First game down.
And it was a good, solid win for the Colorado Buffaloes.
The Buffs dispatched of the Oregon Ducks, 80-69, Thursday afternoon in the Pac-12 Tournament quarterfinals at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.
CU led 36-30 at halftime. The second half was competitive, with the Buffs holding a slim lead through the first 12 minutes.
After Oregon's Quincy Guerrier hit a three-pointer to pull the Ducks within 63-59 with 6:35 left, the Buffs got back-to-back baskets from Jabari Walker and Nique Clifford to push the lead to eight points.
Walker's three-pointer with 4:02 to go pushed the CU lead to nine points and soon after, K.J. Simpson hit a pair of free throws to cap an 11-4 run and make it 74-63 with 3:51 remaining.
That run gave the Buffs enough to pull out the win.
Senior Evan Battey led Colorado with 19 points. Walker had 18 points and 16 rebounds. Simpson finished with 13 points, seven rebounds, six assists and no turnovers in 27 minutes off the bench.
MORE ON THE CU WIN HERE
CU moves on the the semifinals and a match-up with top-seeded and 2nd-ranked Arizona on Friday, March 11. Exclusive coverage of the game starts at 6:30 p.m. MST on KOA 850 AM and 94.1 FM and online at KOAColorado.com/listen.
Postgame comments from CU forward Jabari Walker.