Colorado University Athletics
Colorado
6-18, 1-12Pac12
Oregon State
21-3, 12-1Pac12
Buffs Start Strong, But Fall 73-50 To Oregon State
February 12, 2016 | Women's Basketball
CORVALLIS, Ore. — A second shot at the eighth-ranked Oregon State Beavers couldn't manifest into a win for head coach Linda Lappe's Colorado women's basketball team here Friday night at Gill Coliseum. The Buffaloes fell 73-50 after struggling to score in the final quarter.
The Buffaloes dropped to 6-18 overall and 1-12 in Pac-12 play. Oregon State climbed to 21-3 overall and 12-1 against league opponents.
Freshman Kennedy Leonard led the Buffs with 11 points and senior Jamee Swan along with junior Haley Smith added 10 points each.
Swan made two quick shots to give Colorado an initial 4-0 lead in the first quarter, but Oregon would respond quickly as its senior point guard Jamie Weisner scored six points in the opening frame and 10 in the half. She led all scorers with 16 points and was one of four Beavers to finish in double-figures. The others: Sydney Wiese (15 points), Deven Hunter (11) and Marie Gulich (10).
Both teams struggled to find the touch from behind the three-point line throughout the game as they finished a combined 8-of-28 (.286).
Oregon State shot 43.3 percent, better than the 35.3 percent average over its last 10 games, including the recent trip to Boulder, while the Buffs shot just 33.3 percent from the field.
Leonard led the Buffaloes on offense in the first half, scoring seven points and grabbing three boards, with sophomore Zoe Correal draining three buckets for six points.
Oregon State had a 37-28 lead heading into the second half, and maintained a double-digit lead throughout the final 20 minutes of the game. Alexis Robinson put up six points in the third quarter, but ended up in foul trouble along with Swan. Both found themselves with four fouls apiece at the end of the quarter. Oregon State's defense settled in and held Colorado to only 2-of-12 shooting down the stretch.
"We're better when we are working the ball a little bit, and we get open looks that way," Lappe said. "We stopped doing that; we started taking some quick shots. You have to give Oregon State credit. They were there on every shot; they rushed every shot."
Colorado finished with 14 turnovers in the game, but did take care of the ball better in the second half, only committing four after halftime. And despite only scoring eight points in the fourth quarter, Lappe spoke with optimism about her team's late-game play.
"Overall, I like how we competed. I thought we did some really good things," said Lappe. "You have to remember that Oregon State beat Arizona State here by 20 points, and that is a veteran group. I like how our young kids competed and continued to battle."
"This game was really a good test of working hard and a testament to what working hard and having players work together can do," Smith said. "It's really good preparation for us moving on to Oregon on Sunday."
Colorado faces the Oregon Ducks in Eugene at 5 p.m. MT on Sunday (Feb. 14). The game will be televised on the Pac-12 Networks.
