Buffs Look To Remain Undefeated, Host Idaho Sunday
THE GAME: The University of Colorado continues its season-long six-game home stand by hosting the University of Idaho on Sunday, Dec. 4, at 12 p.m. at the Coors Events Center.
BROADCAST: Sunday's game will be televised by ROOT Sports Rocky Mountain. Tom Helmer will have the call with legendary CU head coach Ceal Barry providing the color commentary and Alanna Rizzo reporting from the sidelines. Sunday's game will air on KKZN AM 760 with Chris Lewis delivering the play-by-play. Live internet audio is available on CUBuffs.com, through the BuffsRadio free subscription.
OPENING TIP: Colorado will be looking to start the season 7-0 for the fifth time in team history and the first since the 1993-94 season.
ABOUT THE BUFFALOES: Colorado is 6-0 and off to its best start since matching that mark to begin the 1993-94 season. Colorado will play game four of a six-game home stand at the Coors Events Center where the Buffaloes are a perfect 4-0 and outscoring their opponents by 20 points per game (71.5 to 51.5).
Colorado has shown early balance with four players averaging between nine and 16 points per game and seven averaging at least five per contest. The Buffaloes are averaging 71.1 points per game and shooting 46 percent from the field. CU's defense has held its opponents to 52.8 points per game, ranking third best in the Pac-12. The Buffaloes rank second in the Pac-12 in free-throw percentage (.731) and rebounding defense (31.3 rpg) and third in scoring margin (+18.7) and field-goal percentage defense (.334).
After a slow start the Buffaloes are steadily improving on the glass and from the free-throw line. After shooting just 61.5 percent from the free-throw line over the first two games (24-of-39) CU is 81.5 percent over the last four (44-of-54). After being out-rebounded in the season-opening win over Northern Arizona, Colorado has won the battle of the boards the last five games, including an impressive plus-33 margin against San Francisco (53-20).
Junior guard Chucky Jeffery, who has started the last four games, leads the Buffaloes at 16.3 points, 9.3 rebounds and 4.5 assists per game. She is fourth in the Pac-12 in assists and ranks third in defensive rebounds (7.5 drpg), sixth in scoring, overall rebounding and blocks (1.5 bpg), 11th in field-goal percentage (.527) and free-throw percentage (.773) and 14th in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.2).
Jeffery is coming off a career-best and team season-high 26 points in the win over San Francisco. With 12 rebounds, it was also her third double-double of the season (second-straight) and 13th of her career. She was named MVP of the Omni Hotels Classic after averaging 14 points, 10 rebounds and four assists in the two games, including 14 points and 11 rebounds in the championship game win over Wisconsin.
Freshman guard Lexy Kresl is second on the team in scoring at 13.3 points per game and leads the Buffaloes in both 3-point field goals (14) and free-throw percentage at 94.1 percent. She as made 15-straight free throws dating back to the Colorado State game and her percentage leads the Pac-12. She also ranks second in 3-pointers made (2.3 3mpg), ninth in 3-point percentage (.400) and 15th in scoring. She averaged 13 points and four rebounds during the Omni Hotels Classic, en route to All-Tournament Team honors.
Sophomore guard Brittany Wilson is third on the team in scoring at 11.5 points per game and leads the team with 10 steals on the season. She tied a career-high with 22 points against Northern Arizona in the season opener, a team-season high. On the Pac-12 charts, Wilson ranks 10th in 3-pointers (1.5 3mpg) and 20th in scoring.
Brittany's twin sister Ashley Wilson was her starting back court mate for the season's first two games, the first two starts of her career. She has made eight of her first 16 field goal attempts and is averaging three points and 3.3 rebounds. She had a career-best seven rebounds in the Omni Classic first round win over Valparaiso to go along with seven points. Additionally, she is averaging 5.3 rebounds over the last three games.
Junior Meagan Malcolm-Peck has played well defensively, averaging five rebounds and just under one blocked shot per game. She missed the San Francisco game due to an illness, but is coming off a season-high eight rebounds against Wisconsin. Her 12 offensive rebounds tops the Buffaloes so far and her 2.4 per game average ranks 14th in the Pac-12.
Colorado's front court duo of senior Julie Seabrook and sophomore Rachel Hargis have combined to make 31 of their first 59 shots on the season (.525). Some of their numbers are identical. Through six games they've played the exact amount of minutes (133, 22.2 mpg) and each have 11 offensive and 17 defensive rebounds (28, 4.7 rpg). Seabrook has one more point (40, 6.7 ppg) than Hargis (39, 6.5 ppg), mostly thanks to her career night against San Francisco, recording a personal-best 18 points on 8-of 13 from the field. Seabrook is shooting a team-best 63 percent from the field (17-of-27) and also has seven steals on her resume. Hargis played a career-best 33 minutes in the Omni Classic championship game win over Wisconsin, recording eight points and seven rebounds. She matched a career-high with four field-goals made against the Badgers and also had a personal-best nine field-goal attempts.
