Colorado University Athletics
Colorado
1-0
Rice
0-1
| Team | 1 | 2 | F |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rice | 40 | 26 | 66 |
| Colorado | 39 | 46 | 85 |
Colorado Tops Rice 85-66 In Season Opener
November 22, 2002 | Women's Basketball
BOULDER - Tera Bjorklund scored 21 points and Kate Fagan 17, leading Colorado to an 85-66 season-opening victory over Rice on Friday night.
Colorado used a 24-6 run in the second half, including eight points by Linda Lappe, to open up a 74-54 lead with 4:59 remaining.
The Buffaloes, who advanced to the NCAA Elite Eight in a 24-10 season a year ago, got 16 points from Sabrina Scott, 12 from Syreeta Stafford and 11 from Lappe. Bjorklund added 10 rebounds.
Johnetta Hayes had 14 points and seven rebounds for Rice, which was 21-9 last year and lost to Houston in the first round of the WNIT.
Colorado shot 57 percent compared to Rice's 42 percent. The Owls shot 64 percent in the first half but only 24 percent (8 of 34) in the second half.
Fagan hit a pair of 3-pointers sandwiched around Lappe's layup to start Colorado's second-half flurry. Bjorklund and Scott each hit 4-of-4 free throws, and Lappe followed with six straight points. Stafford's steal and layup produced the 20-point lead.
Elisa Inman scored eight points on 4-for-4 shooting as Rice took a 40-39 lead at intermission. Bjorklund had 10 points in the half.
The Buffaloes built an early six-point lead on two free throws by Bjorklund, but Rice used a 9-2 run to open up a 26-23 advantage.
Starla James' layup with 2:22 left put the Owls ahead 38-33.
Colorado countered with six straight points, including Bjorklund's short jumper, but James scored on a rebound layup just before the buzzer.
Colorado shot 62 percent in the half and made 11-of-14 free throws compared to Rice's 0-for-1.
