LOS ANGELES — It wasn’t at all the homecoming Namon Wright would’ve preferred.
Still, playing his first game in front of his hometown fans in his third season of college basketball was nonetheless a meaningful experience for Colorado’s junior guard.
A big reason why Wright settled on CU as his new home after transferring from Missouri was for an opportunity to play in the Pac-12, which means once-a-year visits to his native Los Angeles. Wright had several rows of friends and family in attendance Wednesday night at the Galen Center, where the Buffs suffered a 70-58 defeat against USC.
“It was a fun night. I wish we would’ve won so it would be a lot sweeter,” said Wright, who never played in Los Angeles during his two seasons with Missouri. “It wasn’t my first time playing on this court, but it was my first time playing on this court in college. It was a good experience. It was fun.”
Wright had another strong start offensively for the Buffs, going 3-for-6 from the field in the first half while knocking down both his 3-point attempts. Like the Buffs in general, however, Wright tailed off after halftime, finishing with 10 points and three assists while also sharing the team lead with five turnovers.
Quotable
“It was a strategic timeout. And I’m sure he had a lot to talk about in that timeout. It’s a timeout that I won’t forget and our players won’t forget.”
— CU coach Tad Boyle, on the timeout taken by USC coach Andy Enfield with 21 seconds remaining that the Trojans leading by 12 points. Enfield had a terse reaction this week to some rather innocuous comments Boyle made following his team’s win against Arizona last week.
Notable
With his San Antonio Spurs in town to face the Lakers on Thursday, former CU star Derrick White was in attendance and visited the Buffs’ locker room Wednesday night…After winning their first seven games against USC after joining the Pac-12, the Buffs have now lost three in a row against the Trojans…With 21 points, King became the 28th CU player to surpass 1,100 in his career. He finished the game with 1,109 and needs just two more points to pass Jim Davis for 27th-place on CU’s all-time scoring list.
Pat Rooney: rooneyp@dailycamera.com or twitter.com/prooney07
