on the winning end of any of those road shows. Now running the point for the Buffaloes, Hargress looks to end his personal power conference road drought while setting a different road tone for the Buffs this season when they open the Big 12 schedule at Arizona State on Saturday.
The Buffs went 0-10 in true road games last year and own an 11-game road losing streak overall after losing at Colorado State last month.
“We’re going to be in some really big arenas, and I’m really blessed and really excited to play in some packed houses and go for some upsets,” Hargress said. “Thatap definitely one of the big reasons I’m here. I’m super-excited. Itap going to be really tough but I’m excited to see where this road is gonna take us.”
A packed house might not be in the cards on Saturday, yet even with the Buffs’ recent two-game losing slide, the afternoon matchup pairs two teams that have defied early expectations as the bottom two programs in the Big 12 preseason coaches poll (the Buffs were picked 15th, ASU 16th).
Arizona State enjoyed an impressive November run that culminated at the Maui Invitational, losing the title game against USC after defeating Texas and Washington State. The Sun Devils also knocked off Oklahoma, but enter Saturday’s matchup on the heels of consecutive losses at UCLA and at home against Oregon State on Dec. 21, which is the last time ASU played.
The Buffs also are coming off consecutive losses, but more concerning to coach Tad Boyle in the big picture is how his club has regressed since winning neutral-floor games against San Francisco and Washington a little more than a month ago. Three of CU’s six opponents since shot at least 47% against the Buffs’ defense, including a .525 mark put up by Northern Colorado earlier this week in the Bears’ first win against CU since 1936.
“That incremental progress has stagnated,” Boyle said. “We’re doing some good things. We just can’t string them together. I look at the Colorado State game, the Northern Colorado game, and the Stanford game, and we’ve had multiple opportunities in all three of those losses where we got our stops, but we didn’t get our rebounds. And it might be in the first half, it might be down the stretch. Colorado State it was down the stretch. Northern Colorado it was the first half.”
While CU’s defensive field goal percentage of .454 ranks 15th in the Big 12, it might have an opportunity to tighten the defensive screws against an ASU offense that ranks 13th in the Big 12 in overall field goal percentage (.464) as well as 3-point percentage (.359)
“We’ve had the right approach,” Hargress said. “Whether we’re 13-0, 0-13, 10-3, we’re just trying to get better. I think we really embraced that approach and we’re really trying to get better at the things that are costing us these games.”
“I think we’re all going to have to pitch in and say we’re going to do more. We’ve at times just (reverted) to a natural mindset of offense a little bit. Whereas, if we can shift that to defense, I think our offense will take care of itself. I think instilling that into the guys that our offense will be OK if we just really put our heads down and focus on defense.”
CU Buffs men’s basketball at Arizona State Sun Devils
TIPOFF: Saturday, 3 p.m. MT, Desert Financial Arena, Tempe, Arizona.
TV/RADIO: ESPN2/KOA 850 AM and 94.1 FM.
RECORDS: Colorado 10-3; Arizona State 9-4.
COACHES: Colorado — Tad Boyle, 16th season (322-207, 378-273 overall). Arizona State — Bobby Hurley, 11th season (177-155, 219-175 overall).
KEY PLAYERS: Colorado — G Isaiah Johnson, 6-1, Fr. (15.6 ppg, 3.0 rpg, 2.3 apg, .532 FG%, .429 3%); G Barrington Hargress, 6-1, R-Jr. (13.4 ppg, 4.9 apg, .577 FG%, .593 3%); F Sebastian Rancik, 6-11, So. (13.2 pg, 5.5 rpg, 2.2 apg, .373 3%); F Bangot Dak, 7-0, Jr. (11.5 ppg, 6.8 rpg, 2.1 apg, .495 FG%); F Alon Michaeli, 6-9, Fr. (10.4 ppg, 4.8 rpg, .500 FG%); G Felix Kossaras, 6-6, So. (6.8 ppg, .564 FG%); C Elijah Malone, 6-10, Gr. (6.7 ppg, 4.3 rpg, .567 FG%). Arizona State — G Maurice Odum, 6-2, Sr. (16.2 ppg, 6.2 apg, 3.5 rpg, .363 3%); G Anthony Johnson, 6-3, Sr. (13.6 ppg, .500 FG%); C Massamba Diop, 7-1, Fr. (13.2 ppg, 5.2 rpg, .637 FG%); G Bryce Ford, 6-4, Jr. (9.1 ppg, 2.4 rpg, .413 3%); F Santiago Trouet, 6-11, R-So. (7.8 ppg, 5.5 rpg, .458 FG%); F Andrija Grbovic, 6-1, Jr. (6.5 ppg, 3.2 rpg).
NOTES: CU and ASU were the bottom two teams in the Big 12 preseason coaches’ poll, with the Buffs picked 15th and the Sun Devils picked 16th. … Although the Buffs lead the all-time series 16-14, ASU has won five of the past seven matchups, including a two-game sweep last season. … The Buffs are expecting Michaeli to return to the rotation after he missed Sunday’s loss against Northern Colorado due to an illness. … CU’s defensive 3-point percentage of .384 ranks last in the Big 12. … Dak has recorded multiple blocked shots in seven of the past eight games and has 72 blocked shots in his career. Dak needs one more to move into a tie for 20th in team history. … CU plays its next two Big 12 games at home, beginning Wednesday against Utah (7 p.m., ESPN+).
