By Lily Fletcher Men's Basketball Sports December 1, 2021

Buffs put up a big win in Pac-12 Opener against Stanford

Evan Battey surpassed 1,000 career points and scored a record 22 points during the game on Sunday, Nov. 30, alongside an exciting win against the Stanford Cardinals. The Buffs overcame a slow start and gained momentum near the end of the game to pull through with a win.

Evan Battey CU Men's Basketball; The Bold CU — Evan Battey reaches for the point leaving Stanford players stagnate. (Lily Fletcher/The Bold)

When asked about his big accomplishment of the night, Battey was at a loss for words, “It was special. I can’t really find the words. I came in not worried about the individual stats and I’m still not worried about it… I’m still happy but I am just worried about the next game.”

Four other players scored in the double digits alongside Battey on Sunday, including Jabari Walker with 12, Tristan da Silva with 13, KJ Simpson with 12, and Keeshawn Barthelemy with 10.

Head Coach Tad Boyle says that it was the offense that saved them this game, “We shared the ball. We moved the ball. And I was really pleased with our offensive effort tonight. We needed every three.”

The Buffs started out slow, not putting points on the board until Stanford had taken a 7-0 lead, but that changed quickly near the middle of the half. The Buffs secured a 37-32 at the end of the first half.

The Buffs only gave away a season low of six turnovers, as the Cardinals turned the ball over fifteen times. This only contributed to the big offensive push from the Buffaloes. Top Pac-12 freshman Tristan Da Silva also managed to knock off Stanford’s Harrison Ingram, shutting down a key player in the Stanford offense and helping the Buffs maintain their lead.

Jabari Walker CU Mens Basketball; The Bold CU — Jabari Walker secures a dunk leaving Stanford defensive in the dust. (Lily Fletcher/The Bold)

“He’s a key player in their offense so it was even more important that we went on lockdown on defense to try to make it as tough on him as possible.” da Silva said.

Da Silva also had four assists and is starting to assume his role as a young key player on the team.

“I’m just trying to impact the game whether it’s scoring, whether it’s rebounding, whether it’s looking out for my teammates. We were all drawing up plays for each other and looking out for each other.” da Silva said.

Tristan Da Silva CU Mens Basketball; The Bold CU — Tristan Da Silva getting a scope of the court around him. (Lily Fletcher/The Bold)

This win is an important one for the young Buffs team this season. It proves they can still compete and claim victories in a difficult Pac-12 conference. Battey said in a post game interview that their season isn’t going to be easy.

Battey said, “Being in a lot of close games gives you the experience of being in close games and we know how to win those close games. We are 6-1 so it shows for itself. Of course I would like to win every game by 20 or 30 points but that’s not the reality.” He added later, “It’s going to be a dog fight but you just have to be prepared and have positivity and focus on the next play.”

The Buffs schedule only gets tougher, as they travel to Los Angeles to face No. 5 UCLA on Wednesday, Dec. 1, and No. 13 Tennessee at the CU Events Center on Saturday, Dec. 3.

“We get a chance to go to UCLA, all you can ask for in life is an opportunity. We’ve got a great opportunity ahead of us, and we’ll go let it all hang out,” said Boyle.