Buffs Set To Host TCU In WNIT First Round Wednesday
THE GAME: Colorado will open the 2014 Postseason WNIT with a first round game against TCU on Wednesday, March 19, at 7 p.m. at the Coors Events Center.
BROADCAST: Wednesday's game will air live on KKZN AM 760. Mike Rice will handle play-by-play duties and will be joined by Carol Callan of USA Basketball with the color commentary. A free live video stream will be available through Colorado's Pac-12.com video player. All CU's WNIT home games that are not televised will be available through Pac-12.com at this link:
http://pac-12.com/videos/university-colorado
POSTSEASON FACTS: Colorado is in postseason play for the 22nd time in team history with an overall record of 32-21. The Buffs played in four AIAW Tournaments from 1979-82 (5-4) and have made 13 NCAA Tournament Appearances (17-13).
- Colorado is the postseason for the fourth-straight year its longest streak since advancing to four consecutive NCAA Tournaments from 2001 to GÇÿ04.
- This is Colorado's fifth trip to the postseason WNIT, and third in the last four years, with an overall record of 10-4. The Buffaloes reached back-to-back quarterfinals in 2011 (3-1) and 2012 (3-1), the 2008 semifinals (3-1) and also participated in the 1999 event (1-1).
- CU is 22-7 all-time at home in postseason (12-4 NCAA, 8-3 WNIT, 2-0 AIAW) and has won 10 of its last 13.
- Colorado has won at least three games in three of four previous WNIT appearances, advancing to at least the quarterfinal round in the last three (2008, '11, & '12).
- Colorado's last three WNIT exits have come at the hands of the eventual champion (Marquette in 2008, Oklahoma State in 2012) or runner up (USC in 2011).
- Head coach Linda Lappe is in her fifth WNIT as a coach, and third as a head coach. She was on the Drake staff that went to WNIT's in 2004 and GÇÿ06.
- Lappe was a true freshman on CU's 1999 WNIT team
COLORADO IN THE WNIT
1999 (1-1)
First Round: at Colorado 70, BYU 53
Second Round: Drake 82, at Colorado 66
2008 (3-1)
First Round: BYE
Second Round: at Colorado 82, Gonzaga 68
Third Round: at Colorado 64, Villanova 58
Quarterfinals: at Colorado 96, TCU 90 (OT)
Semifinals: Marquette 86, at Colorado 72
2011 (3-1)
First Round: at Colorado 71, UC Riverside 62
Second Round: at Colorado 81, California 65
Third Round: Colorado 70, at Wyoming 58
Quarterfinals: USC 87, Colorado 70
2012 (3-1)
First Round: at Colorado 54, Northern Colorado 42
Second Round: Colorado 64, at South Dakota 55
Third Round: at Colorado 48, Villanova 47
Quarterfinals: at Oklahoma State 78, Colorado 70
ABOUT THE BUFFALOES: Colorado is 17-14 overall and tied Oregon for ninth place in the final Pac-12 Conference regular season standings at 6-12. The Buffaloes were the No. 9 seed in the Pac-12 Tournament, winning a first round game against No. 8 seed UCLA, 76-65, on March 6, before dropping a quarterfinal game to top-seeded Stanford, 69-54, on March 7. Colorado has won at least one Pac-12 Tournament game in all three seasons as a member of the conference.
Colorado enters the WNIT having won three of its last five games and guaranteed to finish with a winning record for the fourth consecutive season. The Buffaloes average 68.9 points while hitting 41 percent from the field and 69 percent from the free-throw line. Colorado is second in the Pac-12 in blocked shots (3.9 bpg) while also ranking third in scoring defense (63.0 ppg), scoring margin (+5.9) and field-goal percentage defense (.370).
