Sunday, November 17
5 p.m.
Colorado
4-1,0-0Big 12
65
vs
45
Southern
0-5,0-0SWAC
1
2
3
4
F
Southern U.
11
6
21
7
45
Colorado
16
15
18
16
65
Photo by: Serena Rodriguez
Colorado Takes Down Southern, 65-45
November 17, 2024 | Women's Basketball
Three Buffs score in double figures in the team’s return to the CU Events Center
BOULDER – Colorado women's basketball picked up its 500th win at the CU Events Center with a commanding 65-45 victory over the visiting Southern Jaguars on Sunday.
Frida Formann made her 2024-25 debut, coming off the bench with nine points in 25 minutes. Johanna Teder led the Buffs in scoring for the second consecutive game, totaling all 11 of her points in the second half of the victory. Freshman Tabitha Betson and grad transfer Lior Garzon each finished with 10 points.
"I knew that it was going to feel very discombobulated," head coach JR Payne noted about Formann's return. "Bringing Frida back into the mix changes things in a good way, but we also played four games without her, and some minutes and lineups and things have been similar. Bringing Frida back in the mix, you're moving people around in different positions. I had no thought it would just be a clean, smooth game, but I am really proud of how we stayed resilient. We stayed connected and had some really good execution at different times. Certainly, we defended well to hold the opponent to 45 points. 28% for defense is really, really good. Overall, good win."
The Buffs bench nearly matched all of Southern, totaling a season-high 37 points. CU's depth off the bench has been showcased early this season, with the unit scoring 30 or more points in three of its five games.
"We have a lot of good players on our team," Payne added. "I don't think we have anybody on our team that's going to score 25 a night, but [look at] the numbers, someone had 10, someone had seven, someone had 9, 10, 11, like that's very balanced. I think we have a lot of different players who are confident enough to step up. 37 points off the bench is huge, and, man, it speaks to our depth."
Colorado (4-1) led by as many as 22 in the fourth quarter. The Buffs used a 16-0 run in the final quarter to put any chance of a Southern comeback to rest.
Southern (0-5), playing its fifth straight road Power 4 opponent, was led by Aniya Gourdine and her 12 points.
How it Happened
Southern scored the night's first basket and held the initial 2-0 lead as the Buff started 0-for-3 from the field. Betson got the Buffs on the board and started a 10-0 run capped off by a Nyamer Diew 3-pointer to give the Buffs an eight-point lead midway through the quarter.
Betson hit her second 3-pointer of the night to help Colorado double up Southern, 22-11, with just over six minutes to go in the second quarter. The Buffs' lead grew to 14 by the end of the quarter, as the team's defense held SU to just six points on a 2-for-15 shooting effort. Colorado forced five turnovers in the quarter. The Buffs scored eight of its 15 points in the quarter off the Jaguar's cough-ups.
"We've always been that team [defensively]," Payne noted. "We've always said we're going to defend no matter what. Shots fall awesome, but we're going to defend. We finished the top two or three in the Pac-12 every year for the last many years defensively. It's something that's great to be able to hang your hat on because there are going to be nights when the shots aren't falling. But if you can hold your opponent to a low percentage, limit shots, defensive rebounds, we feel like we're always going to have a chance to win the game."
Southern battled back in the third quarter, outscoring its entire first-half production with 21 points. The Jaguars tailed by 20 points in the quarter after an Ayianna Johsnon three-point play. But CU saw its lead shrink to 10 by the 1:49 mark, 46-36. Three late points from Sara-Rose Smith helped Colorado take a 49-38 lead into the final quarter.
The Jaguars got out to a 5-0 start to the fourth quarter, cutting the CU lead down to six, 49-43. Formann forced a Southern turnover that turned into a Teder fast-break layup on the other end of the floor, and that would be enough to keep the Jaguars at bay. Garzon followed up with her first 3 of the night for a 5-0 run that quickly mounted to 16 straight CU points to claim a 65-43 lead with 2:23 to play.
Coach Payne called a timeout after the run hit 16, and the Buffs bench finished the night.
Up Next
It's a quick turnaround for Colorado, with Utah State coming to town on Tuesday (7 p.m. MT).
Notes
The Buffs allowed 17 points in the first half, holding an opponent to under 20 points in a half for the first time since Kansas State had 15 in the second half (Mar. 24, 2024)…It's the fewest points allowed in a half by CU since Oregon's 11 first-half points (Mar. 6, 2024)…Southern's six second-quarter points was the third quarter this season CU has held opponents to under 10 points…The 45 points scored by SU were the fewest since holding Oregon to 30 (Marc. 6, 2024)…Smith led the Buffs with six rebounds and has now led the team in the category three times this season…Kindyll Wetta led the Buffs with five assists, marking her third game of the year with five or more assists…Wetta moved into a tie for 10th all-time in program history with Kris Holwerda with 355 career assists…She had three steals on Sunday to move past Julie Hoeing for 12th in team history (193)…Formann snagged four rebounds, giving her 302 for her career…Garzon's 10 points give her 1,305 for her career.
