TUCSON, Ariz. — At times this season, Tad Boyle has been willing to give Tristan da Silva minutes even after picking up two fouls in the first half.
Saturday was not one of those times. And it may have cost the Buffaloes.
Even after the momentum of an early 18-6 lead had evaporated, the Buffs still had a two-point lead when da Silva picked up his second foul with 11 minutes, 33 seconds remaining in the first half. By the time da Silva finally returned to the fray, the Wildcats were well on their way to a 78-68 victory.
“I just felt like this game, we needed him in the second half,” Boyle said. “It was like a four-point game, a six-point game. They didn’t get on a major roll. But it got to 12, then there’s a minute and a half to go. You’re like, do I do it now? I didn’t want to go zone in the first half. I wanted to save that for the second half. I thought we were playing well enough to keep it close, but we didn’t. Hindsight’s 20-20 on that one.”
Da Silva started 3-for-4 and had nine of CU’s 20 points when he was forced to the bench. The Wildcats outscored the Buffs 28-14 from that point until halftime.
“It was tough. I felt like I should’ve had one foul, max,” da Silva said. “It’s tough sitting on the bench, especially after we had that good start. I kind of had a rhythm going early on. But I trust the coaches to make the decision when they play me and when they take me out. I feel like they just wanted to make sure I could play the second half without any foul trouble.”
Home away from home
KJ Simpson very nearly called the McKale Center home for his collegiate career. On Saturday, he put together his second solid all-around performance as a visitor to the arena.
Although CU’s point guard again struggled from the field, finishing 3-for-13 overall and 1-for-6 on 3-pointers, but he posted 12 points to go with a career-high seven assists. Simpson’s previous high was six assists which he reached three times, most recently during a home win against Oregon State on Jan. 7.
Simpson entered the game averaging 4.3 rebounds, but after grabbing five against the Wildcats he has averaged 5.8 over the past four games. He pushed his consecutive made free throw streak to 22 in a row before missing a pair in the second half.
Simpson originally signed with Arizona but re-opened his recruitment after former UA coach Sean Miller was fired two years ago. Last year, in his first appearance at McKale, Simpson recorded 17 points, four assist and three rebounds.
Notable
Javon Ruffin scored 13 points, his second-highest total of the season and his second consecutive double-digit performance. He set a career-high with five field goals and matched a career-best with three 3-pointers. Ruffin went 8-for-15 overall and 5-for-11 on 3-pointers during the two-game trip through Arizona. … The career-best 16 rebounds for UA’s Oumar Ballo marked the most rebounds by a Buffs opponent this season. …The crowd of 14,688 at the McKale Center was the biggest for any CU game this season. The previous high was 12,482 in a win against Tennessee on Nov. 13 at Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena.
