Buffs Hold Off Arizona State At Home

Saturday, February 7

Boulder, Colo.

7:30 p.m.

Colorado

14-10,4-7Big 12

Arizona State

12-12,3-8Big 12

Arizona St.

Colorado

February 07, 2026 | Men's Basketball

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By: Aiden Tank, Athletic Communications

BOULDER – Colorado's Sebastian Rancik recorded his first career double-double and the Buffaloes held off Arizona State down the stretch Saturday to collect an 78-70 win at the CU Events Center.

Tad Boyle's Buffs improved to 14-10 overall and 4-7 in the Big 12. Arizona State dropped to 12-12 overall and 3-8 in the Big 12.

"That was a hard-fought win," Boyle said. "Wasn't easy. I knew it wouldn't be. We've been competing now against Arizona State for 15 years, 13 in the Pac-12. Now, our second year back in the Big 12 with them. It's not easy in this league. I have a lot of respect for (coach Bobby Hurley). His players compete and always have. With that being said, it's a win we should be proud of, because it didn't come easy."

Barrington Hargress tied his CU career-high with 23 points and dished out four assists. Rancik's 11 rebounds were also a personal best.

"About time, huh?" Rancik said on his rebounding. "Coach [Boyle] emphasizes rebounding, and even in the NBA, they look at your ability to rebound in college. It's important to put that into my game because, like I showed today, I'm more than capable. I have to stay consistent with it."

Isaiah Johnson added 16 points, and Bangot Dak recorded 12 points.

Maurice Odom led the way for the Sun Devils with 23 points.

After controlling the game in the opening 20 minutes, Arizona State used a 13-2 run to take a two-point lead with 16:29 left in the game. That was when Hargress began to take over, scoring 10 points in a seven-minute span to give the Buffs the lead.

Arizona State made one more big push, cutting the Colorado lead to two points with six minutes left. The Buffs responded by closing with a 14-8 run led by six points from Dak to ice the game.

The Buffs shot 31-for-61 (50.8 percent) while ASU was 23-for-57 (40.4 percent) from the floor. Colorado also held a 42-28 edge on points in the paint.

But the big difference came on the glass. Colorado out-rebounded the Sun Devils by 14 with 40 total rebounds on the night.

"I thought the difference was rebounding," Boyle commented. "We were plus (14) on the glass. We held them to 40 percent for the game, which is amazing to me."

HOW IT HAPPENED
After missing the opening two shots of the game, Colorado responded by making four of its next five with 3-pointers from Johnson and Jalin Holland to give the Buffs an early 10-8 lead.

Hargress kept the offensive pressure on the Sun Devils with a deep 3-pointer and a layup to extend the lead to 17-11.

The defensive intensity ramped up for the Buffs, forcing Arizona State to miss its next eight shots, allowing Colorado to get out in transition. Dak hammered home a dunk off the kick-ahead pass from Hargress as the Buffaloes' lead reached double figures at 26-16 with 7:27 remaining.

Colorado continued to attack the paint, scoring two more close shots from Dak. On the other end, Arizona State used offensive rebounding to create 3-point opportunities to stay in the game, hitting two off of second-chance looks.

A Rancik 3-pointer, gave Colorado its largest lead of the half, 39-27, with 1:57 before halftime. Arizona State scored the last five points of the half, which included a free throw on a flagrant 1 foul by Elijah Malone, that wasn't rewarded until after the halftime break, as the Buffaloes officially led 39-32 heading into the final 20 minutes.

Colorado controlled the first half in the paint and in transition. The Buffs outrebounded the Sun Devils by nine in the first half and finished with an 18-10 advantage in points in the paint. After forcing stops, the Buffs got out in transition, scoring eight fast break points compared to only two for the Sun Devils.

Arizona State had six offensive rebounds and turned that into 13 second-chance points. Odom kept the Sun Devils in the game with 10 points in the first half.

Arizona State used a 10-0 run early in the second half to take a one-point lead, 41-40, for the first time since the opening basket of the game.

As the half progressed, it turned into a duel between Odom and Hargress, with each hitting on nearly every shot. Both players had 10 points in the second half and 21 points in the game, with 10:20 remaining, and Colorado with a one-point lead.

"It felt like we were trading some buckets there," Hargress said. "He's a really good point guard, so it was a good duel. It's good going against creative guards and guys that push you."

Colorado continued with a 7-0 run that began with an and-1 from Holland and ended with a transition layup from Rancik to give the Buffs a 64-56 lead with eight minutes left in the game.

With the Sun Devils creeping back into the game, cutting the lead to three points, Johnson got a layup to go for a 71-66 lead with 3:36 remaining.

The dagger came on the drive by Johnson, where he dropped it off for a cutting Dak for the dunk. After free throws, Colorado finished off Arizona State 78-70.

UP NEXT
Colorado travels to Lubbock to take on No. 13 Texas Tech on Wednesday, Feb. 11, at 6 p.m. MT, on ESPN+