Colorado University Athletics
Friday, December 29
Boulder, Colo.
7:00 PM
Colorado
9-3, 0-1Pac-12
47
vs
72
Arizona State
10-3,1-0Pac-12
1
2
3
4
F
Arizona State
21
16
25
10
72
Colorado
7
7
13
20
47
Photo by: Jivan West
Buffs Come Out Cold As ASU Tops CU In Pac-12 Opener
December 29, 2017 | Women's Basketball
BOULDER – Arizona State jumped out to a 23-point halftime lead and defeated Colorado 72-47 as both teams opened Pac-12 play at the Coors Events Center on Friday night. The Buffs fell to 9-3 overall, while ASU improved to 10-3 with its third straight win.
STAT LEADERS: Janea Bunn had a team-high 12 points, shooting 6-of-11 from the floor and grabbed five rebounds. Annika Jank scored nine points and pulled down a game-high 11 rebounds.
Sophia Elenga and Jamie Ruden combined for 33 points off the bench for ASU as Elenga had 17 on 7-of-8 shooting with seven rebounds. Ruden had 16.
HOW IT HAPPENED: The Buffs started cold in the Pac-12 opener, shooting just 20 percent in the first half. The Sun Devils went on an 18-3 run over the final 6:16 of the first quarter to take a 21-7 lead into the first break, and went on to lead 37-14 at halftime.
The Buffs got the home crowd into the game in the third quarter, using a 7-0 run to trim ASU's lead to 47-25. But the Sun Devils responded with the next 13 points to open a game-high 35-point lead at the 1:00 mark of the third quarter.
CU played a strong fourth quarter with several freshmen seeing extended minutes. The Buffs shot 50 percent and outrebounded ASU 11-8 in the fourth quarter as freshmen Mya Hollingshed, Peyton Carter and Jank combined for 12 of the team's 20 points.
KEY STATISTICS: Colorado shot just 33.3 percent in the game, its lowest field goal percentage of the season. The Sun Devils outrebounded CU 45-35, also the worst rebounding margin of the season. The Buffs committed 19 turnovers.
NOTES: ASU closed the first quarter on an 18-3 run over the final 6:16 for a 21-7 lead over CU, the largest deficit after the first quarter for CU this season ... CU's 14 points at halftime were the fewest since scoring 14 in the season opener against Samford and the 37-14 score was the largest halftime deficit for the Buffs this season ... CU's crowd of 1,860 was the highest in Boulder this season ... it was CU's worst defeat (-25 scoring margin) this season and worst since losing 79-46 (-33) at Washington last season ... the 33.3 field goal percentage was a season low, as was the -10 rebounding margin.
UP NEXT: CU hosts Arizona at 1 p.m. on Sunday for its final game of the 2017 calendar year.
POSTGAME QUOTES:
JR Payne, head coach
General
"I love my team. I'm excited and proud to be the coach of this basketball team. We obviously have a ton of areas that we can improve. We also have a lot of areas where we're good, and where we're going to be successful. This is a huge wake up call, not just for our new players, but for all of us, for coaches, for managers, for trainers, for players that have been here and players that are new… this is what the Pac-12 is. It will not change. The jersey change, but two days from now when we play Arizona, they're going to be just as good as Arizona State. Next week it'll be the Washingtons, and they're just as good as these guys. We need this to be a wakeup call. It's still very early in the season, but we need to get better, we need to get tougher, we need to get more disciplined, and be ready to roll on Sunday."
On whether eight new players were prepared for Pac-12 play
"I think statistically, yes. We watched a lot of film, we talked that this [Arizona State] team is tough. We want to be tough, [Arizona State] is tough, they're disciplined, they're all these things. We understood that. But when you step on the floor and you're playing in a game against this type of team, I think it hits you pretty quickly. At this point we have a very clear understanding of what it's going to be."
On bouncing back from lopsided loss to open Pac-12 play last season
"We will (bounce back). We keep saying that it's a wakeup call. With all our new players, they're not freshman anymore, they're not new anymore, but this is their first Pac-12 game. Now you know. When we talk about how physical a team is going to be, that they're good on the glass or switch aggressively, I think we'll have a clearer understanding of what that's going to feel like. It's a different feel than we've seen in the preseason."