Sophomore forward Arielle Roberson leads Colorado in both scoring, at 12.0 points per game, and rebounding at 8.4 per outing. Roberson has nabbed double-digit rebounds in four of the last five games (11.0 rpg) including a career- and team-season high 17 in the Pac-12 Tournament quarterfinal against Stanford. On the Pac-12 leaderboard Roberson ranks sixth in offensive rebounds (3.3 orpg), ninth in overall rebounds, 11th in blocked shots (0.9 bpg), 12th in defensive rebounds (5.0 drpg), 13th in field-goal percentage (.445) and 19th in scoring.
An honorable mention All-Pac-12 selection, Roberson has a team-best six double-doubles on the season four of which occurred within the final five nonconference games, including the Southern Utah contest where she scored 18 points and grabbed a career-high 14 rebounds. She recorded three straight double-doubles (Wyoming-Illinois-Denver), becoming the first Buff to do that since Chucky Jeffery had three in a row from Feb. 3-Feb. 10, 2013 (at USC, vs. Oregon State, vs. Oregon). She had a season-high 22 points and 10 rebounds in the win over Denver. In that game she established team-season and career-highs in free throws made (13) and attempted (17).
Roberson was named the Pac-12 Player of the Week for Dec. 2-8 averaging 15 points and 11 rebounds while hitting 48 percent from the field in the wins over Wyoming and Illinois.
Senior guard Brittany Wilson leads the team in steals (1.2 spg) while ranking second in assists (3.0 apg) and third in scoring (11.1 ppg). She led the way for the Buffaloes during the Pac-12 Tournament averaging 16.5 points over the two games. She tied a career-high with four 3-point field goals in the loss to Stanford and made 3-of-6 from downtown in the first round win over UCLA. On the overall Pac-12 charts she is 10th in free-throw percentage (.735), 12th in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.1), 13th in assists and 22nd in scoring.
Sophomore forward Jamee Swan is averaging 7.6 points on 48.1 percent from the field and 72.4 percent from the line. She leads the Buffaloes and ranks eighth in the Pac-12 in blocked shots (1.0 bpg). Swan made 51.1 percent from the field during Pac-12 play which ranks fifth on the league charts.
Swan had 14 points on 6-of-9 from the field in the home win over UCLA. In the win at Arizona, her hometown team, Swan had 18 points, seven rebounds and a career- and team season-high six steals. Swan hit a short jumper with 0.9 seconds left in regulation that sent the game into overtime. In the three game span which included the game at Oregon and the home Washington weekend, Swan scored nearly a point a minute averaging 17.3 points while hitting 66.7 percent from the field over three games.
Senior guard Ashley Wilson has started the last 11 games and is having a terrific run to the end of her career. She scored a career-high 16 points on a personal-best seven field goals in the Pac-12 Tournament win over UCLA. Wilson is averaging 10.5 points, 4.4 rebounds and 2.1 assists over the last eight contests. Eight of Wilson's 10 career double-figure scoring games have come this season including five of the last eight. She only had two double-figure scoring games in her first 97 career outings.
At Arizona, she scored seven of her 11 points in overtime, including the team's only 3-pointer of the game. Wilson recorded her first career double-double logging personal bests with 15 points and 10 rebounds against Washington. She has groomed herself into one of Colorado's better free-throw shooters hitting 72.3 percent on the season, ranking 13th in the Pac-12. Wilson's is also 11th in league only games, at 74.7 percent.
Junior guard Lexy Kresl has started to regain her early season form after missing three games last month with an injury to her right leg. She scored 14 points and grabbed six rebounds in the Pac-12 Tournament win over UCLA. Kresl has averaged 6.3 points, 5.0 rebounds and 3.2 assists over the last six games. She had one of her best all-around games in Pac-12 play in the home win over UCLA, tying career-highs with nine rebounds and six assists while adding five points and three steals. Kresl ranks second in the Pac-12 in free-throw accuracy at 85.9 percent (61-of-71) while ranking 10th in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.3) and 12th in assists.
