At the moment, Bangot Dak is going up and getting ‘em as well as any rebounder during Colorado’s Tad Boyle era.

Yet even a performance on the defensive glass unseen in years wasn’t enough to curb the Buffaloes’ habit of surrendering offensive rebounds.

The CU men’s basketball team has struggled defensively throughout the season and, more recently, it has also struggled on the glass. Yet CU has an opportunity to correct both shortcomings on Wednesday, as it begins a two-game Big 12 trip against a Cincinnati team that has struggled offensively.

“Coach just tells me to go get it at the highest point. I feel like if I can do that, there’s not a lot of people that we’re going to play against that can go up and get it,” Dak said. “I’m starting to realize that and I’m just going up to get it at the highest point.

“Coach has just been on us about getting those rebounds. I feel like if no one else is going to do it, I’ve got to do it. Coach says no one is going to do the dirty work for you, so somebody has got to step up and do it. I’m trying to make sure teams can’t get offensive rebounds against us.”

Dak has recorded double-digit rebounding totals in each of the past three games and four of the past six, grabbing a career-high 13 during Saturday’s loss against Texas Tech. All 13 of those rebounds occurred on the defensive glass, giving Dak the most defensive rebounds in a game since Jabari Walker recorded 14 against California on Feb. 17, 2022. It’s the most rebounds by a CU player without grabbing a single offensive rebound since Andre Roberson recorded 14 against Dayton on Nov. 15, 2012.

Dak’s rebounding surge, however, hasn’t kept the opposition off the offensive glass, as the Buffs have surrendered at least 12 offensive rebounds in each of the past three games and five of the past seven. While CU will be challenged to correct that against the Bearcats, the matchup also presents an opportunity for the Buffs to put together an improved defensive performance.

Cincinnati began the week ranked last in the Big 12 in scoring (73.6), field goal percentage (.425), 3-point percentage (.311) and free throw percentage (.638). Those struggles can be partially attributed to a few personnel issues as Jizzle James, an honorable mention All-Big 12 selection last year, missed the first 10 games of the season while dealing with a personal matter. James has averaged 11.8 points in six games since returning.

And although the Bearcats enter Wednesday’s matchup 0-3 in the conference, they lost those games by a combined 10 points, opening the Big 12 slate with a seven-point defeat against No. 7 Houston. Last week, Cincinnati lost road games against West Virginia and Central Florida by a combined three points.

Gov. Jared Polis’ administration is proposing an $18.2 million cut to Colorado’s funding for medical education, a reduction that hospitals say might force them to reduce training slots.

The cut applies to residency programs, which train medical school graduates for three to seven years before they move into independent practice. Medicare funds direct costs, such as residents’ salaries, for the majority of available slots.

States can then choose whether to use Medicaid — whose costs they split with the federal government — to fund indirect costs and additional slots. Currently, Colorado is one of 23 states that do, according to Polis’ Jan. 2 budget letter.

The Department of Health Care Policy and Financing, which administers the funding, didn’t clarify Monday whether the cut would end the state’s contribution to indirect medical education costs, or if it would continue to provide a smaller amount.

“Reductions in (indirect medical education) payments would be limited to system hospitals, those more able to lean on their systems partners to share financial burden; no rural hospitals would be affected by this policy,” the letter said.

Hospitals also can bill patients’ insurance for services provided by residents, though not for the time that established doctors spend supervising them.

The state faces a challenging budget year, with a shortfall of nearly $1 billion. The governor’s budget proposal, which includes significant cuts to Medicaid beyond reducing spending on medical education, got a less-than-enthusiastic reception from lawmakers when he presented it in November, though.

The American Association of Medical Colleges reported 21 hospitals in Colorado participate in teaching. More than one-quarter of the 1,220 residency slots in the state don’t receive funding for direct costs from Medicare, making indirect cost funding important to maintaining them, it said in a fact sheet.

The $18.2 million cut to medical education at facilities that are part of systems would cost teaching hospitals an additional $41.5 million in federal matching funds, said Heather Retzko, one of the principals at Policy Matters, a lobbying group that works with the hospital industry in Colorado. At this point, the department hasn’t clarified if all 17 teaching hospitals that are part of systems would face equal reductions, she said.

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KKTV) – Three Colorado Springs figure skaters are heading to this year’s Olympics!

The City of Colorado Springs announced that Amber Glenn and pairs skaters Ellie Kam and Danny O’Shea will be on Team USA’s Olympic U.S. Figure Skating team for the 2026 Winter Games.

Glenn, Kam and O’Shea all live and train in Colorado Springs.

“Their hard work, resilience, and world-class dedication make our entire community proud,” the city said.

This year’s Olympic Games will be held in Milan and Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy.

The Olympics run from February 6 through 22.

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