On how the game seemingly got away early
"I think it was the rebounding. We were forcing them to miss shots, but they were getting offensive boards. That's demoralizing when you've done a good job defensively and give up an offensive board, then they get another offensive and finally they score it. That's demoralizing. I thought that hurt us, and then we weren't on the offensive glass like we needed to be, because we were also missing shots. There were opportunities for us to get on the boards, but we were not consistently aggressive as a group."
On ASU taking Kennedy Leonard out of her game
"I don't think so. I didn't notice anything other than they picked us up full court. We knew they would, they do that against everybody. But they don't really do anything special, they just flat out defend you. They did that 1-5 tonight."
Janea Bunn, junior
On how it felt to be playing in Pac-12
"I was really excited. Everyone was talking about (this game) and I was saying, 'you don't want to be bad for this' we had to listen to what our coaches were saying, and I just really mentally prepared, I ate right, I made sure I got good rest, and I made sure I was pumped up.
On what it felt like when Arizona State began pulling away
"Surprising, but when we don't rebound and we do lots of turnovers, and we can't really get the ball in the hoop, then what can you expect. Everybody is good in this conference, and that's what happens.
On if this game is a wakeup call
"I sure hope so, I know I need to definitely. We need to lock down and just go back to fundamentals."
On how good it is to play against a good team like Arizona State
"It's really good actually, and for myself personally, I am a new player, and I am older, and I have had college experience, so I don't really give myself any excuses. I just feel like I don't have a lot of time left to play college basketball, so no excuses, just go out and play, whoever it is.
Charli Turner Thorne, Arizona State head coach
General
"We worked hard preparing for this game. This is a high-scoring team and we really focused on aggressive defense and stopping their second chance opportunities. Not to mention, our guards, vision and ball movement really helped with getting the open shots we wanted."
On the main focus heading into this season
"Our focus has definitely altered this season. We have to avoid making mistakes on and off the court. I believe that we are contenders. When we play with everything that we have, there is not a team that we cannot beat."
On how to increase the team's level of play
"We have to be disciplined, even when we have the big lead. We're on this quest to not take a possession off, go hard every possession. If you are a team that can keep that focus, you will be very hard to beat. The best teams--the great teams--are consistent. They are disciplined throughout the entire game, and that is what we are working on."
STAT LEADERS: Janea Bunn had a team-high 12 points, shooting 6-of-11 from the floor and grabbed five rebounds. Annika Jank scored nine points and pulled down a game-high 11 rebounds.
Sophia Elenga and Jamie Ruden combined for 33 points off the bench for ASU as Elenga had 17 on 7-of-8 shooting with seven rebounds. Ruden had 16.
HOW IT HAPPENED: The Buffs started cold in the Pac-12 opener, shooting just 20 percent in the first half. The Sun Devils went on an 18-3 run over the final 6:16 of the first quarter to take a 21-7 lead into the first break, and went on to lead 37-14 at halftime.
The Buffs got the home crowd into the game in the third quarter, using a 7-0 run to trim ASU's lead to 47-25. But the Sun Devils responded with the next 13 points to open a game-high 35-point lead at the 1:00 mark of the third quarter.
CU played a strong fourth quarter with several freshmen seeing extended minutes. The Buffs shot 50 percent and outrebounded ASU 11-8 in the fourth quarter as freshmen Mya Hollingshed, Peyton Carter and Jank combined for 12 of the team's 20 points.
KEY STATISTICS: Colorado shot just 33.3 percent in the game, its lowest field goal percentage of the season. The Sun Devils outrebounded CU 45-35, also the worst rebounding margin of the season. The Buffs committed 19 turnovers.
NOTES: ASU closed the first quarter on an 18-3 run over the final 6:16 for a 21-7 lead over CU, the largest deficit after the first quarter for CU this season ... CU's 14 points at halftime were the fewest since scoring 14 in the season opener against Samford and the 37-14 score was the largest halftime deficit for the Buffs this season ... CU's crowd of 1,860 was the highest in Boulder this season ... it was CU's worst defeat (-25 scoring margin) this season and worst since losing 79-46 (-33) at Washington last season ... the 33.3 field goal percentage was a season low, as was the -10 rebounding margin.
UP NEXT: CU hosts Arizona at 1 p.m. on Sunday for its final game of the 2017 calendar year.