Frida Formann made her 2024-25 debut, coming off the bench with nine points in 25 minutes. Johanna Teder led the Buffs in scoring for the second consecutive game, totaling all 11 of her points in the second half of the victory. Freshman Tabitha Betson and grad transfer Lior Garzon each finished with 10 points.
"I knew that it was going to feel very discombobulated," head coach JR Payne noted about Formann's return. "Bringing Frida back into the mix changes things in a good way, but we also played four games without her, and some minutes and lineups and things have been similar. Bringing Frida back in the mix, you're moving people around in different positions. I had no thought it would just be a clean, smooth game, but I am really proud of how we stayed resilient. We stayed connected and had some really good execution at different times. Certainly, we defended well to hold the opponent to 45 points. 28% for defense is really, really good. Overall, good win."
The Buffs bench nearly matched all of Southern, totaling a season-high 37 points. CU's depth off the bench has been showcased early this season, with the unit scoring 30 or more points in three of its five games.
"We have a lot of good players on our team," Payne added. "I don't think we have anybody on our team that's going to score 25 a night, but [look at] the numbers, someone had 10, someone had seven, someone had 9, 10, 11, like that's very balanced. I think we have a lot of different players who are confident enough to step up. 37 points off the bench is huge, and, man, it speaks to our depth."
Colorado (4-1) led by as many as 22 in the fourth quarter. The Buffs used a 16-0 run in the final quarter to put any chance of a Southern comeback to rest.
Southern (0-5), playing its fifth straight road Power 4 opponent, was led by Aniya Gourdine and her 12 points.
How it Happened
Southern scored the night's first basket and held the initial 2-0 lead as the Buff started 0-for-3 from the field. Betson got the Buffs on the board and started a 10-0 run capped off by a Nyamer Diew 3-pointer to give the Buffs an eight-point lead midway through the quarter.
Betson hit her second 3-pointer of the night to help Colorado double up Southern, 22-11, with just over six minutes to go in the second quarter. The Buffs' lead grew to 14 by the end of the quarter, as the team's defense held SU to just six points on a 2-for-15 shooting effort. Colorado forced five turnovers in the quarter. The Buffs scored eight of its 15 points in the quarter off the Jaguar's cough-ups.
"We've always been that team [defensively]," Payne noted. "We've always said we're going to defend no matter what. Shots fall awesome, but we're going to defend. We finished the top two or three in the Pac-12 every year for the last many years defensively. It's something that's great to be able to hang your hat on because there are going to be nights when the shots aren't falling. But if you can hold your opponent to a low percentage, limit shots, defensive rebounds, we feel like we're always going to have a chance to win the game."
Southern battled back in the third quarter, outscoring its entire first-half production with 21 points. The Jaguars tailed by 20 points in the quarter after an Ayianna Johsnon three-point play. But CU saw its lead shrink to 10 by the 1:49 mark, 46-36. Three late points from Sara-Rose Smith helped Colorado take a 49-38 lead into the final quarter.
The Jaguars got out to a 5-0 start to the fourth quarter, cutting the CU lead down to six, 49-43. Formann forced a Southern turnover that turned into a Teder fast-break layup on the other end of the floor, and that would be enough to keep the Jaguars at bay. Garzon followed up with her first 3 of the night for a 5-0 run that quickly mounted to 16 straight CU points to claim a 65-43 lead with 2:23 to play.
Coach Payne called a timeout after the run hit 16, and the Buffs bench finished the night.
Up Next
It's a quick turnaround for Colorado, with Utah State coming to town on Tuesday (7 p.m. MT).
Notes
The Buffs allowed 17 points in the first half, holding an opponent to under 20 points in a half for the first time since Kansas State had 15 in the second half (Mar. 24, 2024)…It's the fewest points allowed in a half by CU since Oregon's 11 first-half points (Mar. 6, 2024)…Southern's six second-quarter points was the third quarter this season CU has held opponents to under 10 points…The 45 points scored by SU were the fewest since holding Oregon to 30 (Marc. 6, 2024)…Smith led the Buffs with six rebounds and has now led the team in the category three times this season…Kindyll Wetta led the Buffs with five assists, marking her third game of the year with five or more assists…Wetta moved into a tie for 10th all-time in program history with Kris Holwerda with 355 career assists…She had three steals on Sunday to move past Julie Hoeing for 12th in team history (193)…Formann snagged four rebounds, giving her 302 for her career…Garzon's 10 points give her 1,305 for her career.
Team Stats
SU
CU
FG%
.288
.414
3FG%
.208
.346
FT%
.833
.727
RB
32
41
TO
18
13
STL
5
11
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
11
FGM
5
3FGM
1
FTM
0
Pts
10
FGM
4
3FGM
2
FTM
0
Pts
10
FGM
4
3FGM
2
FTM
0
Pts
9
FGM
2
3FGM
2
FTM
3
Players Mentioned
F
/ Women's Basketball
F
/ Women's BasketballG
/ Women's BasketballF
/ Women's Basketball
G
/ Women's BasketballG
/ Women's Basketball
G
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