The Colorado Buffaloes are learning the hard way that fight and toughness aren’t always the same thing-and right now, they’re paying the price for that difference.
Saturday’s 72-61 road loss to West Virginia marked the Buffs’ third straight defeat, and once again, it followed a familiar script. Colorado clawed back from a double-digit deficit, showing plenty of heart, only to fall short in the final stretch. But while the fight is there, head coach Tad Boyle made it clear after the game: toughness, especially on the glass, is what’s holding this team back.
Let’s talk numbers. West Virginia outrebounded Colorado 38-22.
That’s a 16-board gap, and it wasn’t just about quantity-it was about impact. The Mountaineers racked up 17 second-chance points, the most the Buffs have allowed all season.
That’s not just a stat. That’s a storyline.
Since their Dec. 20 loss to Stanford-the first time they were outrebounded this season-Colorado has been beaten on the boards in four of seven games. The average rebounding deficit in those four?
Minus-8.8. That’s not a blip.
That’s a trend.
Boyle didn’t mince words postgame.
“Our guys, we don’t give up. Our fight is there.
We’ve got to keep that,” he said. “Now, there’s a difference between fight and toughness.
Fight means you’re going to fight and scratch and claw to get back in the game however you can. Toughness is getting beat by 16 on the glass over a 40-minute period of time.
There’s a difference. I think a lot of people think they’re the same thing.
I don’t think they are. They were tougher than us.”
He pointed to a telling stat at halftime: Colorado had just one offensive rebound, courtesy of Tacko Ifaola, who plays limited minutes. Meanwhile, West Virginia had six, spread across five different players.
That’s not just effort-that’s execution, positioning, and physicality. That’s toughness.
In an effort to shake things up, Boyle inserted freshman guard and leading scorer Isaiah Johnson into the starting lineup. Johnson has been a bright spot, but the issues run deeper-especially at the center position.
Elijah Malone, the 6-foot-10 starting center, fouled out in just 8 minutes and 33 seconds. Several of those fouls came away from the basket, including one on a perimeter double-team that Boyle highlighted as a key breakdown in the game plan.
“They run a ball-screen for (Honor) Huff, we’re double-teaming him, he doesn’t have to body-up to him,” Boyle explained. “All he’s got to do is contain him.
Elijah’s 6-11. (West Virginia’s) Honor Huff is 5-10 on a good day.
So he’s got to use his size and length. If he dribbles around him, he dribbles around him.
Just corral him and get the ball out of his hands. That was the whole game plan.
Just corral him, get the ball out his hands. We weren’t able to do that.”
Malone’s early exit left the Buffs searching for answers in the frontcourt. Reserve forward Alon Michaeli stepped in and led the team with seven rebounds, but his offensive efficiency has taken a noticeable dip.
He went just 2-for-8 from the field and 1-for-5 from three. And while Michaeli has never been shy about pulling the trigger-he leads the team in shots per minute (.401)-his recent shooting slump is hard to ignore.
Over the last six games, he’s shooting just .304 (14-for-46), and in Big 12 play, he’s 4-for-18 from deep.
That kind of volume without efficiency can be a tough pill to swallow, especially when the team is struggling to generate consistent offense. Michaeli was knocking down shots earlier in the season, but right now, his rhythm is off-and it’s impacting Colorado’s spacing and shot selection.
Boyle acknowledged Malone’s effort but also his frustration.
“Elijah’s playing hard, I’ll give him that. And I know he’s frustrated,” Boyle said.
“A few of those fouls were silly fouls. But it happens.”
It does happen. But for a team trying to find its footing in the rugged Big 12, it can’t keep happening.
The Buffs are 12-6 overall and 2-3 in conference play, and while the record isn’t panic-worthy, the trend lines are concerning. The fight is there.
The comeback energy is real. But unless Colorado starts winning the physical battles-on the boards, in the paint, and in the little moments that decide games-they’ll keep coming up just short.
Next up: a home date with Kansas. And if the Buffs want to turn this slide around, they’ll need more than just heart. They’ll need toughness.