Game 16 – Cincinnati, Wednesday, January 15, 2025
CU Events Center, Boulder, Colo.

Tip: 7:01 p.m. MT

Watch: ESPN+ (Chuckie Kempf, King McClure) https://buffs.me/4jfBMi4

Radio: KOA 850 AM & 94.1 FM (Mark Johnson, Scott Wilke)

Listen Online: Sirius XM 84, SXM App 84

Live Statistics: http://statb.us/b/546205

THE BUFFALOES: Colorado is 9-6 overall and 0-4 in the Big 12 Conference play after falling to No. 21/23 (AP/Coaches) West Virginia on Jan. 12. The Buffaloes are 0-4 in conference play for the first time since 2016-17, when Colorado dropped its first seven Pac-12 games before rebounding to win eight of its last 11. Overall, it’s Colorado’s first four-game skid since dropping the final five games of the 2019-20 season ahead of the COVID-19 pandemic and the cancellation of conference and national postseason tournaments.

Colorado is averaging 74.5 points per game, shooting 46.3 percent from the field and 35.3 percent from 3-point range. Defensively, Colorado is allowing 71.0 points per game while opponents are shooting 42.1 percent.

The Buffaloes rank second in the Big 12 in free throw percentage (.772), sixth in defensive rebounding (26.8 drpg) and seventh in assists (16.7 apg) and 3-point percentage (.353).

During Big 12 play, the Buffaloes have upped their free throw accuracy to 79.2 percent, still ranking second on the league charts. Colorado is also fifth in assists (15.8 apg), steals (7.3 spg) and rebounding defense (34.0 rpg).

Against West Virginia, Colorado was 24 of 30 from the free throw line, the most made and attempted in regulation this season and second most overall (31 of 41 in double OT vs. Northern Colorado). The 24 made are the most in league play since hitting 26 (of 29) against Arizona State on Feb. 8, 2024. The 30 attempts are the most against a conference opponent since shooting 32 against Washington State (22-32) in the first round of the 2020 Pac-12 Tournament. It’s the most in a regular season game since shooting 40 (30 of 40) against Stanford on Feb. 8, 2020.

HAMMOND TIME: Julian Hammond III, the most experienced player in terms of games for the Buffaloes (played in his 103rd career game vs. West Virginia), leads Colorado at 14.3 points and 3.4 assists per game. Hammond also tops the Buffaloes in 3-point field goals (29) and is shooting 93.5 percent from the free throw line.

Hammond had 23 points against West Virginia, recording his fifth 20-point game of the season, second-straight and third in his last five games.  He shook off a scoreless outing at Arizona State, erupting for a career-high 26 points at UCF, hitting 8 of 14 from the field and 8 of 9 from the line.

Hammond leads the Big 12 and ranks seventh in the nation in free throw percentage. He has made 43 of 46 on the season (.935) which included a season-best 21-consecutive made between UNC and UCF games and he has built another current streak of 15-straight made thanks to a team season-best 8 of 8 performance against West Virginia.

GRAND GRADS: As anticipated, Colorado’s three graduate transfers, spanning all levels of collegiate basketball, have made immediate impacts for the Buffaloes.

Andrej Jakimovski, a four-year standout at old Pac-12 rival Washington State, is averaging 11.1 points ranking second on the team in rebounding (4.8 rpg) and steals (17) and third in 3-point field goals (23). He had 16 points at UCF, hitting 6 of 9 from the field and 4 of 5 from 3-point range. That performance pushed him over 1,000 points for his collegiate career.

Jakimovski averaged 11.3 points and a team-best 6.0 rebounds at the Maui Invitational. He had Colorado’s first double-double of the season, and the fifth of his collegiate career with 12 points and 10 rebounds against UConn. He also hit the eventual game-winning shot against the No. 2 ranked Huskies with under eight seconds remaining.

It was Jakimovski’s eighth career double-figure rebounding game. One of his four previous double-doubles came against Colorado while he was at Washington State on Jan. 30, 2022.

Elijah Malone, the 2024 Bevo Francis Award winner as the best small-school player in the nation (Grace College [Ind.] – NAIA) tops the Buffaloes in shooting at 61.0 percent (61-100) while averaging 10.1 points an outing. Malone is third on the team in blocks (11) and fourth in rebounding at 3.5 per game.

Malone had 15 points and a personal CU-high nine rebounds against South Dakota State. He hit 7 of 8 from the field, matching the team’s best this season in terms of percentage (.875) with at least four field goals made.

Against Harvard, he went over the 2,000-point milestone for his collegiate career.

