After a big holiday week in the desert, Colorado returned home as a lethargic bunch.
Yet when challenged by another undefeated team, the Buffaloes answered.
The CU men’s basketball team erased an early 14-point lead by Cal Baptist and then took control with a dominant stretch in the second half, paving the way for a 78-70 victory in a battle of undefeated teams on Monday night at the CU Events Center.
With the win, the Buffs secured the program’s first 8-0 start since the 1949-50 season.
The Buffs were a step slow defensively and on the glass out of the gate against the Lancers, who sprinted to a 23-9 lead. CU rallied to within two points at halftime but couldn’t get over the hump until midway through the second half, using a 16-0 run to turn a 52-48 deficit into a 64-52 lead with a little more than 5 minutes remaining.
Cal Baptist remained within four points with 1 minute, 22 seconds remaining, but a tough jumper from Felix Kossaras followed by two free throws from Isaiah Johnson with 31.3 seconds remaining helped seal the win for CU.
Four players scored in double figures for CU, led by 17 off the bench from Johnson.
This story will be updated.