# 2010–11 Colorado Buffaloes men's basketball team

The 2010–11 Colorado Buffaloes men's basketball team represented the University of Colorado in the 2010–11 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. Head coach Tad Boyle was in his first season at Colorado. The Buffaloes competed in the Big 12 Conference and played their home games at the Coors Events Center.
This was the Buffaloes' last season in the Big 12, as they moved to the Pac-12 Conference in 2011,. before returning to the Big 12 in 2024.

## Preseason

The Buffaloes finished the previous season with a record of 15–16 and 6–10 in Big 12 Conference play. Of those 16 losses, seven were by six points or less. Additionally, all five starters return from that team.
In the Big 12 preseason coaches' poll, the Buffaloes were picked to finish ninth. Cory Higgins was named the Preseason All-Conference First Team, while Alec Burks was an honorable mention. Both were also named to the 50-man preseason Wooden Award watchlist. Additionally, Burks was on the 50-man preseason Naismith College Player of the Year watchlist. Gary Parrish picked them eighth in the Big 12, and said that he "won't be shocked if they ride the Higgins-Burks tandem into the top half of the league and make the NCAA tournament for the first time since 2003." Jason King of Rivals.com named the Buffaloes the sixth-best team in conference, adding, "Don't be surprised if long-suffering Colorado sneaks into the NCAA tournament."

## Roster

| # | Name | Height | Weight (lbs.) | Position | Class | Hometown | Previous School |
| 1 | Nate Tomlinson | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) | 190 pounds (86 kg) | G | Jr. | Sydney | Lee Academy |
| 2 | Shannon Sharpe | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) | 200 pounds (91 kg) | G | Fr. | Corona, California | Centennial HS |
| 5 | Marcus Relphorde | 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) | 220 pounds (100 kg) | F | Sr. | Chicago, Illinois | Saint Louis University |
| 10 | Alec Burks | 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) | 185 pounds (84 kg) | G | So. | Grandview, Missouri | Grandview HS |
| 11 | Cory Higgins | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) | 190 pounds (86 kg) | G | Sr. | Danville, California | The Pendleton School |
| 14 | Javon Coney | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) | 210 pounds (95 kg) | C | Sr. | Chicago, Illinois | Latin HS |
| 15 | Shane Harris-Tunks | 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) | 225 pounds (102 kg) | F/C | So. | Liverpool, New South Wales | Australian Institute of Sport |
| 21 | André Roberson | 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) | 195 pounds (88 kg) | G | Fr. | San Antonio, Texas | Wagner HS |
| 23 | Sabatino Chen | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) | 180 pounds (82 kg) | G | Jr. | Louisville, Colorado | University of Denver |
| 24 | Levi Knutson | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) | 200 pounds (91 kg) | G | Sr. | Littleton, Colorado | Arapahoe HS |
| 30 | Carlon Brown | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) | 215 pounds (98 kg) | G | Sr. | Riverside, California | University of Utah |
| 32 | Ben Mills | 7 ft 0 in (2.13 m) | 215 pounds (98 kg) | C | Fr. | Hartland, Wisconsin | Arrowhead HS |
| 33 | Austin Dufault | 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) | 230 pounds (100 kg) | F | Jr. | Killdeer, North Dakota | Killdeer HS |
| 35 | Hassan Safieddine | 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) | 210 pounds (95 kg) | F | Fr. | Denver, Colorado | Flagler College |
| 55 | Trey Eckloff | 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) | 235 pounds (107 kg) | F | Jr. | Englewood, Colorado | Cherry Creek HS |

