Colorado University Athletics
Buffs Battle Arizona On Sunday
January 16, 2016 | Women's Basketball
THE GAME: The University of Colorado closes out its four-game road trip as the Buffaloes are set to face the Arizona Wildcats in Tucson on Sunday, Jan. 17 at 2 p.m. at the McKale Center.
BROADCAST: Sunday's game is scheduled to air live on the Pac-12 Mountain and Pac-12 Arizona channels. Guy Haberman will have the call alongside Elise Woodward. The game will also be available on KKZN 760 AM with Cory Lopez and USA Basketball's Carol Callan.
ABOUT THE BUFFS: Colorado is 5-11 overall and 0-5 in Pac-12 play. The Buffaloes will look to snap a six-game skid and earn its first conference win of the season as they finish their road trip at Arizona.
On offense, the Buffaloes are averaging 65.3 points per game while shooting 40.7 percent from the field. Colorado is shooting 75.4
percent at the free throw line, 20th in the nation and third in the Pac-12 Conference. The team has also been solid from long distance as CU ranks 31st in the country and second among Pac-12 teams in 3-point field goal percentage, connecting on 35.8 percent of its shots behind the arc.
Defensively, Colorado has allowed 69.2 points per game on 40.5 percent from the field. The Buffaloes average 37.9 rebounds, 26.6 defensive boards, and are tied for third in the Pac-12 with 4.8 blocked shots per game.
Senior Jamee Swan is the team's top scorer and rebounder, averaging 14.6 points and 7.6 rebounds while hitting 48.2 percent from the field and 71.9 percent from the free throw line. Swan has also recorded a team-leading 27 blocks on the season and three double-doubles.
Swan ranks 11th in the Pac-12 in scoring, ninth in field goal percentage, 12th in overall rebounding, is 11th with 5.5 defensive rebounds per game, 15th with 2.1 offensive rebounds a game and is fourth in blocked shots (1.9 bpg).
Freshman Kennedy Leonard has made a significant impact for the Buffaloes in her debut season as the team's starting point guard. She enters the game as Colorado's second highest scorer, averaging 12.4 points per game and has also dished out a team-leading 76 assists, averaging 4.8 in each contest.
On the Pac-12 leaderboard, Leonard is tied for 19th in scoring, eighth in assists and 13th in assist/turnover ratio (1.4).
Junior guard/forward Haley Smith is having a strong 2015-16 campaign, averaging 9.9 points per game and is second on the team with 5.7 rebounds. She has been one of Colorado's most accurate shooters from the field at 47.8 percent and has gone 21-of-24 (.875) from the free-throw line.
Smith ranks 27th overall in the conference in scoring and is 18th in rebounding.
Junior wing Lauren Huggins is averaging 8.3 points per game and is third on the team in 3-point shooting (minimum 10 attempts), connecting on 34-of-91 of her shots for a 37.4 field goal percentage from behind the arc. Huggins hit four of her five 3-pointers against Loyola Marymount and four of eight against Presbyterian, tying a career-high with 16 points in both contests to help the Buffs earn two victories. The Littleton, Colo. native is tied for fourth in the conference in 3-point field goals made as she averages 2.1 per game and 13th in 3-point field goal percentage.
Freshman Alexis Robinson has earned a place in the starting line up recently, as she has made four straight starts after providing a nice spark off the bench. The Ashland, Ky. native is averaging 7.9 points, 4.0 rebounds and 2.8 assists. She is shooting 40.7 percent from the 3-point line, second best on the team and has connected on 34.4 percent of her shots from the field. Robinson had one of her best offensive performances of her young career against UMass when she scored a personal-best 21 points and her best defensive performance came in the Buffs' Pac-12 opener when she held Washington's Kelsey Plum to a season low 18 points, 10 below her then nation leading average of 28.1 per game. Robinson ranks 14th in the Pac-12 in assists and assist/turnover ratio (1.2).
Sophomore center Zoe Correal is averaging 2.6 points and 3.9 rebounds and is second on the team in blocked shots with 14 total. Against UMass in the Omni Hotels Classic she set a career-high with 10 rebounds.
Junior Zoe Beard-Fails, sophomore Brecca Thomas and freshman Makenzie Ellis have all contributed in various ways off the bench. The trio has combined to average 11.1 points, 6.8 rebounds and 2.6 assists per game this season.
ABOUT ARIZONA: The Arizona Wildcats are 10-7 overall and 1-4 in the Pac-12. After earning their first conference win of the season against California on Jan. 4, the Wildcats have lost three consecutive games.
The Wildcats' offense is averaging 58.8 points per game and shooting 38.9 percent from the field. Their defense, ranked fifth in the Pac-12, allows 56.8 points and opponents shoot 37.1 percent from the floor.
Arizona is led by LaBrittney Jones, averaging 11.0 points and also grabs 5.7 rebounds a game. Malen Washington also averages double figures, 10.4 points per game, which ranks 25th in the conference. Dejza James is Arizona's top rebounder, ranking 16th overall in the Pac-12, averaging 6.2 rebounds.
Niya Butts is in her eighth season at the helm for the Wildcats.
THE SERIES: This will be the 18th meeting between Colorado and Arizona with the Buffaloes holding a 14-3 series advantage. Colorado has won 11 straight over the Wildcats, including all eight meetings since the Buffaloes joined the Pac-12 for the 2011-12 season. Colorado is 6-2 all-time playing on Arizona's home court.
Linda Lappe is 8-0 against Arizona as a head coach. Niya Butts is 0-8 against Colorado as a head coach.
WHAT'S NEXT?: The Buffaloes return to Boulder for the first time in nearly three weeks to begin a four-game homestand. Colorado hosts the Oregon Ducks on Friday, Jan. 22 at 6 p.m MT. The contest will be televised on the Pac-12 Networks.
