Oregon outlasts CU Buffs men’s basketball – The Denver Post

EUGENE, Ore. — In a game between two teams with eerily similar statistical profiles it was, not surprisingly, an evenly contested game for much of the night.

The Colorado men’s basketball team once again put up a commendable fight in the second half. But it wasn’t enough.

Oregon made the plays down the stretch to hold off a CU rally, sending the Buffs to a 75-69 defeat on Thursday night at Knight Arena. It was the fourth loss in five games for the Buffs, who also missed an opportunity to post a two-game regular season sweep against the Ducks for just the second time since joining the Pac-12 Conference.

Oregon led 32-26 at halftime and gradually extended its lead early in the second half, using an 8-2 run to push CU’s deficit to 11 points. A 3-pointer from Oregon guard and former Buffs player Keeshawn Barthelemy kept the Ducks’ advantage at 11 points midway through the second half.

The Buffs responded, with Tristan da Silva and Nique Clifford combining on a 9-0 run that pulled Colorado within two points. Oregon answered with the next six points to push its advantage back to eight, but da Silva scored the next seven points to get the Buffs within a point.

Oregon’s Quincy Guerrier scored the next five points and the Buffs didn’t get closer than four the rest of the way.

Clifford broke out of a slump in a big way, going 7 for 11 with three 3-pointers and a career-high 17 points. Da Silva continued to torment Oregon, going 8 for 14 from the field and 4 for 4 on free throws to finish with a game-high 23 points.