Colorado University Athletics
Colorado Hosts Southern Utah Saturday
THE GAME: The University of Colorado will host Southern Utah University on Saturday, Dec. 19, at 7 p.m. at the Coors Events/Conference Center.
PROMOTION: Adult general admission tickets for all CU women's basketball nonconference games are just $5. Kids age 13 & under who wear black and gold will be admitted free.
BROADCAST: All Colorado women's basketball games can be heard live on KKZN AM 760. Mike Rice will handle play-by-play duties with USA Basketball's Carol Callan providing the color commentary. Live internet audio of all CU basketball games is available on BuffsRadio, a subscription service through CUBuffs.com. Live internet video streaming of Saturday's game is available on BuffsTV, also a subscription service through CUBuffs.com. Please note the BuffsRadio audio and BuffsTV video are separate subscriptions.
OPENING TIP: Colorado begins a string of six straight home games on Saturday to end nonconference play and begin the Big 12 schedule. The Buffaloes have been perfect at home so far this season at 5-0.
THE BUFFALOES: Colorado returns from an eight-day layoff for finals week at the university, and is looking to bounce back from a 69-61 setback at the hands of Colorado State in its last action on Dec. 11. The Buffaloes, who saw their four-game winning streak end against the Rams, are still 6-2 after eight games for the second time in three seasons (2007-08). Colorado is out to build some momentum heading into Big 12 Conference play which begins on Saturday, Jan. 9, when the Buffaloes will host Missouri in a 12 p.m. game televised nationally on FSN.
Colorado's last three win streaks of five or more games have happened in this portion of the season, leading up to or including the first Big 12 game of the season. CU won its final five nonconference games in 2008-09, won 11 straight in 2007-08, which included the league opener at Missouri, and in 2004-05, CU won its final five contests before the league schedule started.
TEAM NUMBERS: Colorado is averaging nearly 70 points per game and shooting 42 percent from the field. The Buffaloes have hit 80-plus points in their last two home games and shot a combined 51 percent (62-of-122) in those wins over Denver and Seton Hall. CU is averaging 7.9 3-pointers per game, ranking second in the Big 12 and 17th in the NCAA through games of Dec. 13. The Buffaloes are also the No. 1 free throw shooting team in the Big 12 at 74.8 percent (89-of-119) and rank 35th nationally. Colorado is averaging 40 rebounds per game, and winning the battle of the boards by 4.5 per game.
SPEARS' HOT START: Brittany Spears is off to a great start as she leads the Buffaloes at 18.9 points, 9.8 rebounds, 2.3 steals and 1.6 blocks per game. She has four double-doubles on the season which currently ties for the Big 12 lead. On the league charts she ranks first in defensive rebounds (6.8 drpg), second in overall rebounding, fourth in scoring, fifth in minutes (33.6 mpg), sixth in steals and blocks, ninth in free-throw percentage (.818) and 3-pointers made (2.3 3mpg) and 11th in offensive rebounds (3.0 orpg).
SMITH OFF THE BENCH, SAME RESULTS: After starting the entire 2008-09 season, senior guard Bianca Smith has come off the bench for the first eight games of 2009 without missing a beat. She is averaging 13.3 points and 3.0 rebounds per game and is still displaying her sharp-shooting abilities. Smith leads CU and is third in the Big 12 with 23 3-pointers in her first eight games. She also leads CU and is the Big 12's second-best free throw shooter making 19 of her first 20 attempts on the season (.950).
Through Dec. 17, Smith ranks third in the Big 12 in scoring for those players primarily coming off the bench (starting less than half of a team's games). Here are the current leaders:
Player,
Team
PPG
Brittainey Raven,
Texas
15.0
Danielle
Adams, Texas
A&M
14.6
Bianca Smith,
Colorado
13.3
Ashley Field,
Baylor
8.4
Jordan
Barncastle, Texas
Tech
6.6
Christine
Flores,
Missouri
6.6
FRESHMEN THRIVING: Freshmen Chucky Jeffery and Meagan Malcolm-Peck have made major contributions to Colorado's solid start.
