LAS VEGAS – In a game that was as up and down as a chip stack on the blackjack table, the Colorado Buffaloes fell to the Mustangs of SMU, 70-66.

Most of the game was a struggle for the Buffs on the defensive end, especially on 2015 AAC player of the year, Nic Moore. Moore had 16 points and four assists while opening things up for the Mustangs all night with his dribble penetration. But despite that the Buffs were able to hang in there.

Colorado trailed by just five going into the half despite shooting 35 percent from the field and sustained multiple runs from SMU, but the flow of the game gave you the feeling that the Buffs were using a lot of energy to just hang in, whereas most things were coming easy for SMU. It was imperative that the Buffs generate some easy offense in the second half and they did.

Just about a third of the way through the second half, Colorado went on a 14-0 run to take a 54-46 lead, their largest of the game and seemed to have finally settled into a position where they could be in control.

But less than two minutes after that run came to an end, the Mustangs mustered up a run of their own, one of the 14-1 variety and one that gave them a four-point lead with under three minutes left and, in a game of runs, that would be the last one and the one that would give the Mustangs the eventual win.

It’s a tough pill to swallow for Buffs fans, especially in a game where the Buffs lost by four and shot 8-of-17 from the line (4-of-11 in the second half), but it’s also the second time this year the Buffaloes have gone toe-to-toe with a highly-ranked opponent, There’s no doubt that the Buffs are heading into conference play with the confidence that they can play with anybody. The question will be – can they find a way to win these close ones?

PLAYER OF THE GAME

Josh Fortune

On a night where nobody was exactly special for the Buffs, Fortune was the offensive bright spot, scoring 15 points on 5-of-11 from the floor, including 4-of-7 from downtown. Fortune was a key part of the Buffs offensive explosion in the second half that gave them the lead.

BY THE NUMBERS

11 – The Buffs 11-game win streak comes to an end.

39 – The Buffs shooting percentage from the floor, nine percentage points below SMU’s 48 percent.

47 – Colorado’s percentage from the free-throw line, just three points higher than their percentage from behind the arc.

WHAT’S NEXT

The Buffaloes get their Christmas break before taking on the Cal Bears on New Years Day.