Colorado's bench has been outstanding, accounting for 154 of 429 points or 36 percent of the team's scoring through six games. Although Kresl has cracked the starting lineup for the past three games, she and inside classmate Jen Reese have accounted for the bulk of that bench production. Reese, who had a personal-best 13 points at Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, is averaging just under 10 points per contest and shooting 48 percent from the field (19-of-40). Against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi the Buffaloes had a season-high 43 bench points (Jeffery 19, Reese 13, Kresl 11). Reese has also been hitting the boards, ranking second on the team, and 18th in the Pac-12, at 6.2 per game.
HISTORIC START: Colorado is 6-0 for the first time since 1993-94, looking for its fifth start of 7-0 or better in team history. Two other teams, 1982-83 and 1993-94, started 7-0. CU's best start was a 15-0 mark to begin the 1992-93 season. Here is a break down of CU's 6-0 or better starts:
Year Start Final Record Other
1992-93 15-0 27-4 NCAA Elite 8
1980-81 12-0 28-5 *AIAW National Tourn. First Round
1993-94 7-0 27-5 NCAA Sweet 16
1982-83 7-0 21-8 #Big Eight Semifinals
2011-12 6-0 ?? Best Start Since 1993-94
1988-89 6-0 27-4 NCAA First Round
*-CU's first national tournament appearance; #-First year of Big Eight Conference round-robin play.
ABOUT THE VANDALS: Idaho is 2-5 overall, coming off a 66-49 home loss to CU's soon-to-be Pac-12 rival Washington. The Vandals have played just two true road games, losing at North Dakota (84-54) on Nov. 14 and at Montana (64-57) on Nov. 20. Idaho averages just under 57 points per game while shooting 36 percent from the floor. Opponents average 68.7 points against the Idaho defense while shooting 38 percent from the field. UI also gives up 43 rebounds per game (minus-4.1 margin) and turns the ball over nearly 20 times per contest (19.7 topg).
Freshman guard Stacey Barr leads the Vandals in scoring at 12 points per contest, despite starting just one of the first seven contests. She is also Idaho's top 3-point shooter with 17 on the season. Senior guard Ganeaya Rogers is second on the team in scoring at 10.7 points per outing and tops the Vandals in field-goal percentage at .538 (21-of-39). Sophomore forward Alyssa Charlston leads Idaho in rebounding at 8.3 per contest while scoring just under 10 per game.
SERIES RECORDS: Colorado defeated Idaho 77-66 on Nov. 27, 1998 in the first round of the Coors Classic at the Events Center in the only other meeting between the programs. Current CU head coach Linda Lappe was a true freshman starter on that team, in her fourth career game. Lappe had 14 points, five rebounds, three assists and three steals in that game.
Colorado is 27-12 all-time against current members of the Western Athletic Conference. This Buffaloes have won four straight against WAC teams, including the last meeting an 86-50 win over San Jose State in Boulder on Dec. 22, 2009.
Lappe has never faced Idaho as a head coach. Idaho coach Jon Newlee is 0-1 against Colorado, facing the Buffaloes as the head coach of Idaho State in a 95-65 CU win on Nov. 28, 2003.
CONNECTIONS: Idaho assistant coach Christa Sanford was a player for Newlee in the Colorado-Idaho State game in 2003. Sanford, then Christa Brossman, scored five points and had four rebounds in CU's 95-65 win.
REBOUNDING WOWS: Colorado has outrebounded its opponent in five straight games and overall by a margin of plus-11.5 on the season. CU had a big night on the glass against San Francicso, ending with a margin of plus-33 (53-20). That plus-33 margin overall in CU's history is tied for the ninth best margin in team history and tied for the fourth best since the NCAA/Big Eight Conference era began with the 1982-83 season. It's also the widest margin since the Buffaloes put up a similar plus-33 margin against Bowling Green (59-26) on Nov. 23, 2001. Those two games are the best since CU outrebounded Northern Arizona by 34 (56-22) on Dec. 18, 1993.
Additionally, CU's 20 rebounds allowed to San Francisco tied for the second-lowest in team history. The Buffaloes held a team at 20 on three other occasions, most recently against Loyola Chicago in a 65-34 win on Nov. 27, 2010. The record low is 19, set against Northern Arizona on Feb. 7, 1981.
Rebounding Margins Since 1982-83 Season
Team Date CUR OppR Margin
Northern Arizona 12/18/1993 56 22 +34
Oklahoma 2/18/1990 67 33 +34
Texas El-Paso 11/19/1982 67 33 +34
San Francisco 11/30/2011 53 20 +33
Bowling Green 11/23/2001 59 26 +33
at Colorado State 12/1/2007 58 26 +32
Northern Colorado 2/13/2006 53 22 +31
LEXY AMONG ELITE COMPANY: Freshman guard Lexy Kresl has scored in double-digits in the first six games of her career. She is tied with CU Athletic Hall of Fame member and All-American Shelley Sheetz for the second-most double-figure scoring games to start a season by a freshman. Current CU Director of Basketball Operations Tracy Tripp holds the mark of 10, set during the 1985-86 season.
