3 Keys for Colorado Basketball to upset UCLA Bruins in Pac-12 matchup

Intense on-ball defense!

It is no secret that the UCLA Bruins have a guard-centric offense that caters to backcourt players who can create off the dribble. As a result, all four of the team’s double-digit scorers are guards who are capable of taking and making difficult shots. If the Bruins’ attack was based on player movement and passing, Colorado’s defense would be best suited for trapping in the backcourt and making ball advancement difficult. However, against an attack based on dribble penetration, the strategy must be much different.

The Bruins’ primary ballhandler is Junior guard Tyger Campbell. Subsequently, he is also leading the team in assists at 4.8 dimes per game. However, after Campbell there is a big drop off in assists for the Bruins, with the runner-up being Senior guard Jamie Jaquez Jr., who is averaging 2.5 per game. The fact that the guards score the bulk of the points, while not dishing out passes that result in made baskets very often is reflective of the fact that the Bruins’ offense allows for an unusually high percentage of isolation plays. There is only one way to discourage this type of basketball: intense chest-to-chest-on-ball defense.

The good news for the Buffaloes is that their roster features three players who are above-average on ball defenders. Guards KJ Simpson and J’Vonne Hadley have great feet and pesky hands, and Junior forward Tristan Da Silva is also known to make an impact on the defensive side of the ball. Each of these players averages better than 1.1 steals per game, which is especially impressive in Da Silva’s case because forwards do not have as many opportunities to create takeaways as guards. This luxury gives Head Coach Tad Boyle the option of allowing his players to switch on the perimeter without fear of them getting beat off the dribble. Playing this style of defense will certainly be exhausting but it is the only realistic way of stopping the Bruins’ attack.