Trevor Baskin, an NCAA Division II All-American at Colorado Mesa, leads Colorado and ranks 15th in the Big 12 in rebounding (6.2 rpg). He also leads the Buffaloes in steals (18) and is tied for the lead in blocks (13) while ranking second in overall shooting at 53.5 percent (46-86).

Baskin led Colorado at Arizona State with a personal CU-high 23 points on 9 of 14 from the field. He added a game-high 10 rebounds for his second CU double-double and 24th overall in his collegiate career. It was also his 24th collegiate 20-point scoring game.

Baskin flirted with a triple-double against Pacific, finishing with 13 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists. His seven assists were a team season-high and were an overall collegiate personal best (he had six in a game at New Mexico Highlands on Feb. 23, 2024).

SMITH’S HOT START: Sophomore guard RJ Smith is averaging 7.1 points while shooting 48 percent from the field in his return to action after missing the final 30 games of 2023-24 with a leg injury.

Smith had a career-high 14 against Iowa State, on 5 of 10 from the field and 3 of 6 from 3-point range. Against Bellarmine, Smith scored 11 points hitting 3 of 4 from 3-point range and led the Buffaloes in rebounding for the first time in his career, finishing with five. Against South Dakota State, he was 4 of 6 from the field including 3 of 5 from 3-point range.

Smith, shooting a team-best 49.0 percent overall from long range (24-49), had a career-best eight rebounds at UCF.

In Maui, Smith averaged 5.3 points and was second on the team in assists with eight. He had eight points hitting a perfect 3 of 3 from the field against UConn.

DIOP A LITTLE BIT OF EVERYTHING: Sophomore forward Assane Diop registered his third career double-figure scoring game pitching in 13 points against West Virginia hitting 3 of 4 from the field and a perfect 6 of 6 from the line. Diop is tied for third in the Big 12 in free throw shooting during league-only games at 93.8 percent (15 of 16). He’s 13 of 14 from the line in the last two games alone after having only 16 attempts over his first 13 games. Overall on the season he  has made 26 of 30 attempts from the line (.867).

Diop led Colorado in scoring for the first time with a career-best 15 points on 7 of 11 from the field in the win over Bellarmine. He ranks third on the team in rebounding at 4.7 per game.

BD’s BIG DAY: Sophomore forward Bangot Dak led the Buffaloes against CSU scoring a career-high 16 points on 7 of 8 from the field along with four rebounds. He doubled his previous career-best of eight points, set previously against Iowa State. It was his first time leading Colorado in scoring and the 7 of 8 performance from the field (.875) is the team’s best percentage wise this year with at least four field goals made.

Dak is averaging 5.9 points on the season and is tied for the team in blocks (13) and is fifth in rebounding (3.1 rpg). He led the Buffaloes in rebounding for the first time with a career-high eight against Iowa State. Dak also dished out a career-best five assists against the Cyclones.

ABOUT THE BEARCATS: Cincinnati is 10-5 overall and 0-4 in the Big 12, joining Colorado as the last two teams without a league win. The Bearcats are averaging 73.1 points on the season, but have been held to 55.5 points an outing over four league contests including back-to-back games of being held under 50 at Baylor and against Kansas. Cincinnati sports the seventh-best scoring defense in the country allowing just 60.5 points per game. The Bearcats guard the perimeter exceptionally well, ranking fifth in the nation in 3-point percentage defense (.271).

Junior guard Dan Skillings Jr., leads Cincinnati at 12.7 points per game, shooting 45 percent from the field. Senior wing Simas Lukosius averages 12.3 points and 3.2 rebounds with a team-best 35 3-point field goals. Junior forward Dillon Mitchell tops the Bearcats in rebounding (7.1 rpg) and steals (25) while pitching in 10.9 points on 66.1 percent from the field. Fifth-year post Aziz Bandaogo averages 8.7 points and 5.9 rebounds while leading Cincinnati and ranking fifth in the Big 12 in blocked shots (1.7 bpg).

THE SERIES: This will be the ninth meeting between Colorado and Cincinnati and first in 42 years. Cincinnati holds a 7-1 advantage, winning the first seven before the Buffaloes picked their lone win in the last meeting between the teams, 79-65, on Dec. 18, 1982, at the CU Events Center.

Colorado and Cincinnati met six times in the 1960s, an era where both program enjoyed success on a national level. The teams battled in consecutive NCAA Midwest Regional Finals in 1962 and ’63, with the Bearcats winning both over the reigning two-time Big Eight champions. Cincinnati’s 1962 team won its second-straight NCAA title and fell just short of a three-peat in 1963, falling to Loyola Chicago in the NCAA championship game.

COURTESY COLORADO ATHLETIC COMMUNICATIONS