Colorado drops hard-fought Big 12 opener against No. 3 Iowa State

BOULDER As Tad Boyle so eloquently put it, Colorado knew the answers to the test before it was given.

Its not a secret what No.

3 Iowa State is going to do.

The Cyclones are going to hound you with relentless defensive pressure, crash the boards with physicality and force you to make silly mistakes.

In their first game back in the Big 12, the Buffaloes knew all of that was coming its exactly what happened in the 28-point loss to ISU in Maui last month and it still resulted in a 79-69 defeat Monday night at the CU Events Center.

Basketball is a pass/fail game and the reason CU lost isnt overly complicated.

Iowa State scored 24 points off 19 Buffs turnovers and another 21 points on 20 offensive rebounds.

Its as simple as that, CU redshirt sophomore guard RJ Smith said.

But what this loss was not was a result of a lack of effort.

Even when CU was struggling to get defensive rebounds, like on a minute-long ISU possession in the first half in which the Cyclones grabbed three offensive boards and wound up hitting a three-pointer, the Buffs never stopped competing.

Ive got no issues with our effort tonight, Boyle said.

We knew the answers to the test before the test was given.

We did a good enough job of it in stretches, without a doubt.

Our effort was good.

Weve gotta figure out a way to get better.

Colorado head coach Tad Boyle checks the scoreboard as time runs out in the second half of an NCAA college basketball game aainst Iowa State Monday, Dec.

30, 2024, in Boulder, Colo.

(AP Photo/David Zalubowski) Simply being more physical and being ready for the opposing teams physicality is the first place to start.

This first game back in the Big 12 was a bit of a shock to Boyle.

He wasnt at all trying to complain postgame about Iowa States 22-8 edge in free throw attempts, he was just trying to point out that this game was officiated versus every game in the last decade-plus in the Pac-12 was noticeably different.

We better embrace the physicality of this league and figure it out, Boyle said.

That will get better throughout the course of the season as this relatively inexperienced roster gets more time on the court in the conference, but its going to remain a challenge.

Senior guard Julian Hammond III continued to emerge as potentially the alpha of this Buffs team with a game-high 21 points something CU desperately needed with third-leading scorer Andrej Jakimovski out with an illness.

We need Julian to be who he is, Boyle said.

We dont need him to be KJ Simpson, we just need him to be the best version of Julian Hammond he can be.

He was really good tonight.

Julians shooting the ball well, his percentage is really high.

We need more guys like that.

It might not get much tougher than Iowa State a team with legitimate Final Four potential but in the Big 12, its not going to much easier, no matter who the other team on the other side is.

Colorado forward Sebastian Rancik, center, loses control of a rebound as Iowa State forward Brandton Chatfield (33) defends in the first half of an NCAA college basketball game Monday, Dec.

30, 2024, in Boulder, Colo.

(AP Photo/David Zalubowski) Yeah, its welcome to the Big 12.

Here we are, Boyle said.

Weve got 19 more of these, so strap it on.

No.

3 Iowa State 79, Colorado 69 What happened: The Buffaloes (9-3, 0-1 Big 12) lost their first game back in the Big 12 since 2011, falling at home to the third-ranked Cyclones in the final game of 2024.

It was a much better effort than the 28-point defeat to ISU in Maui in November, but CU simply turned the ball over too much and allowed far too many offensive rebounds to really threaten arguably the top team in the conference.

Star of the night: Denver native Julian Hammond III continued his strong start to his senior season with a game-high 21 points, two shy of his career-high, on 9-for-17 shooting from the field and 3-for-7 shooting from 3-point range to with four assists (to zero turnovers) and four rebounds.

Quotable: Theres times where we just got our tails kicked.

It just killed us tonight not being able to finish defensively.

CU coach Tad Boyle on the 21 second-chance points on 20 offensive rebounds for Iowa State.

Up next: CU hits the road for a pair of games in opposite time zones as next up is Arizona State on Saturday at 4 p.m.

on ESPN+.

After that, the Buffs head to Orlando to face Central Florida next Wednesday at 5 p.m.

on ESPN+..

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