Freshman Double Figure Scoring Games To Start A Season
Player Year Games Career DFG (CU Rank)
Tracy Tripp 1985-86 10 80 (8th)
Lexy Kresl 2011-12 6 6
Shelley Sheetz 1991-92 6 92 (5th)
Brittany Spears 2007-08 4 111 (1st)
Erin Scholz 1993-94 4 88 (7th)
Lori Mills 1983-84 3 12
Lisa Van Goor 1980-81 3 108 (2nd)
CHUCKY REBOUNDS: Junior guard Chucky Jeffery had a career night on the glass at Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, grabbing 16 rebounds in the win over the Islanders. Her total surpassed her previous personal best of 13, which she had achieved three other times, most recently in the win over CSU last year in Boulder. Her 16 rebounds were the most by a CU player since Jackie McFarland recorded 18 at Kansas on Feb. 6, 2007. With 19 points, Jeffery also recorded her 11th career double-double, and CU's first of the season.
LEXY'S RECORD NIGHT: Freshman guard Lexy Kresl had a memorable collegiate debut making 5-of-6 3-point attempts in the first half of CU's 84-60 win over Northern Arizona. She tied a school record for 3-pointers made in one half, a feat that had happened five previous times by three players. Bianca Smith, who was the last person to hit five in one half (vs. Nebraska on Jan. 31, 2009), did it three times. Kate Fagan and CU Athletic Hall of Famer and All-American Shelly Sheetz are the other two.
STEALING THE SHOW: Colorado recorded 16 steals against Northern Arizona in the season opener, its most in a single game since swiping 18 against Texas Southern on Dec. 14, 2007. It's just the third time since the 2003-04 season that the Buffaloes have had 16 or more steals in one contest (16 vs. Pacific on Dec. 8, 2005).
Seven different Buffaloes registered steals against Northern Arizona, led by sophomore Brittany Wilson who had a career high with five. Freshmen Jasmine Sborov and Jen Reese each had three in their collegiate debuts.
SPEAKING OF STEALS: Brittany Wilson leads the Buffaloes in steals with 10 and Chucky Jeffery, is second with nine. Third on that list? Senior forward Julie Seabrook has seven steals, recording two in three different games, tying a career high in each instance. Seabrook had just 15 steals through her first 85 career games.
MALCOLM-PECK AMONG BEST FROM 3-POINT RANGE: Junior Meagan Malcolm-Peck is currently 14th on CU's all-time list for 3-pointers made with 64 and needs one to catch former Buff Veronica Johns-Richardson, who had 65 from 2001-05, for 13th.
Malcolm-Peck made 38-of-106 from downtown as a sophomore, which percentage wise (.358) ranked 13th in the Big 12. Her career .325 average (64-of-197) would rank 18th in school history.
JEFFERY MOVING UP IN STEALS, ASSISTS: Junior guard Chucky Jeffery registered two steals against San Francisco, moving into sole possession of 16th on CU's all-time list at 143. She needs just two steals to catch Erin Scholz (1993-97) and La Shena Graham for 14th. Jeffery is 20th on CU's all-time list for assists at 252. She needs seven to catch Diane Hiemstra (1981-84) for 19th.
HOME AT THE CECC: Colorado is traditionally tough at home with a 359-120 all-time record at the Coors Events/Conference Center (.749). The Buffaloes have won 10 or more games in a season at the CECC in 22 of the previous 33 years. The Buffaloes have enjoyed five undefeated seasons (1980-83, 1992-94) at the CECC.
BUFFS ON TV: Colorado's regular season schedule will feature at least nine regionally or nationally televised games in 2011-12. CU made its first appearance on The Mtn in the win over Colorado State on Nov. 20. Colorado will have eight games air on ROOT Sports Rocky Mountain. The first was the San Francisco game on Nov. 30. Also scheduled for ROOT sports are Idaho (Dec. 4), Denver (Dec. 8), Stanford (Jan. 14), at Arizona (Jan. 22), UCLA (Jan. 29), Utah (Feb. 18) and Oregon (Mar. 1). All ROOT Sports Rocky Mountain games are available nationally on DIRECTV and DISH Network.
The games with Arizona and UCLA are part of the Pac-12's FSN national package. In addition, CU's home game against Arizona State on Saturday, Feb. 11, is part of the Pac-12's FSN Wildcard Weekend. One of the five league contests scheduled for that date will be picked up for national broadcast, but that determination won't be made until the last week in January. If the CU-Arizona State game is selected for FSN the game time will change from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. MST, per conference guidelines.
CU has appeared on 91 regional or national telecasts over the last 10 seasons.