2010-11 Colorado Basketball Predictions

Former Buffalo head coach Jeff Bzdelik left for Wake Forest this last offseason, but he actually left behind a good team in Boulder. Colorado went 15-16 last season and they have not been to the NCAA Tournament since 2003. Still, with what new head coach Tad Boyle has on his team gives Colorado hope to end this drought. Boyle came over from Northern Colorado and has the benefit of the three key guys that led Colorado last year. Last year’s Big 12 Freshman of the Year in Alec Burks is back, as do seniors Cory Higgins and Marcus Relphorde. The three put up 47.0 points per night last season. This team equals the talent of that 2003 squad that made it to the Big Dance, and with a new practice facility and a transfer to the Pac-10, interest surrounding the program is very high. First and foremost, Colorado needs to improve their defense (74.2 PPG) and hitting the glass (-7.5 margin) to achieve their ultimate goal this year.

Frontcourt:

The team had a -7.5 rebounding margin last year, and it was even worse in league play at -11.4. A big reason was the play of freshman center Shane Harris-Tunks, as well as sophomore forward Austin Dufault playing out of position. An extra year for each should mean the teams gets better in this area. Boyle was able to bring in 7-foot freshman Ben Mills last May who should see time immediately as long as he can hold his own in the paint. Senior Marcus Relphorde averaged 11.0 PPG and 4.1 RPG last season, but he is recognized for his penetrating offensive skills more than his defense. Junior Trey Eckloff will be one of the guys coming off the bench after not finding much action a year ago. Burks was tops on the Buffs in rebounding at 5.0 RPG, and when a guard is leading the team in rebounding there’s clearly going to be issues. The Buffaloes will certainly go back to square one as Boyle teaches rebounding and defense a lot more than Bzdelik.

Backcourt:

Burks ended up seventh in the Big 12 in scoring at 17.1 PPG and was tops in the conference in shooting percentage at 53.8 percent. You couldn’t have asked for more out of him as a freshman, but for him to reach his full potential he should build up. Boyle was lucky when he convinced Burks to stick around instead of entering the NBA Draft, telling him how his passing offense would help Burks in the future. Higgins was fourth in the Big 12 in scoring at 18.9 PPG and finished second behind Burks in field goal percentage at 50.5 percent. It’s hard to believe how Colorado could have a losing season with two remarkable players like Burks and Higgins on the outside who were able to knock down more than 50% of their shots even though opposing teams game-planned around preventing them from doing so. The wild card is freshman point guard Shannon Sharpe, who was forced to redshirt last season after hurting his knee in the preseason and undergoing microfracture surgery. He’ll battle it out with junior Nate Tomlinson, who started 21 times last year at point guard despite a lack of consistency.

Prediction: 6th Place in the Big 12 – Colorado basketball hasn’t generated much excitement in recent seasons, but there is hope of a reversal in 2010-11. Boyle was able to get Higgins, Burks and Relphorde and their huge offensive contributions to return, and that’s a win within itself. He has plenty of talent to geniunely make a run at a Big 12 title, but must get this team to rebound and defend. The Buffaloes put up 74.6 PPG last season and can score with anyone, but a lack of depth and a wonder about how badly these returning players want to buy in on the defensive end makes it hard for me to pick the Buffaloes to finish any higher than 6th in the standings. I do see Colorado sneaking into March Madness with an at-large bid, reaching the Big Dance for the first time since 2003.

About the Author:
Connect with the author via: Twitter - Google+
WordPress › Error

There has been a critical error on this website.

Learn more about troubleshooting WordPress.