Kresl was the MVP of the 2013 Omni Hotels Classic averaging 15.5 points, 6.0 rebounds and 5.0 assists. She dished out a career-high six assists, with no turnovers, and added 12 points in the first round win over South Alabama. Kresl scored 19 points in the championship game, just one point off her career high, hitting 7-of-14 from the field and adding four assists, five rebounds and three steals.
Freshman Haley Smith has started the last 17 games for the Buffaloes, and really beginning to build some momentum. She is averaging 6.2 points and 4.0 rebounds over the last five games. Smith scored a career-high 11 points in the home win over UCLA hitting 5-of-10 from the field and corralled eight rebounds.
Freshman guard Lauren Huggins is starting to work her way back from missing six games with a leg injury. She has seen action in the last four games, hitting a 3-pointer in each of CU's Pac-12 Tournament contests. Huggins is second on the team with 31 3-pointers on the season. She tied her own career and team season high with five 3-pointers in the home win over Arizona, finishing with 15 points. She made 5-of-8 from downtown after making only one of her previous 10 and 2-of-16 during her first six Pac-12 games. Huggins also played great defense against the Wildcats recording a personal-best two blocked shots while also coming up with three rebounds and two steals.
Colorado lost two significant starters to injuries at separate points this season. Junior forward Jen Reese is out with a broken bone in her left shoulder, suffered late in the first half of the home win over UCLA. Junior guard Jasmine Sborov missed the final 15 games of the regular season with a broken bone in her right foot.
Reese is tied with Roberson for the team lead in scoring average at 12.0 while ranking second in rebounding at 5.8 per game. An honorable mention to the 2014 All-Pac-12 team, Reese is fifth in the Pac-12 in field goal percentage at 48.3 percent while also ranking eighth in free-throw percentage (.744) and 19th in scoring on the league leaderboard. She scored in double figures in 17 of the 27 games she appeared in. Reese has a pair of double-doubles, including an 18-point, 13-rebound effort in the win at Oregon. She has matched her career high of 22 points twice this season, coming in back-to-back home games against the Arizona schools in January.
Sborov started the first 14 games averaging 7.8 points and 4.6 rebounds. Over her last four games she averaged 7.0 rebounds which included her first career double-double, scoring 12 points and grabbing a career-best 10 rebounds against Southern Utah. Sborov was solid in the UCLA road game, scoring 11 points on 4-of-7 from the field along with eight rebounds. She played a career-high 33 minutes against the Bruins and also matched her personal best by drilling a pair of 3-pointers.
Sborov shot 72.4 percent from the foul line, delivering a pair of clutch performances on the road. She hit two foul shots at Colorado State with under a minute left to give Colorado a three point lead. In the win over Wyoming, she iced the game for the Buffaloes with another two free throws that provided the final margin, 63-59, with five seconds remaining. She scored in double-digits in seven of her 14 games, including a career-high 13 points in the season opening win over Colorado State. She came into this season with just three double-figure scoring games over the first 62 games of her career.
ABOUT THE HORNED FROGS: TCU is 18-14 overall and placed seventh in the Big 12 Conference at 8-10. The Horned Frogs earned the Big 12's automatic bid into the Postseason WNIT. TCU has won four of seven and had won three in a row before falling to West Virginia, 67-59, in the quarterfinals of the Big 12 Championship. The Horned Frogs average 62.9 points on 39 percent from the field. TCU is an excellent defensive team, leading the Big 12 in scoring defense (58.1 ppg), blocked shots (6.1 bpg) and steals (9.8 spg).
Sophomore guard Zahna Medley paces TCU at 16.9 points and 3.7 assists per game. A 2014 All-Big 12 first team pick, Medley is fifth in the Big 12 in scoring and third in 3-pointers at 2.4 made per game. Senior center Latricia Lovings tops the Horned Frogs at 7.9 rebounds and a Big 12-best 3.8 blocks per game while pitching in 6.2 points an outing. Junior guard Natalie Ventress ranks second on the team at 11.6 points per game.
