That's a start.

If you watched Colorado produce its historic win over Baylor in double overtime Thursday, you saw the best example yet -- by far -- of what kind of basketball Jeff Bzdelik envisions the Buffs playing on a regular basis.

Backdoor cuts that produced layups and left defenders chasing in vain. Drives and dishes that produced open shots on the wing. Crisp passes, good movement, and overall, an offense that obviously caught Scott Drew's Bears by surprise.

Certainly, it helped that the Buffs made those open shots. Too many times this year, they squandered those wide-open opportunities in the most crucial of moments. But Thursday, CU fans received a good look at what Bzdelik's Colorado offense can produce when it's executed correctly.

Defensively, the Buffs also more than held their own. They limited one of the nation's highest-scoring teamsto 65 points in regulation -- 16 below the Bears' season average -- and came up with enough stops when necessary to keep Baylor's second-half comeback from completely negating the Buffs' effort.

Of course there were holes. CU could have kept the game in control down the stretch simply by making free throws -- particularly the front end of some one-and-one situations that the Buffs missed, allowing the Bears to maintain momentum.

The Buffs also had a chance to win at the end of regulation and again at the end of the first overtime, but both times they came up empty with the last shot.

Still, Bzdelik did an outstanding job of coaching, starting with his game plan early and continuing right through the overtime periods.

Tell most coaches they'll lose three of their key players to foul troubles late in a tight game, and they aren't going to like their chances. Bzdelik, though, kept the Buffs in the game. While the Bears were a deeper, more-talented team, CU's game plan negated that edge. CU's defense limited Baylor's good looks, and the Buffs' offense forced the Bears to play at CU's pace -- something that obviously frustrated Baylor throughout much of the game.

Of course as far as this year is concerned, Thursday's win is merely one bright spot amidst far too many dark moments. Unless the Buffs can reproduce the effort again today against Oklahoma, Thursday's win will simply go down as a Big 12 footnote -- the first No. 12 seed to win a game in the Big 12 Tournament, and the first double-OT tilt in tourney history.

Still, the final result is one that Buff fans can latch onto as a glimpse of the future. While Richard Roby and Marcus Hall won't be around next year to provide offense, the Buffs might actually be a better overall shooting team, particularly if big man transfer Casey Crawford lives up to the coaching staff's expectations. Crawford can play inside and out -- exactly the type of player that makes CU's offense run.

But while just about everyone who cares to pay attention figured today would be the first day of next season, the Buffs surprised us all and extended this season by at least one more day.

The fact that they did it by giving us a glimpse of what a Bzdelik-coached team is supposed to look like is enough to whet the appetite for more.