Three Key Takeaways From Colorado's Loss to San Diego State

The Colorado Buffaloes traveled to San Diego, California, on Saturday to take on the San Diego State Aztecs in the inaugural Bill Walton Classic. This was all but a road game for the Buffs, as it took place in Pechanga Arena, which sits just a few miles west of the Aztecs' campus. So although it was technically a neutral-site contest, you would be hard-pressed to find a Buffs fan in attendance.

The Aztecs put on a show for their fanbase, playing excellent defense to defeat the Buffaloes 77-66. As the Buffs return home to Boulder, here are three takeaways from the Bill Walton Classic that they'll be coming back with.

Foul trouble is a real concern for this team

The Buffaloes struggled mightily with fouls in this game, as three players (Justin Neely, Noah Feddersen and Jain Holland) recorded four or more fouls. Neely fouled out of the game with 2:17 remaining in the second half.

Colorado struggled defensively in this game, but rather than focusing on the Aztecs' offensive game plan and picking up on their habits, the Buffaloes lacked discipline and began fouling.

Colorado had its fair share of foul trouble against the Abilene Christian Wildcats in its season-opener as well, namely in the first half. Holland also fouled four times in that game.

"Foul trouble is a part of the game, and that's why you have to have quality depth," said Buffaloes coach Tad Boyle after CU's win over the Wildcats. "We have that, but we've got to learn to not pick those things up if can."

Barrington Hargress is as advertised

While the Buffaloes didn't have the need to run their offense through Hargress in their season-opener, they certainly did against the Aztecs. With all of their other offensive weapons shooting inefficiently and/or in foul trouble, it was on Hargress to keep the Buffs in the game.

He not only rose to that occasion, but he put up arguably the best performance of his career. His 33 points were a career-high, and he scored them on an 11-of-20 (55 percent) shooting night. He was also clutch from the free-throw line, hitting all six of his attempts from the charity stripe.

Hargress has proven that his game is exactly what Buffs fans hoped it would be during the offseason. He's not going to hog the ball, but he's also not going to rely exclusively on finding teammates if he knows the offense needs his help.

The Colorado Buffaloes are thin on shooters

But the Buffaloes may need Hargress' help shooting the ball more than they'd hoped coming into this season. Consistent shooters were hard to come by on their roster in this game, which led to him needing the ball in his hands as much as it was.

Colorado's sophomore guards haven't taken the step forward in their shooting that the Buffs had hoped thus far, as Josiah Sanders and Holland shot a combined 35 percent from the field. Even sharpshooting sophomore guard Ian Inman had a rough shooting day, as he went 0-of-7 from the field until the final 1:30.

Alex Dickeson also hasn't been the scoring threat he looked like in the Mile High Hoops Classic exhibition against the North Texas Mean Green through two games, shooting 50 percent from the field and scoring 15 points.

Colorado will be looking for more consistent offensive weapons to emerge as non-conference play ramps up.

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This article was originally published on www.si.com/college/colorado as Three Key Takeaways From Colorado's Loss to San Diego State .