Colorado will have an opportunity to at least inch out of the Big 12 basement. But the Buffaloes probably will have to get that job done while shorthanded.

CU men’s basketball coach Tad Boyle offered updates on starters Elijah Malone and RJ Smith, and while their outlooks are encouraging in the big picture, the Buffs still are likely to be without both players when they host Cincinnati on Wednesday night in a battle between the only two teams still winless in Big 12 play.

Neither Smith nor Malone played during the second half of Sunday’s loss against West Virginia. And while Boyle stopped short of ruling out the duo against Cincinnati, he labeled the status of both players as “questionable” while saying neither practiced on Tuesday.

Malone, CU’s 6-foot-10 center, has started every game but logged a season-low 9 minutes, 40 seconds before going to the bench with a back issue against West Virginia. Smith’s situation appeared more ambiguous following the WVU loss, as Boyle said Smith would be subjected to further testing after looking out of sorts on the CU bench.

It was a concerning description, particularly since Smith’s season last year was cut short after seven games due to blood clots in his leg. However, on Tuesday, Boyle made it clear that while Smith might not be in action on Wednesday, it is not expected to be a long-term issue for a player that displayed tremendous growth through the first two months of the season.

“It’s next man up. Whoever’s ready is ready,” Boyle said. “If they’re there, they’re there. If they’re not, they’re not. RJ is going to be OK. Elijah, it’s a back issue with a big guy, so you just never know. We’ll wait and see.”

Smith has started the past seven games after playing his way into the starting lineup, and he has been superb from 3-point range, sporting a .490 mark from the arc even after going 1-for-10 in the past three games.

If both players are sidelined, the Buffs’ depth will be tested against the Bearcats. Among CU’s 13 scholarship players, freshman Andrew Crawford is redshirting while redshirt freshman Courtney Anderson hasn’t played outside of garbage time. Former walk-on Harrison Carrington has averaged 9.9 minutes while playing in 14 of 15 games, but after Carrington the Buffs could be down to eight healthy bodies: Julian Hammond III, Javon Ruffin, Andrej Jakimovski, Trevor Baskin, Assane Diop, Bangot Dak, Sebastian Rancik and Felix Kossaras. A freshman, Kossaras has played a total of just 4:09 while appearing in two of CU’s first four Big 12 games.

Cincinnati profiles similarly to West Virginia as a team that hasn’t lit it up offensively, but it will bring a standout defense to the floor. The Bearcats haven’t reached 50 points in either of their past two games and are coming off a 54-40 loss at home against Kansas. However, Cincinnati began the week leading the Big 12 in defensive 3-point percentage (.271) and ranking second in scoring defense (60.5).

“You’re never as bad as you think you are when things aren’t going well,” Boyle said. “You’re never as good as you think you are when they are going well. The truth’s somewhere in the middle. This team’s fighting and they’re scratching and they’re clawing. That’s all I can ask as a coach. We’ve just got to do a better job in the important things to win a game.”