Jeffery is third on the team in scoring at 9.9 points per game and is second in steals (2.1 spg) and third in rebounds (5.4 rpg). She tops all Big 12 freshmen in steals and ranks seventh overall in that category on the league charts. Jeffery was named to the 2009 Omni Hotels Classic All-Tournament Team. Over the two games she averaged 12.5 points, 5.5 rebounds, 3.0 assists, 2.5 steals and shot 61 percent (11-of-16).
Malcolm-Peck tops CU in field-goal percentage at 48.4 percent and is second in rebounding (5.8 ppg) and blocks (1.4 bpg) and fourth
in scoring (7.6 ppg). On the Big 12 charts, Malcolm-Peck is tied for fifth in offensive rebounds (3.4 orpg), ninth in blocks and 13th in 3-point field goal percentage.
GETTING 'ER DUNN: Senior center Courtney Dunn, who has started the last seven games, had a career night against Denver, logging personal bests with 16 points, 5-of-7 from the field and 4-of-4 from the line. Her 16 points equaled her total for the first five games of the season combined. Her previous career high was nine against Kansas (1/22/08), a mark she eclipsed in the first half alone (14).
MULLANEY'S HOME COOKING: No one was looking more forward to CU's trip to Minnesota than Minneapolis native Kelly Jo Mullaney, and she responded in a big way. Against Illinois-Chicago, Mullaney came off the bench to score 13 points and record a career-high seven rebounds in the win. She also played well in the classic final against Minnesota with nine points on 3-of-4 from the field.
HOUSTON WE HAVE A RETURN, DESPITE BUMPS: Junior Whitney Houston made her much anticipated return to the CU lineup against UC Irvine. Houston redshirted last year after a preseason knee injury forced her to miss the 2008-09 campaign. She finished with 11 points on 5-of-10 shooting with two steals in 26 minutes. Houston hit a couple of big buckets down the stretch, including a layup which gave the Buffaloes their first lead at 54-52 with just 1:37 left in the game.
She sat out the Illinois-Chicago game due to a slight concussion sustained in the UC Irvine game, but returned against Minnesota two days later and put up nearly identical numbers, scoring 10 points on 5-of-10 shooting while dishing out three assists.
ABOUT THE THUNDERBIRDS: Southern Utah is 3-7 overall and 1-1 in Summit League play. The Thunderbirds lost their first six games of the season, but have won three of four, including a 94-92 triple overtime win at home over Utah Valley on Dec. 12. Southern Utah is averaging just 55 points per game while giving up 72 to its opponents. They are shooting 36 percent from the field and 72 percent from the line. SUU defeated NAIA Westminster (Utah) College 72-62 in an exhibition game Thursday night.
Southern Utah brings in a balanced scoring attack, with three players averaging right around 10 points per game. Junior forward Challis Pascucci tops the Thunderbirds at 10.4 points and 9.1 rebounds per game. Junior guard Caitlyn Sears missed four of the first five games of the season with an injury, but has bounced back to average 10.2 points and 6.3 rebounds in six games. She led the Thunderbirds with 25 points in their win over Utah Valley. Freshman center Chanel Throley is averaging 10.3 points and 4.5 rebounds per contest.
SERIES RECORDS: This will be the second meeting between Colorado and Southern Utah with the Buffaloes claiming an 81-38 win over the Thunderbirds in the only other meeting on Dec. 28, 2007 at the Coors Events Center. CU is 9-1 all-time against teams in the Summit League, including the last two.
Kathy McConnell-Miller is 1-0 against Southern Utah as a head coach.
SPEARS EARNS BIG 12 HONOR: Junior Brittany Spears was named the Phillips 66 Big 12 Women's Basketball Co-Player of the Week by a media voting panel for games from Nov. 16-22, the league office announced on Nov. 23.
