The Colorado men’s basketball team lost more than just a game in Las Vegas. The season officially came to a delayed end last week, when the Buffaloes bowed out of the inaugural College Basketball Crown tournament with a first-round loss against Villanova.

Head coach Tad Boyle said prior to the trip he didn’t expect any further transfer portal departures beyond the decisions to leave made by reserves Harrison Carrington and Courtney Anderson shortly after the transfer portal opened.

That changed after the loss against Villanova, as sophomore forward Assane Diop and third-year guard RJ Smith opted to leave the program (Smith committed to DePaul this week).

In that same pre-Vegas interview, Boyle did add “one thing about being a college basketball coach in the spring is you can’t be surprised by anything.” And he reiterated to BuffZone this week that, while losing Smith and Diop was surprising and disappointing, it fell short of being labeled as a shock.

“These are decisions that are not made by the coach,” Boyle said. “They’re decisions made by the players. As we went into the Crown Tournament and that postseason opportunity, I was looking forward to next year. Obviously after that was over with they decided that it was best for them to leave. So that’s what they did, and that’s where we’re at.”

Once again Boyle said he’s not expecting further departures, but nothing will become official until the transfer portal closes on April 22.

Boyle also maintained the plan is to remain at 13 scholarship players, even as college basketball moves to a maximum roster limit of 15. That means three open slots remain for the Buffs to address this spring, but Boyle, heading into his 16th season at CU, said the shopping list might not be as robust as it appears.

Expected returnees Bangot Dak, Sebastian Rancik, Elijah Malone and Felix Kossaras will be in line for rotation spots, as will at least three of the Buffs’ incoming freshmen in Josiah Sanders, Jalin Holland and Ian Inman. Former ThunderRidge star Andrew Crawford, a 6-foot-6 freshman who redshirted this season, also could be in the mix.

Although CU’s backcourt was decent from the 3-point arc, thanks largely to Smith and graduating senior Julian Hammond III, its guards generally struggled to attack the rim, create their own shot and set up teammates. A guard that fits that bill will be the priority as Boyle and his staff sort through options in the transfer portal.After that, Boyle said it will be a “best available” situation and hinted he already has the core of a potential rotation in mind.

“We’ve got to put together a rotation for next year,” Boyle said. “The rotation this year was 11 guys. Which is too many. But the reason it was 11 guys is we didn’t have a lot of separation between those 11 guys. Ideally, you want a rotation of seven, eight, probably a maximum nine. Just because we lost a couple guys out of an 11-man rotation does not mean we have to replace all of them.

“A guard that can score and create his own shot is probably the first thing. The portal is open until April 22nd. Assuming everybody else is coming back, you’re recruiting a point guard who can score the ball and distribute the ball. And then maybe the best available player you can get.”