Buffs' Rally Not Enough To Overcome Ducks
BOULDER - Colorado rallied from double-digit deficits in each half, but didn't have enough at the end as Oregon claimed a 72-64 victory over the Buffaloes Friday night at the Coors Events Conference Center.
Jasmina Ilic had a game-high 17 points for Colorado (5-7) while Gabrielle Richards led Oregon with 16. CU's Jackie McFarland recorded her seventh double-double of the season with 13 points and 15 rebounds.
Freshman Caley Dow scored a career-high 15 points, including a team season-best 10-of-10 from the free-throw line. Dow, who entered the contest just 5-of-13 from the free-throw line in her career, is only the seventh player in program history to go 10-for-10 or better, and only the second freshman. CU All-American Shelly Sheetz went 11-for-11 as a freshman against Kansas in 1992.
Dow was the catalyst that helped the Buffs overcome a slow start which saw Oregon score the first 10 points of the game and take a lead 19-8 with 11:09 left in the period. Dow hit her first career 3-point field goal, a pair of foul shots and finally a lay-up to cap off a 13-2 CU run that tied the game at 21-21 with 6:37 left in the half.
In a game of spurts, Oregon was next. The Ducks shut down Colorado from the field in the final 6:37 ? allowing only four more Dow free throws ? to end the half on an 18-4 run to take a 39-25 lead into the locker room.
Colorado was ice cold from the floor in the first half making just 5-of-26 for 19 percent. McFarland and Ilic, CU's top two scorers, were held to just 2-of-12 from the floor and seven total points. Dow led CU with 11 in the first 20 minutes, bettering her previous career high of six for a full game.
Oregon was able to extend its lead to 53-34 early in the second half before CU began its charge. The Buffaloes went on a 13-0 run over a 4:18 span to get within six. Ilic had nine of her 17 points during that run, including a high-arcing 3-pointer which cut the Oregon lead to 53-47 with 9:00 remaining in the contest.
Oregon nudged its lead back to 11 (68-57) with 4:22 left in the game. Colorado countered with one final 7-0 run to cut the deficit down to four (68-64) with 3:36 remaining in the game, but the Buffs would not score again. Oregon iced the contest with free throws from Tamika Nurse and Chelsea Wagner
Freshman Hannah Skildum tied a career high with nine points and four rebounds off the bench. Yari Escalera, who started for the second-straight game for an injured Whitney Law, had seven points.
Colorado will ring in the New Year and open Big 12 Conference play on Wednesday, Jan. 4, by hosting the University of Nebraska Coors Events/Conference Center at 7 p.m. The game will be televised live by Fox Sports Net Rocky Mountain.