Colorado Faces BYU In First Round

March 20, 2003

BOULDER -

GAME: No. 11 Brigham Young (19-11) vs. No. 6 Colorado (22-7).

REGIONAL: Mideast, first round.

TIME: Saturday, 11:50 p.m. EST.

SITE: The Coors Events & Conference Center; Boulder, Colo.

Colorado is again becoming a mainstay in the NCAA women's tournament.

The Buffaloes made five straight NCAA appearances from 1992-97 but then did not qualify for three consecutive seasons.

However, Colorado will be making its third straight tournament appearance when it meets Brigham Young on its home floor.

"Obviously we are excited to be back in the NCAA tournament," Buffaloes coach Ceal Barry said. "It never gets old. This is the most fun time of the year and we're looking forward to it."

Colorado, which has never won a national title, is hoping to build upon last year's run to the regional finals, which included a win over second-seeded Stanford in the semifinals.

"This team is a little different than last year's team," Barry said. "Let's see how far we can go with this year's team and what this team is all about."

These Buffaloes were knocked out of the Big 12 tournament in the semifinals, losing 62-47 to No. 5 Texas on March 13.

Junior center Tera Bjorklund, who tied a Big 12 tournament mark with 32 points in a 73-68 quarterfinal win over Oklahoma, finished with 26 points and 10 rebounds against the Longhorns. However, no other Colorado player scored in double figures against Texas' rugged defense.

"They came out a lot more aggressive, which made it harder to get the ball to the inside," said Bjorklund, fourth in the Big 12 this season with 17.9 points per game.

BYU is making its second straight trip to the tournament after advancing to the regional semifinals last season.

The Cougars are coming off Saturday's 52-46 loss to New Mexico in the Mountain West Conference tournament final - their fourth straight appearance in the title game.

"I'm very proud of my team," BYU coach Jeff Judkins said. "I thought my team showed a lot of character and as a coach that's what you want to see."

Erin Thorn, who scored more than 30 points in each of the first two rounds, led the Cougars with just 12. She did not score in the second half.

Thorn was elected to the all-tournament team, becoming the first player in Mountain West history to achieve the honor four times. The guard set a conference record with 76 points in the tournament.

PROBABLE STARTERS: Brigham Young - F Kali Taylor, F Danielle Cheesman, C Ashleigh Chamberlain, G Kestlee Nelson, G Thorn. Colorado - F Sabrina Scott, F Randie Wirt, C Bjorklund, G Kate Fagan, G Linda Lappe.

TEAM LEADERS: Brigham Young - Thorn, 19.1 ppg and 5.7 apg; Cheesman, 5.5 rpg. Colorado - Bjorklund, 17.9 ppg; Scott, 6.9 rpg and 3.1 apg.

HOW THEY GOT HERE: Brigham Young - At-large bid, Mountain West Conference. Colorado - At-large bid, Big 12.

ALL-TIME TOURNAMENT RECORD: Brigham Young - 2-5, 5 years. Colorado - 15-10, 10 years.