Colorado
10-3
Arizona
12-1
Buffs Come Up Short In Final Minute, Fall To Arizona
January 04, 2019 | Women's Basketball, Neill Woelk
Strong second half fuels comeback
BOULDER — Colorado fought all the way back from a 14-point first-half deficit to take a lead over Arizona heading into the final quarter Friday night, but couldn't make the edge hold up in the final period in a 69-67 loss to the Wildcats.
The Buffs missed three shots in the final 17 seconds that would have tied or won the game, including one that bounced off the rim at the buzzer.
Colorado dropped to 10-3 overall and 0-2 in Pac-12 play while Arizona improved to 12-1, 2-0.
Quinessa Caylao-Do led CU with 21 points and Alexis Robinson scored 17. Kennedy Leonard had an 11-point, 11-assist double-double and Peanut Tuitele added 10 points and eight rebounds. The Buffs also had a commanding 39-20 edge on the boards, but 21 CU turnovers led to 21 Arizona points.
Ari McDonald led the Wildcats with 32 points.
The Buffs trailed by as much as 14 in the first half and by nine at intermission, 40-31. But Colorado outscored the Wildcats 26-14 in the third period to take a 57-54 lead into the final quarter. Arizona, however, slowly chipped away at the lead and held the Buffs without a field goal over the final three minutes of the game for the win.
"I'm really proud of how we played tonight," CU coach JR Payne said. "… To me we looked like a different basketball team tonight than we did a week ago (a 76-61 loss to Utah) and it wasn't Xs and Os. ... We were a much grittier tougher, more competitive ballclub and I love that. We need to be that."
HOW IT HAPPENED: After trailing by as much as 14 in the first half, Colorado came back with a vengeance in the third quarter to erase a 40-31 halftime deficit and take a 57-54 lead heading into the final period.
Led by Robinson, the Buffs put together a 19-4 run to take the lead, with Robinson draining three 3-pointers in the surge as Colorado turned a 46-36 deficit into a 55-50 lead with 1:33 left in the period on a Caylao-Do drive to the bucket.
Arizona finally answered with four straight points, but Leonard connected on a drive to the basket with 16 seconds left in the period to give Colorado a three-point edge heading into the final quarter.
The Wildcats, however, chipped away at Colorado's lead in the fourth quarter and finally took the lead for good when a Sam Thomas layup gave the Wildcats a 69-67 edge with 34.3 seconds left on the clock.
The Buffs then had three shots at a game-tying basket, but couldn't put it through the net. Robinson and Leonard both missed 3-point attempts before an in-bounds play with 1.8 seconds remaining found Tuitele under the bucket. Her shot, however, bounced off the glass and rim before finally falling away.
Payne, though, noted that CU wouldn't have had that last chance had Tuitele not produced a key offensive rebound with 13 seconds left.
"What I told 'P' was, 'You're going to have a lot of opportunities to take game-winning shots throughout your career and I'm going to trust you to take that shot and make that shot every time,'" Payne said. "The reality is we wouldn't have been in position to have a game-winning basket if not for Peanut. Her rebounding effort was amazing. She helped us be in this ballgame."
The Buffs were in the game despite a difficult first half, as turnovers and cold shooting from the field plagued CU almost from the beginning.
After battling to a 7-7 tie three minutes into the first quarter, Colorado saw the Wildcats put together a 12-3 run to take a 19-10 lead after the first quarter.
The Wildcats built their lead to as much as 14 in the second period before a late Colorado surge cut the deficit back to single digits by halftime. Robinson had six points in the final three minutes and Caylao-Do added a 3-pointer as CU closed the half with a 9-4 run to enter the locker room trailing 40-31 at intermission.
The Buffs shot just 39.3 percent from the field in the first half (11-for-28), and compounded their problems by committing 13 turnovers, which Arizona converted into 14 points.
TURNING POINT: The Buffs led by three, 65-62, with three minutes remaining after a Tuitele basket inside. But the Wildcats then scored five straight points to regain the lead before two Leonard free throws tied the game at 67-67 with 1:36 remaining. Both teams then missed shots before Arizona finally took the lead for good on Thomas' drive.
WHAT IT MEANS: The Buffs need to pick up a home win Sunday against Arizona State to salvage at least one win out of their three-game homestand.
KEY STATISTICS: Colorado's 21 turnovers led to 21 Arizona points. … The Wildcats shot 50 percent from the field (25-for-50) while Colorado shot 42 percent (21-for-50).
NOTEWORTHY: Colorado put four players in double figures for the seventh time this season. ... The Wildcats came into the game as one of the nation's top defensive teams, holding opponents to an average of 49.2 points per game. ... CU shot 60 percent from the field (15-for-25) in the second and third quarters. ... Robinson's 17 points were a season high ... Leonard recorded her 10th career double-double ... Caylao-Do recorded her second 20-point effort of her career.
QUOTEWORTHY: "If we play like that, if we rebound like that, if we're tenacious on both ends of the floor, we can compete with any team." — CU head coach JR Payne
"Coming out in the second half, talking in the locker room, we were just a lot more calm and we were not as hesitant to drive to the basket." — CU's Quinessa Caylao-Do
NEXT UP: The Buffs play host to Arizona State on Sunday in a 2 p.m. game at the Events Center.
Contact: Neill.Woelk@Colorado.edu
