Colorado Basketball: 3 keys for Buffaloes vs Tennessee Volunteers

Short Memory

Colorado heads into the game against Tennessee reeling as they have one of the most surprising losses so far of the early season. The Buffaloes lost to Grambling State out of the SWAC. The SWAC has been closing the talent gap over the last few seasons because of NIL and the transfer portal but that is still a loss that is going to be tough for head coach Boyle to deal with. The old adage goes do not let Grambling beat you twice.

What does that mean?  Sometimes the hangover for some teams lasts a while especially when you lose games that are unexplainable. Colorado was the better team than Grambling but when you are on the road as Colorado was, winning is always difficult. The quick turnaround time could be a good thing and it could be a bad thing. If the hangover lasts for two games the game against Tennessee won’t be close. Hopefully, the Buffaloes view this game as a tremendous opportunity to get a great win over a top-15 team early in the season. That will hopefully motivate Colorado to go out and play hard and play their best.

I do think the Buffaloes are good enough to be in the mix for a tournament bid as the season goes on, having a good showing and keeping the game with Tennessee close will likely be enough to restore some confidence for the Buffaloes. Every time after a bad loss teams start to doubt each other and doubt if this is going to be a good year. The loss to Grambling likely has the confidence wavering a bit, and if the Buffaloes do not have a good showing against Tennessee that could crush the confidence they had in the early part of the year.

Oftentimes these games dictate how the season will go. Coach Boyle is a good coach, Colorado has some playmakers and good player leadership where they likely won’t let the Grambling loss beat them twice but it always has to be in the back of your mind.