Colorado Basketball: 3 keys for Buffaloes vs Tennessee Volunteers

Backcourt

We have touched on not letting the Grambling game beat Colorado twice, and the stars for Colorado stepping up and making big plays. Finally the last key to a victory or keeping this game close for the Buffaloes is their backcourt. The backcourt is the most talented part of the Buffaloes and they are also going to be the unit that is going to have the biggest task all game long. The Volunteers have a fantastic backcourt led by the point guard who can score from all three levels and gets his teammates involved.

Colorado does have some good defenders in the backcourt and those guys are going to have to be at their best. Simpson, the point guard, is going to have to play great defense in addition to his scoring. The key piece to the Colorado backcourt is a transfer from Yale. Jalen Gabbidon can score a little bit and showed he was a complete player at Yale, his biggest asset to the Buffaloes early on in the season is his ability to play lockdown defense on the perimeter. Gabbidon is a former Ivy League Defensive Player of the Year.

The guard is going to play a lot of minutes this year and he is going to be used as a defensive stopper most nights. Whatever he can provide on the offensive end is going to be icing on the cake. Gabbidon is going to have to be on his best to slow down this Kentucky offense. He needs to do what he does best and jump in passing lanes for steals to get Colorado out in transition. The more Colorado can pull their weight defensively it will go a long way towards the Buffaloes pulling a potential upset.

Colorado is due for a great game, especially after losing a game they should not have lost. As of now 2 games into the season I still have the Buffaloes as a bubble team. They are going to need some quality wins and a win over Tennessee would be a great win this early in the season. The Pac 12 doesn’t look great again so anything Colorado can do in the non-conference will help.