Spears was named to the Minnesota Subway Classic All-Tournament team after averaging 23 points and 10 rebounds in two games. She scored 19 points and pulled down seven rebounds in a season-low 25 minutes in the 63-49 win over Illinois-Chicago. She then recorded her 17th career double-double and second of the season with a game-high 27 points and 13 rebounds against Minnesota in the tournament final. She reached a double-double before intermission with 16 points and 10 rebounds in the opening 20 minutes. Spears hit 10-of-20 shots from the field and added four assists and four steals.
Spears earns her fifth career Big 12 weekly honor, and first as Player of the Week. She earned four Big 12 Rookie of the Week citations as a freshman in 2007-08. It's also the first Big 12 weekly honor for the Buffaloes since Alyssa Fressle gained Rookie of the Week honors in the final week of the 2008-09 season.
IMPRESSIVE POINT SWING: The 63 point swing from last year's 77-40 loss to Seton Hall to this year's 80-54 win is the second largest in a series in team history (games no longer than two seasons apart). The Buffaloes had a 67 point swing against Idaho State during the 1981-82 season. Here are the top point swings in team history.
Opponent
Margin
Date
Margin
Date
Difference
Idaho State -6
(55-61) 1/22/82 +61 (116-55) 2/13/82
+67
Seton Hall
-37 (40-77) 12/9/08 +26 (80-54)
12/6/09 +63
Nebraska
-41 (49-90) 1/6/99 +17
(70-53) 1/23/99 +58
Colorado State -39
(42-81) 2/6/75 +15
(53-38) 11/20/75 +54
Illinois
-44 (44-88) 1/4/98 +8
(78-70) 12/28/99 +52
Texas
A&M -9
(60-69) 1/6/92 +41
(92-51) 12/31/92 +50
FRESHMAN DEBUTS: A pair of true freshmen made their collegiate debuts and made significant contributions to the Buffaloes come-back win against UC Irvine. Forward Meagan Malcolm-Peck got the starting nod and responded with six points, 11 rebounds, three blocks and three steals. Guard Chucky Jeffery came off the bench and registered four points, seven rebounds, three assists and two steals.
Malcolm-Peck's start marked the fourth straight year the Buffaloes have had a freshman in the initial season starting lineup. The three others: Bianca Smith in 2006, Brittany Spears in 2007 and Alyssa Fressle in 2008.
REBOUNDING WOWS: Colorado has enjoyed early success on the boards. The Buffaloes began the season with back-to-back 50-plus rebounding efforts, corralling 50 against UC Irvine in the season opener and improving on that mark with 52 against Illinois-Chicago.
Colorado had just one game all of 2008-09 with 50 or more rebounds, notching 51 against Arkansas-Pine Bluff on Dec. 2. CU's 52 rebounds against Illinois-Chicago were its most since recording 58 at Colorado State on Dec. 1, 2007.
The Buffaloes back-to-back 50-rebound effort was the teams first since stringing together three straight from Nov. 20-24, 2001 (50 vs. San Diego, 59 vs. Bowling Green, 50 vs. Houston). CU wasn't able to get a third 50-rebound game this time, grabbing just 24 against Minnesota, but it should be noted that both teams shot right at 50 percent from the field in that game, leaving rebounds at a premium (UM won the rebounding battle 32-24).
Against UC Irvine, Brittany Spears led the way with 14 while Meagan Malcolm-Peck grabbed 11 in her CU debut. It marked the first time the Buffs had two players reach double-digits in rebounds since Brittany Spears and Julie Seabrook each had 13 against Idaho State on Dec. 30, 2008. In the Illinois-Chicago game, the rebounds were well distributed. No one had double digits, but six players had four or more rebounds and all 10 that played had at least one.
Back to UC Irvine, Malcom-Peck's 11 rebounds, six of which came on the offensive end, put her in some exclusive CU company. Her 11 boards are the third most in team history by a freshman in her CU debut and the most in 27 years:
No.