## 2010–11 Schedule and results

| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | Site (attendance) city, state |
| Regular Season ||||||
| November 12, 2010* 8:00 pm, FSNRM | | Idaho State | W 88–80 | 1–0 | Coors Events Center (6,874) Boulder, CO |
| November 16, 2010* 5:00 pm, FSNRM | | at Georgia | L 74–83 | 1–1 | Stegeman Coliseum (6,406) Athens, GA |
| November 20, 2010* 8:00 pm | | at San Francisco | L 81–83 $^{OT}$ | 1–2 | War Memorial Gymnasium (2,747) San Francisco, CA |
| November 23, 2010* 7:00 pm, FSNRM | | Alcorn State | W 91–51 | 2–2 | Coors Events Center (2,778) Boulder, CO |
| November 28, 2010* 11:00 am | | at Harvard | L 66–82 | 2–3 | Lavietes Pavilion (954) Cambridge, MA |
| November 30, 2010* 7:00 pm, FSNRM | | Texas–Pan American | W 83–64 | 3–3 | Coors Events Center (2,641) Boulder, CO |
| December 4, 2010* 8:00 pm, ESPNU | | Oregon State Big 12/Pac-10 Hardwood Series | W 83–57 | 4–3 | Coors Events Center (6,406) Boulder, CO |
| December 8, 2010* 8:00 pm, FSNRM | | Colorado State | W 90–83 $^{OT}$ | 5–3 | Coors Events Center (7,219) Bouler, CO |
| December 17, 2010* 7:30 pm, FSNRM | | The Citadel Las Vegas Classic | W 89–61 | 6–3 | Coors Events Center (4,368) Boulder, CO |
| December 19, 2010* 2:00 pm, FSNRM | | Longwood Las Vegas Classic | W 104–59 | 7–3 | Coors Events Center (2,556) Boulder, CO |
| December 22, 2010* 8:00 pm, CBSCS | | vs. New Mexico Las Vegas Classic semi-finals | L 76–89 | 7–4 | Orleans Arena (2,867) Paradise, NV |
| December 23, 2010* 5:30 pm, CBSCS | | vs. Indiana Las Vegas Classic 3rd place | W 78–69 | 8–4 | Orleans Arena (NA) Paradise, NV |
| December 29, 2010* 7:00 pm, FSNRM | | Maryland Eastern Shore | W 92–65 | 9–4 | Coors Events Center (3,896) Boulder, CO |
| January 2, 2011* 6:00 pm | | at Cal State Bakersfield | W 85–73 | 10–4 | Rabobank Arena (1,464) Bakersfield, CA |
| January 5, 2011* 7:00 pm | | Western New Mexico | W 92–70 | 11–4 | Coors Events Center (2,139) Boulder, CO |
| January 8, 2011 11:30 am, Big 12 Network | | No. 8 Missouri | W 89–76 | 12–4 (1–0) | Coors Events Center (8,694) Boulder, CO |
| January 12, 2011 7:00 pm, ESPNU | | at No. 20 Kansas State | W 74–66 | 13–4 (2–0) | Bramlage Coliseum (12,528) Manhattan, KS |
| January 15, 2011 11:30 am, Big 12 Network | | Oklahoma State | W 75–71 | 14–4 (3–0) | Coors Events Center (11,096) Boulder, CO |
| January 18, 2011 5:00 pm, ESPN2 | | at Nebraska | L 67–79 | 14–5 (3–1) | Bob Devaney Sports Center (8,477) Lincoln, NE |
| January 22, 2011 11:30 am, Big 12 Network | | at Oklahoma | L 60–67 | 14–6 (3–2) | Lloyd Noble Center (9,158) Norman, OK |
| January 25, 2011 6:00 pm, Big 12 Network | | No. 6 Kansas | L 78–82 | 14–7 (3–3) | Coors Events Center (11,203) Boulder, CO |
| January 29, 2011 11:30 am, Big 12 Network | | at Baylor | L 66–70 | 14–8 (3–4) | Ferrell Center (6,095) Waco, TX |
| February 1, 2011 7:00 pm, FSNRM | | Iowa State | W 95–69 | 15–8 (4–4) | Coors Events Center (6,764) Boulder, CO |
| February 5, 2011 5:30 pm | | at No. 15 Missouri | L 73–89 | 15–9 (4–5) | Mizzou Arena (14,288) Columbia, MO |
| February 9, 2011 7:00 pm, ESPNU | | No. 22 Texas A&M | L 70–73 $^{OT}$ | 15–10 (4–6) | Coors Events Center (7,517) Boulder, CO |
| February 12, 2010 7:00 pm, ESPNU | | Kansas State | W 58–56 | 16–10 (5–6) | Coors Events Center (11,052) Boulder, CO |
| February 19, 2011 12:00 pm, ESPN | | at No. 1 Kansas | L 63–89 | 16–11 (5–7) | Allen Fieldhouse (16,300) Lawrence, KS |
| February 23, 2011 5:00 pm | | at Texas Tech | W 71–68 | 17–11 (6–7) | United Spirit Arena (8,085) Lubbock, TX |
| February 26, 2011 2:00 pm, Big 12 Network | | No. 5 Texas | W 91–89 | 18–11 (7–7) | Coors Events Center (11,034) Boulder, CO |
| March 2, 2011 5:30 pm | | at Iowa State | L 90–95 | 18–12 (7–8) | Hilton Coliseum (12,679) Ames, IA |
| March 5, 2011 7:00 pm | | Nebraska | W 67–57 | 19–12 (8–8) | Coors Events Center (11,112) Boulder, CO |
| 2011 Big 12 men's basketball tournament ||||||
| March 9, 2011 1:00 pm, Big 12 Network | (5) | vs. (12) Iowa State First round | W 77–75 | 20–12 | Sprint Center (18,910) Kansas City, MO |
| March 10, 2011 1:00 pm, Big 12 Network | (5) | vs. (4) No. 23 Kansas State Quarter-finals | W 87–75 | 21–12 | Sprint Center (18,910) Kansas City, MO |
| March 11, 2011 1:00 pm, Big 12 Network | (5) | vs. (1) No. 2 Kansas Semi-finals | L 83–90 | 21–13 | Sprint Center (18,910) Kansas City, MO |
| 2011 NIT ||||||
| March 16, 2011* 7:30 pm, ESPN3 | (1 C) | (8 C) Texas Southern First round | W 88–74 | 22–13 | Coors Events Center (6,299) Boulder, CO |
| March 18, 2011* 7:00 pm, ESPNU | (1 C) | (4 C) California Second round | W 89–72 | 23–13 | Coors Events Center (7,614) Boulder, CO |
| March 22, 2011* 7:00 pm, ESPN | (1 C) | (7 C) Kent State Quarter-finals | W 81–74 | 24–13 | Coors Events Center (9,065) Boulder, CO |
| March 29, 2011* 7:00 pm, ESPN2 | (1 C) | vs. (1 A) Alabama Semi-finals | L 61–62 | 24–14 | Madison Square Garden (6,082) New York, NY |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from Coaches' Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. C=NIT Colorado bracket. A=NIT Alabama bracket. All times are in Mountain Time. ||||||