POSTGAME QUOTES:
JR Payne, head coach
General
"I love my team. I'm excited and proud to be the coach of this basketball team. We obviously have a ton of areas that we can improve. We also have a lot of areas where we're good, and where we're going to be successful. This is a huge wake up call, not just for our new players, but for all of us, for coaches, for managers, for trainers, for players that have been here and players that are new… this is what the Pac-12 is. It will not change. The jersey change, but two days from now when we play Arizona, they're going to be just as good as Arizona State. Next week it'll be the Washingtons, and they're just as good as these guys. We need this to be a wakeup call. It's still very early in the season, but we need to get better, we need to get tougher, we need to get more disciplined, and be ready to roll on Sunday."
On whether eight new players were prepared for Pac-12 play
"I think statistically, yes. We watched a lot of film, we talked that this [Arizona State] team is tough. We want to be tough, [Arizona State] is tough, they're disciplined, they're all these things. We understood that. But when you step on the floor and you're playing in a game against this type of team, I think it hits you pretty quickly. At this point we have a very clear understanding of what it's going to be."
On bouncing back from lopsided loss to open Pac-12 play last season
"We will (bounce back). We keep saying that it's a wakeup call. With all our new players, they're not freshman anymore, they're not new anymore, but this is their first Pac-12 game. Now you know. When we talk about how physical a team is going to be, that they're good on the glass or switch aggressively, I think we'll have a clearer understanding of what that's going to feel like. It's a different feel than we've seen in the preseason."
On how the game seemingly got away early
"I think it was the rebounding. We were forcing them to miss shots, but they were getting offensive boards. That's demoralizing when you've done a good job defensively and give up an offensive board, then they get another offensive and finally they score it. That's demoralizing. I thought that hurt us, and then we weren't on the offensive glass like we needed to be, because we were also missing shots. There were opportunities for us to get on the boards, but we were not consistently aggressive as a group."
On ASU taking Kennedy Leonard out of her game
"I don't think so. I didn't notice anything other than they picked us up full court. We knew they would, they do that against everybody. But they don't really do anything special, they just flat out defend you. They did that 1-5 tonight."
Janea Bunn, junior
On how it felt to be playing in Pac-12
"I was really excited. Everyone was talking about (this game) and I was saying, 'you don't want to be bad for this' we had to listen to what our coaches were saying, and I just really mentally prepared, I ate right, I made sure I got good rest, and I made sure I was pumped up.
On what it felt like when Arizona State began pulling away
"Surprising, but when we don't rebound and we do lots of turnovers, and we can't really get the ball in the hoop, then what can you expect. Everybody is good in this conference, and that's what happens.
On if this game is a wakeup call
"I sure hope so, I know I need to definitely. We need to lock down and just go back to fundamentals."
On how good it is to play against a good team like Arizona State
"It's really good actually, and for myself personally, I am a new player, and I am older, and I have had college experience, so I don't really give myself any excuses. I just feel like I don't have a lot of time left to play college basketball, so no excuses, just go out and play, whoever it is.
Charli Turner Thorne, Arizona State head coach
General
"We worked hard preparing for this game. This is a high-scoring team and we really focused on aggressive defense and stopping their second chance opportunities. Not to mention, our guards, vision and ball movement really helped with getting the open shots we wanted."
On the main focus heading into this season
"Our focus has definitely altered this season. We have to avoid making mistakes on and off the court. I believe that we are contenders. When we play with everything that we have, there is not a team that we cannot beat."
On how to increase the team's level of play
"We have to be disciplined, even when we have the big lead. We're on this quest to not take a possession off, go hard every possession. If you are a team that can keep that focus, you will be very hard to beat. The best teams--the great teams--are consistent. They are disciplined throughout the entire game, and that is what we are working on."
Team Stats
ASU
COLO
FG%
.422
.333
3FG%
.267
.235
FT%
.778
.500
RB
45
35
TO
15
19
STL
10
8
Game Leaders
Pts
12
FGM
6
3FGM
0
FTM
0
Pts
9
FGM
4
3FGM
0
FTM
1
Pts
5
FGM
2
3FGM
1
FTM
0
Pts
5
FGM
2
3FGM
1
FTM
0
Players Mentioned
F
/ Women's Basketball
G
/ Women's BasketballG/F
/ Women's BasketballF
/ Women's Basketball
G
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