Player
Opponent
16 Monica
Kosenski
vs. Northern Arizona, 11/28/86
13 Kim
Jackson
vs. UTEP, 11/19/82
11 Meagan
Malcolm-Peck vs. UC Irvine
11/17/09
10 Randie
Wirt
vs. Albany, 11/17/00
10 Lisa Van
Goor
vs. Colorado Women's, 11/18/80
9
Crystal
Ford
vs. Adams State, 11/23/85
8 Jamillah
Lang
vs. Gonzaga, 11/23/90
Chucky Jeffery had seven rebounds in her debut. She is one of eight different players, a list that includes Brittany Spears (at San Francisco, 11/16/07), to reach that number in her first collegiate game.
MEMORABLE COMEBACK: Colorado's comeback from a 14-point halftime deficit to win against UC Irvine ties for the third-largest margin achieved in team history. The Buffaloes trailed the Anteaters 33-19 at the break before outscoring them 42-23 in the final 20 minutes.
Colorado came back from 19 down against the University of Washington on Dec. 21, 1982, at the Guisti Tournament in Portland, Ore.CU trailed 35-16 at halftime before winning 67-65. Colorado came back from 15 points down against Kansas State on Jan. 31, 2007, that game included a 23-0 second half run.
CU's Top Halftime Comebacks:
Date
Opp.
Half
Final
Margin
12/21/82 Washington
(N) UW
35-16 CU
67-65
19
1/31/07 Kansas State
(H) KS 39-24
CU 66-55
15
11/15/09 UC Irvine
(H)
UCI 33-19 CU 61-56
14
12/1/83 Wyoming
(A)
UW 35-21 CU
57-56
14
12/20/03 Southern Cal
(A) SC 39-27 CU
69-67
12
2/19/00 Texas
(H)
UT 38-26 CU
79-65 12
CLIMBING THE LADDERS: Junior Brittany Spears and Senior Bianca Smith continue to make their impressions on the CU record book.
Spears, who became just the second player in team history (Lisa Van Goor) to reach 1,000 points as a sophomore, is 17th on CU's all-time scoring list with 1,153. She is 14th in rebounds with 564, needing 23 to catch Crystal Ford (1985-89) for 13th place. Spears is also seventh in blocked shots (98), eighth in 3-pointers made (119) and attempted (358), 16th in field goals made (426) and 19th in steals (130).
Smith is fourth in career 3-point field goals made (198) and third in attempts (535). She needs two to become the fourth player in team history with 200 3-pointers, and five to catch Jenny Roulier (1998-02) for third place on CU's all-time list. Smith would need 77 total 3-pointers this year to break Shelley Sheetz's career mark of 252, but it's possible. Smith holds CU's single-season mark hitting 80 from downtown in 2007-08.
CAPTAINS NAMED: Before the season opener head coach Kathy McConnell-Miller announced that Brittany Spears, Whitney Houston and Bianca Smith were named captains for the 2009-10 season. Smith is a captain for the second straight year while Houston and Spears are first time captains. CU captains are voted on by the players.
BUFFS IN OPENERS: Colorado is now 31-5 (.861) all-time in season openers and started the season with a home game for the 24th time in 36 seasons. Colorado is an outstanding 34-2 (.944) all-time in home openers. Colorado has never lost its overall season opener when played at home (24-0).
TOUGH SCHEDULE: Colorado once again faces a tough schedule with potentially 16 games -- or 55 percent of the regular season schedule -- against 2009 NCAA or WNIT tournament teams. Seven of CU's 2009-10 opponents are ranked in the current Associated Press poll while six are ranked in the USA Today/ESPN/WBCA Coaches poll.
HOME AT THE CECC: Colorado is traditionally tough at home with a 335-106 all-time record at the Coors Events/Conference Center (.760). The Buffaloes have won 10 or more games in a season at the CECC in 20 of the previous 31 years. The Buffaloes have enjoyed five undefeated seasons (1980-83, 1992-94) at the CECC.
