DAYTON, Ohio — As an ugly game at UD Arena swung back and forth, it seemed likely that Colorado would end up on the wrong side.
All-Pac-12 guard KJ Simpson was unable to take a shot. The Buffaloes continued to let Boise State grab offensive rebounds. The Broncos, 0-9 in NCAA tournament play, were far from impressive, but had built a four-point lead with 5:35 left. An elusive March victory was finally in sight.
Colorado coach Tad Boyle called a timeout.
“KJ was really positive, which I thought was great because you need that positivity in the NCAA tournament when you're down four at the end,” Boyle said. “And we made five stops in a row.”
Impressive defense and fresh shooting tipped the game one last time in Colorado's favor. The 10th-seeded Buffaloes dominated the final stretch against fellow No. 10 Boise State, winning 60-53 in a First Four matchup Wednesday night.
Colorado advanced in the South region and will face seventh seed Florida on Friday afternoon in Indianapolis.
“It's just short-term memory,” Simpson said. “That is built with experience. Sometimes the ball is not going to go in the basket, but basketball is much more than just offense.”
Simpson recovered his miss and scored with 5:18 left, what Boise State coach Leon Rice called “a huge, huge play.” Simpson scored 10 of his 19 points down the stretch and Colorado held Boise State scoreless for more than four minutes.
“He always finds a different way to score, even if it's not shooting,” center Eddie Lampkin Jr. said of Simpson, who added a team-high 11 rebounds. “If he's a leader, we'll win a lot of games, and that's what he's been.”
Lampkin, Colorado's powerhouse in the post, scored 13 points on 6-of-8 shooting, none bigger than an aerial to beat the shot clock and put Colorado up 54-49 with 32.8 seconds left.
“That offensive rebound was, for me, the play of the game,” Boyle said. “Going from a one-possession game to a two-possession game, just mentally, is really positive for the team that does that. I won't say it's demoralizing, but the other team, they're a little panicked.” in.”
Boise State fell to 0-10 in the NCAA tournament, the worst mark among teams in this year's event and the second-worst behind Iona, which is 0-16 (the team vacated a win in 1980). The Broncos lost in the First Four for the third time.
They grabbed 19 offensive rebounds and made Simpson nervous for most of the night. But his own shooting doomed them. Boise State made just one 3-pointer in each half, finishing 2 of 18. The Broncos missed numerous shots around the rim. Colorado's Tristan da Silva used his length to rattle Boise State's star forward Tyson Degenhart as he recorded a game-high 20 points and hit several baskets late in the shot clock. In addition to Degenhart, other Broncos scorers also struggled, as Max Rice and O'Mar Stanley combined to make 2 of 18 field goals.
“You just have to keep fighting and get better every day, and if we can make a better team next year, you'll go further,” said Rice, who fell to 0-5 in tournament games, tied for fifth most of defeats. by a coach without winning. “There's always the next mile, the next obstacle, the next milestone, but that doesn't mean this team hasn't accomplished a ton because they sure did.”
Colorado won its 25th game, the most in team history, but the players are not satisfied.
“It means a lot, but we have to get one more,” Lampkin said. “This was just the beginning. It's a good win, but we have to get the next one on Friday.”