Jeff Mittie is in his 15th season at TCU with a record of 303-175. He is in his 21st overall year as a collegiate head coach with a mark of 454-234.
THE SERIES: This will be the fourth meeting between Colorado and TCU with the Buffaloes winning all three previous matchups. Colorado's last battle with TCU also came in the Postseason WNIT as the Buffaloes claimed a thrilling 96-90 overtime win over the Horned Frogs at the Coors Events Center on March 30, 2008.
Linda Lappe has never faced TCU as a head coach. Jeff Mittie is 0-1 against Colorado as a head coach.
CONNECTIONS: Colorado sports three players from the state of Texas on its roster. Senior center Rachel Hargis is from Robinson outside of Waco, junior guard Jasmine Sborov is from Round Rock near Austin and sophomore forward Arielle Roberson is from San Antonio. Junior guard Lexy Kresl's mother, Julie, played basketball for TCU from 1984-86.
IRON WOMEN: The senior duo of Rachel Hargis and Brittany Wilson are on the verge of taking over the top spots for most games played at Colorado.
By playing against TCU on Wednesday, Hargis will appear in her 132nd game which will tie Erin Scholz (1993-97) for the most in team history. Wilson is one game behind Hargis and by playing Wednesday will make her 131st appearance which will tie Amy Palmer (1992-96) for third all-time.
The two have combined for 261 out of a possible 264 games played during their careers. Hargis has missed only one contest, the 2013 NCAA Tournament game against Kansas, with a knee injury. Wilson missed both contests on the Arizona trip after playing in the first 126 games of her career, a figure which ranks seventh in team history.
WILSON CLIMBING CAREER CHARTS: Senior guard Brittany Wilson is in 19th place on Colorado's all-time scoring list with 1,172 points. She became the 25th player in team history to reach 1,000 points during the Stanford game.
Wilson is fourth in games played (130), seventh in 3-point attempts (440), ninth in 3-pointers made (136) and minutes played (3,341), 12th in starts (101), 14th in steals (162), and 18th in assists (282).
BUFFALOES EARN HONORABLE MENTION: Colorado did not receive any first team recognition on the coaches All-Pac-12 teams, but did receive several honorable mentions.
Arielle Roberson and Jen Reese earned honorable mention to the All-Pac-12 team. Both are repeat selections at that status from last season. Roberson, Ashley Wilson and Brittany Wilson all received honorable mention to the Pac-12 All-Defensive team. Brittany Wilson was an All-Defensive team member in 2013 while Roberson repeats as an honorable mention. This is Ashley Wilson's first Pac-12 recognition.
ROBERSON REBOUNDS AT PAC-12 TOURNEY: During the Pac-12 Tournament quarterfinal loss to top seeded Stanford, sophomore forward Arielle Roberson grabbed a career and team-season high 17 rebounds. Her 17 rebounds are the most by a CU player since Chucky Jeffery had 17 against Villanova in the 2012 Postseason WNIT. It is the most rebounds by a Colorado player in a conference postseason tournament and ties for the third most in any postseason game in team history.
Most Rebounds In Postseason Action:
19'Erin Scholz vs. (Southwest) Missouri State, 3/18/95 (NCAA)
18'Gail Hook vs. Weber State, 3/14/82 (AIAW Region)
17'Arielle Roberson vs. Stanford, Mar. 7, 2014 (Pac-12)
17'Chucky Jeffery vs. Villanova, Mar. 22, 2012 (Postseason WNIT)
SHUFFLING THE LINEUP: Due in large part to injuries Colorado has had to shuffle its lineup throughout the season. The Buffaloes have featured 10 different starting lineups and no one lineup has started together for more than seven games.
In contrast, the 2012-13 team, Colorado had six different starting lineups but only two for 28 of the 32 games. In those 28 games the only difference was Lexy Kresl for Jasmine Sborov, meaning Brittany Wilson, Chucky Jeffery, Arielle Roberson and Rachel Hargis started together in 28 contests. Furthermore two of the four one-time lineups happened in the first two games of the season, meaning the Buffs actually featured just two lineups for 28 of the final 30 games.
