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Colorado-Buffaloes

Simpson scores 28, Hadley 20 and Colorado blows past Utah 89-65

After leading by nine points at halftime, the Buffs turned it into a rout with runs of 9-0 and 7-0 midway through the second half.

Credit: AP Photo/Cliff Grassmick

Colorado guard KJ Simpson (2) shoots over Utah guard Ben Carlson (1) in the second half of an NCAA college basketball game Saturday, Feb. 24, 2024.

BOULDER, Colo. — KJ Simpson scored 28 points, J'Vonne Hadley added 20 and Colorado poured it on in the second half to defeat Utah 89-65 on Saturday night.

After leading by nine points at halftime, Colorado turned it into a rout with runs of 9-0 and 7-0 midway through the second half. The Buffaloes led 75-51 after the 7-0 run, then four minutes later a 3-pointer by Simpson put them up by 28. The lead peaked at 31 on a 3-pointer by Luke O'Brien before Utah scored the final seven points.

Simpson made 10 of 15 shots, including 5 of 8 3-pointers. Hadley shot 7 of 10 and grabbed nine rebounds. Eddie Lampkin scored 13 points and Tristan da Silva added 12 for Colorado (18-9, 9-7 Pac-12).

Gabe Madsen scored 18 points and Deivon Smith had 15 for Utah (16-11, 7-9). The Utes made only 4 of 23 3-point tries.

Hadley scored 17 points in the first half and Colorado took the momentum from an early 12-0 run to build a 43-34 halftime lead. The Buffaloes shot 52% in the first half, slightly better than Utah's 50%. Madsen scored 16 in the first half for Utah.

Up next for Colorado is a home game against California on Wednesday. Utah hosts Stanford on Thursday.

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