Colorado overcomes Daum, South Dakota State 112-103 in 2OT (Dec 15, 2017)
BOULDER, Colo. (AP) Tyler Bey hit his stride offensively in overtime.
Bey scored eight of his 12 points in the second OT period, including all four of his free throws, and Colorado overcame a 37-point performance by Mike Daum to beat South Dakota State 112-103 on Friday night.
''I was just flowing, going with the flow,'' Bey said. ''I'm more confident going into this season and getting more confident as I keep playing.''
Colorado coach Tad Boyle said Bey's defense on Baum in the late going was just as important as his offensive contribution.
''When (Daum) catches it, you have to be solid and play without fouling,'' Boyle said. ''Make him take tough shots. And he did. He made him take some tough shots in the lane.''
Bey's strong finish was just part of the story. McKinley Wright led Colorado (8-3) with 30 points. He added 11 assists and nine rebounds. George King added 17 points.
''This was obviously a huge win for us. We needed that for our confidence,'' added Boyle, whose young squad was upset Tuesday by San Diego. ''We had some guys really grow up tonight. We overcame some things, even though we were playing at home, and beat a really good team.''
Daum also had 12 rebounds for South Dakota State (9-5). David Jenkins added 31 points for the Jackrabbits.
In the first extra period, South Dakota State took a 94-88 lead on Skyler Flatten's layup. But Wright hit a pair of jumpers around two missed free throws by Daum, pulling the Buffaloes to 94-92 with 51.2 seconds left in overtime.
Deleon Brown's fastbreak layup tied it at 94 with 26 seconds remaining and Jenkins missed a jumper in the final moments, sending the game into the second extra period.
The Jackrabbits tied it 99-all in the second overtime on a 3-pointer by Jenkins but Wright and Bey then hit successive baskets to retake the lead and the Buffaloes made the bulk of their free throws in the final 90 seconds to secure the victory.
''I think it was our defensive stops,'' Daum said. ''They scored the last eight out of nine, and we just couldn't get that one stop we needed to get over the hump.''
Down by seven at the half, the Jackrabbits got back-to-back 3-pointers from Reed Tellinghuisen to pull to 60-59 with 9:57 left to play.
Tellinghuisen again connected from 3-point range again and Chris Howell followed with a driving layup to put South Dakota State up 66-65 with 7:33 remaining, the Jackrabbits' first lead of the game.
The teams were trading scores down the stretch and no more than three points separated them for most of the rest of the way.
Jenkins made an 81-all tie with a 3-pointer but Namon Wright answered for Colorado with one of his own, giving the Buffaloes an 84-81 lead with 1:44 left.
With 41.2 seconds left, Jenkins hit another 3-pointer to re-tie it.
McKinley Wright hit a putback layup but Daum hit two free throws with 6.5 seconds left in regulation and the game went into overtime tied at 86-all after McKinley Wright missed a contested mid-range jumper at the buzzer.
Daum and Jenkins each had three of their 3-pointers in the first half, though the Jackrabbits trailed at halftime 43-36.
Colorado did not trail in the first half, getting a combined 14 points in the period from Namon Wright and McKinley Wright.
The Jackrabbits were without forward Ian Theisen, who suffered an ankle injury in practice earlier this week.
THE TAKEAWAY
South Dakota State: The Jackrabbits got a pair of 30-point performances from Daum and Jenkins and had two others score in double figures in an offensive show that would have been enough on most nights. They just couldn't get a couple of shots to drop in the second extra period, allowing the Buffaloes to regain command.
Colorado: The Buffaloes registered an impressive bounce-back victory after 69-59 setback to San Diego on Tuesday in which they shot a season-low 25.9 percent from the field. Their point total represented a season high and they seemed to regain their shooting touch, converting 54.1 percent of their shots from the field. Their 3-point shooting also reflected their newfound confidence as they made 13 of 27 after hitting just 3 of 18 in the loss to San Diego.
PLAYING SHORT-HANDED
The Jackrabbits felt the absence of the injured Theisen, who typically is the first player off the bench to spell Daum. Among the 20 players from both teams to see action, Daum played the most at a game-high 48 minutes. ''We knew a lot of guys would have to step up, because Ian really makes up for about two or three guys,'' Jenkins said. ''I felt like we really missed him tonight. I felt like it would have been a lot different game if he was in.''
FROSH PHENOM
McKinley Wright had the fourth 30-point game by a freshman in Colorado's history. It was the first since Chauncey Billups had 33 points against Colorado State in 1995.
UP NEXT
South Dakota State: Returns home to host Drake on Tuesday night.
Colorado: Plays at Iowa on Tuesday night.
