Colorado will look to rebound from a lackluster defensive performance when it faces Duquesne in a consolation game of the Paradise Jam on Saturday at St. Thomas, Virgin Islands.
The Buffaloes (3-1) and Dukes (1-3) are coming off losses that exposed their inability to defend the perimeter.
Southern Illinois went 12-for-29 (41.4 percent) from beyond the arc in its 67-63 win over Colorado on Friday. But the Salukis were especially effective in the second half, when they shot 7-for-12 (58.3 percent). Northeastern was 7-for-16 from 3-point range in a 71-55 victory over the Dukes.
“This game was not a win because we did not defend the 3-point line, which was a key to the game defensively for us, and we didn’t do a good enough job,” Colorado coach Tad Boyle told The Denver Post. “It needed to be a team effort against those guys. And, individually, we had to take that challenge.”
Jabari Walker led the Buffaloes with 16 points on 6-for-9 shooting, while Tristan da Sliva added 15 points and a game-high seven rebounds and Evan Battey and Keeshawn Barthelemy had 12 points apiece.
“We went 25-for-50 from the field and turned it over 11 times,” Boyle said. “That’s good enough to win a game. Now, the pace of the game was to their advantage. But we have to learn to win in a half-court game.”
Duquesne’s outcome was never in question in its loss to Northeastern.
The Huskies jumped to a 13-2 advantage, led 31-21 at halftime and never looked back.
Tre Williams recorded a double-double with 11 points and 11 rebounds, while Primo Spears scored 15 points for the Dukes. But while the Huskies were making their long-range shots, Duquesne shot an abysmal 4-for-21 from 3-point range.
Duquesne coach Keith Dambrot said his team, which has 11 freshmen or sophomores, needs some time to develop chemistry.
“We’re just trying to figure it out,” he told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. “It’s even more on me. I don’t even know what (plays) to run when it really matters yet. You figure that out when you get into the game. … Now the question is, can we handle adversity? Can we win? Can we be consistent? That’s probably our biggest problem right now is we’re just inconsistent.”
–Field Level Media
