Arizona basketball gets right with blowout win over Colorado

TUCSON, Ariz. (AP) — Kylan Boswell scored 14 points and made an incredible pass that bounced twice, Pelle Larsson had 18 points and No. 10 Arizona steamrolled short-handed Colorado 97-50 on Thursday night.

Coming off a lackadaisical loss to Stanford, the Wildcats (11-3, 2-1 Pac-12) jumped on Colorado early, building a 20-point lead midway through the first half.

Arizona dominated at both ends, shutting down the Buffaloes while pouring in shots about two hours after actor Adam Sandler played a pickup game on their home court.

Boswell had the highlight of a dominating first half, curving a low pass with his left hand — he’s right-handed — that bounced twice and hit Larsson in stride for a breakaway layup.

Bet you can't watch this just once 👀🤩

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— Arizona Basketball (@ArizonaMBB) January 5, 2024

Arizona improved to 13-0 against Colorado at McKale Center and is 14-0 under coach Tommy Lloyd following a loss, winning by an average of more than 20 points.

Colorado (11-3, 2-1) rode a six-game winning streak into the desert, but was without two of its top three scorers.

Freshman guard Cody Williams missed his sixth straight game with a wrist injury and forward Tristan da Silva missed his third straight after rolling his ankle in practice last week.

The Buffaloes took an early punch from Arizona and had no response in their worst loss of the season. Javon Ruffin led Colorado with 11 points.

Lloyd said the Wildcats looked numb while giving up 16 3-pointers and 100 points to Stanford on Sunday.

The numbness appeared to wear off through three days of practice.

The Wildcats swarmed the Buffaloes defensively, contesting shots at the rim and jumping into passing lanes. That led to a better offensive flow, setting up easy baskets in transition.

Boswell got the Wildcats started with three 3s in the first six minutes after going 4 for 17 from the arc the previous four games. Arizona went on an early 15-3 run to go up 17 and hit 20 of 39 shots in the first half to lead 50-23.

Colorado couldn’t make much of anything.

The Buffaloes shot 10 of 31 in the first half, exacerbating their woes by missing several open shots at the rim.

THE TAKEAWAY

Colorado: The Buffaloes had little chance playing without two of their best players against an angry team coming off a loss.

Arizona: The Wildcats quickly put the ugliness of the Stanford loss behind them with a dominating performance.

UP NEXT

Colorado plays at Arizona State on Saturday.

Arizona hosts Utah on Saturday.

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AP college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-basketball-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-basketball