Colorado
11-3,1-1Pac-12
Washington
9-3,1-1Pac-12
Buffs Hold on in Washington
December 30, 2022 | Women's Basketball
SEATTLE – Colorado picked up its first Pac-12 win of the season but it was not without drama. Colorado led by as many as 19 in the 64-56 win over Washington at the Alaska Airlines Arena.
Colorado (11-3, 1-1 Pac-12) had four players hit double figures on the day. Senior Quay Miller made her return to Seattle with a 14-point-eight-rebound performance. Sophomore Kindyll Wetta converted three 3's and contributed 12 points off the bench. Aaronette Vonleh and Jaylyn Sherrod each finished with 10 points.
"Today felt really good," Wetta commented. "I've been working a lot on my shot and it just hasn't been falling. To be able to hit three 3's today really gave me a boost of confidence. Hopefully, I can carry that into other games."
Friday was a story of two halves for the Buffs. CU shot 53.6% in the first half but saw its production drop to 37.5% in the second. The Buffs led by 15 at the half, before Washington battled back to within six points in the fourth quarter.
"I wished the full 40 minutes had looked like the first 20," head coach JR Payne expressed. "That doesn't always happen. When it's ugly and it's not going your way – to find a way to get it done sometimes is enough. It was enough today. It may not be another day but I thought we sort of dug in and did what we needed to do."
Washington (9-3, 1-1 Pac-12) was led by Jayda Noble and her 14 points.
How It Happened
UW got the first basket of the afternoon, but Miller answered with a 3-pointer to start the scoring for CU. Washington kept it close in the first quarter as the Buffs' largest lead was just eight, 14-6, following a Formann triple. The Huskies used an 8-2 run to narrow the lead to 16-14, but Colorado answered with the final four points of the quarter to take stay in front 20-14.
Wetta added to CU's run at the start of the second quarter, drilling her first 3 to put the Buffs up by nine. The Buffs' pace picked up in the second, led by five points from Vonleh in the frame. It was Vonleh's and1 midway through the half that ignited a 9-0 run for CU, growing the lead to 34-20. Sherrod closed the second half with a layup, giving CU a 38-23 advantage at the break.
Washington came out of the half, scoring the first seven points to cut CU's lead down to eight. The Buffs turned the ball over twice in the run and shot 0-for-4 in the opening three minutes.
Colorado called a timeout with 7:10 left to go in the quarter to regroup. Miller got the Buffs on the board after a steal from Tameiya Sadler, also playing her first game back in Seattle. The basket closed the UW run and put CU back up by 10, 40-30. Colorado continued to hit its next three shots, going 4-for-4, and went on a 12-3 run capped by another 3 from Wetta, increasing the lead to 49-33.
CU took a 14-point advantage into the final quarter but started 0-for-5 from the field. Washington clawed its way back to within seven, 53-46, with 5:31 to play in the game. Colorado's first field goal didn't come until the 4:32 mark of the period, with a Frida Formann floater to put up by 11.
Both teams traded baskets down the stretch with UW hitting a pair of 3's to get back within seven, 61-45. Colorado forced two turnovers in the final two minutes and got free throws from Miller and Tayanna Jones to seal the win.
"Teams are going to go on runs in every Pac-12 game," Wetta added. "That's just what happens. Being able to keep calm and collected during those runs is really important."
Turning Point
Washington used a 13-3 run that started in the third quarter and ran to the midway point of the fourth. In that time the Buffs went 0-for-9 from the field, scoring only from the free-throw line. Formann's basket, her only points in the second half, helped turn the tides for the Buffs and get Colorado pointed back in the right direction. The Buffs finished the final 4:32 shooting 4-of-6 and edging Washington in points, 10-7, in the closing stretch.
"To not really play your best and still win on the road is tough to do in this league," Payne continued. "We just have to make sure we don't have those lapses because it's hard to do that against teams in this conference."
Up Next
Colorado will ring in the New Year from the Palouse on Sunday. The Buffs will take on the Cougars at 5 p.m. MT in Pullman.
Notes
The Buffs improved to 4-3 on the road this season…CU is now 15-16 all-time against UW and 5-8 in Seattle…UW shot 42.0% from the field, the third highest by an opponent this season…CU lost the rebounding battle, 32-26…Sherrod had six more assists to give her 376 in her career.