## Season
### Preconference season

The Buffaloes defeated in-state rivals Colorado State 93–80 in overtime, behind Alec Burks' 25 points. Marcus Relphorde contributed 18 points and Cory Higgins added 15. Levi Knutson hit four free throws in the final 57 seconds to seal the victory.

### Big 12 season

Snapping a losing streak of 13 consecutive conference openers, Colorado knocked off No. 8 Missouri 89–76 as Alec Burks exploded for a career-high 36 points. This was the Buffaloes' first win over a top ten team since defeating No. 3 Texas in 2003. Cory Higgins had 18 points and a career-tying 10 rebounds. The Buffaloes had a 12-point halftime lead and never let Missouri get closer than seven in the second half.

### Post-season

The Buffs were selected as the No. 1 seed for the 2011 NIT Tournament.

## Rankings

Ranking Movement Legend: ██ Increase in ranking. ██ Decrease in ranking. :
| Poll | Pre | Wk 1 | Wk 2 | Wk 3 | Wk 4 | Wk 5 | Wk 6 | Wk 7 | Wk 8 | Wk 9 | Wk 10 | Wk 11 | Wk 12 | Wk 13 | Wk 14 | Wk 15 | Wk 16 | Wk 17 | Wk 18 | Final |
| AP | | RV | NR | | | | | | | RV | NR | | | | | | | | | |
| Coaches | | | | | | | | | | RV | NR | | | | | | | | | |

## Awards and honors
### Alec Burks

* Preseason All-Big 12 Honorable Mention
* Preseason John R. Wooden Award Watchlist
* Preseason Naismith College Player of the Year Watchlist

### Cory Higgins

* Preseason All-Big 12 First Team
* Preseason John R. Wooden Award Watchlist