BUFFS ON TV: Colorado's regular season schedule features nine games that will be televised either regionally or nationally, eight of which are at home. CU opened its first of eight FSN Rocky Mountain games on Dec. 2, against Denver. FSN Rocky Mountain will also televise home games against Virginia (Jan. 2), Missouri (Jan. 9), Iowa State (Jan. 16), Oklahoma State (Jan. 24), Nebraska (Jan. 30), Texas (Feb. 10) and Kansas (Feb. 16). The games against Missouri and Oklahoma State will be televised nationally on FSN as part of the network's Big 12 package. Colorado's game at Kansas State (Jan. 20) is set to air on FSN Kansas City.
Colorado was 2-5 in televised games during the 2008-09 regular season. CU has appeared on 72 regional or national telecasts over the previous eight seasons.
BUFFS SIGN THREE: Shae Kelley, Ashley Wilson and Brittany Wilson have signed National Letters of Intent to play basketball and continue their education at the University of Colorado in 2010-11, CU head coach Kathy McConnell-Miller announced Nov. 12, during the NCAA early signing period. Kelley, a 6-foot forward from Denver, is a two-time All-State honorable mention and All-Denver Prep League pick out of East High School. Kelley will be the fifth Denver Public Schools player to suit up for the Buffaloes and the first since Montbello's Nikki Weddle (1997-99). Ashley and Brittany are identical twin 5-8 guards from Long Beach, Calif. Playing for one of the most storied programs in Southern California, the Wilson twins have won three consecutive CIF Division I state titles with nationally-ranked Long Beach Poly.
SMITH GAINS FULL SEASON: Senior guard Bianca Smith was formally released from the National Letter of Intent she originally signed at the University of Tulsa earlier this summer, allowing her to gain back the semester of eligibility she would have otherwise had to surrender this season. Smith is now eligible to play the entire 2009-10 season for the Buffaloes. Smith, a native of Missouri City, Texas, had signed an NLI in November 2004 with Tulsa, who at the time was coached by current CU head coach Kathy McConnell-Miller. When McConnell-Miller took over the Colorado program in April 2005, Smith decided to follow her to Boulder.
She never enrolled at Tulsa, but was faced with sitting out two full seasons, one for not honoring her NLI commitment to Tulsa and a second for transferring to another NCAA Division I school. Smith was able to use her redshirt year to fulfill the NCAA transfer obligation, sitting out the 2005-06 season. She successfully petitioned the NLI Appeals Committee in 2005 to gain one semester back, but was still faced with losing one semester under the NLI commitment.
In the spring of 2009 then-CU-Boulder Chancellor Bud Peterson contacted Tulsa President, Dr. Steadman Upham, on behalf of Smith and the University of Colorado to ask for Smith's full release. Thanks to cooperation from both universities and athletic departments, Smith was released and rewarded a full final season.
BUFFS PICKED 11TH...AGAIN: For the fourth straight season Colorado was picked to finish 11th in the annaul Big 12 Conference Preseason Coaches Poll.
In one of the closest votes at the top in recent memory, Baylor was picked to win the 2010 title with five first place votes and 109 total points, edging out Texas and Kansas who tied for second with 106 points (3 first place votes each). Texas A&M was picked fourth with 87 votes and picked up the final first place vote. Defending champion Oklahoma was fifth (86), followed by Nebraska (80), Iowa State (59), Kansas State (44), Oklahoma State (41), Texas Tech (38), Colorado (22) and Missouri (15).
The Buffaloes have fared better than the Big 12 coaches preseason prediction three of four seasons under Kathy McConnell-Miller:
Season
Preseason
Actual
2009-10
11th
??
2008-09
11th
12th
2007-08
11th
9th
2006-07
11th
t-7th
2005-06
12th
11th