Colorado is the only Pac-12 team in 2013-14 not to have one player that started every game of the regular season (UCLA, Oregon and Arizona State all had one). Only Rachel Hargis and Jamee Swan have appeared in all 31 regular season games for Colorado tying Oregon for the lowest total in the Pac-12 (Jillian Alleyne, Chrishae Rowe).
HISTORIC COMEBACK: Colorado's comeback from a 16-point halftime deficit to win in overtime at Arizona (61-56) is the second largest in team history (since records are available from the 1978-79 season), trailing only the 19-point comeback against Washington on Dec. 21, 1982 in Portland. The Buffaloes 20-point comeback is believed to be the best overall in team history, certainly since play by play records were kept on a more consistent basis since the 1981-82 season.
Colorado trailed 36-16 with 4:14 left in the first half and 39-23 at halftime. The Buffaloes outscored Arizona 26-10 in the second half, holding the Wildcats to just two field goals, and 10 percent shooting (2-of-20), both all-time CU opponent lows for one half.
Colorado put together two of the best defensive performances in team history in back-to-back games down the stretch. The Buffaloes allowed Arizona and UCLA a combined 22 points (11.0 per half) on 5-of-45 from the field (.111).
The 10 points allowed to Arizona was the fewest for any half in a conference regular season game, the second lowest in a second half of any game and tied for the third-fewest in any half in team history. Colorado's 12-point second half shut down against UCLA comes in right behind that performance, tying for the third lowest in a second half.
The Buffaloes allowed Kansas State only eight first half points in the first round of the 1992 Big Eight Tournament (W 79-27) and limited Utah State to just nine second half points in a nonconference home game on Dec. 13, 1986 (W 100-27). Colorado also held New Mexico to 10 in the first half at home on Dec. 31, 1991 (W 92-22) and did the same against Wyoming in Laramie on Dec. 9, 1998 (W 70-50).
Those two games featured top two field goal defense performances in team history for one half. Arizona shot 10 percent (2-of-20) while UCLA was limited to 12 percent (3-of-25). CU's previous opponent low for a half before this stretch was 13 percent (3-of-23) by Kansas State in the first round of the 1992 Big Eight Tournament (Mar. 7, 1992).
Arizona's two field goals are an all-time opponent low for one half. UCLA's three field goals ties for second, also happening vs. Texas State on Dec. 1, 2010 and vs. Kansas State on Mar. 7, 1992.
REBOUNDING FOR THE WIN: After uncharacteristically losing the rebounding battle in five of its first six Pac-12 games, Colorado has bounced back to be on the plus side, or even, in 11 of the last 14. During that span the Buffaloes are a plus-72 on the boards, or 5.1 per game.
Two of Colorado's best rebounding efforts of the season have come during this span. Colorado nabbed a season-high 54 rebounds in the win over Oregon, its most since grabbing 58 in the 2013 Pac-12 quarterfinal win over Washington. The Buffaloes recorded 24 of those on the offensive end, just one off their season high of 25 against Southern Utah on Dec. 29. It was also Colorado's fifth game of 50 or more rebounds on the season.
Another one of those 50-rebounds games came in the 61-45 win over Utah on Super Bowl Sunday. The Buffaloes tied a then-season-high with 51 rebounds (Illinois, Southern Utah) and their plus-16 margin over the Utes was their best in the Pac-12 this season and tied for the second-best mark overall (+21 vs. Illinois, +16 vs. Rice & Alcorn State).
Colorado outrebounded the Utes 27-12 in the first half. That plus-15 margin is Colorado's best of the season for a half and Utah's 12 rebounds was an opponent low.
Six players had at least five rebounds for Colorado led by Arielle Roberson and Haley Smith who both had eight. The last time Colorado had six players with at least five rebounds was during its 65-49 win at USC on Feb. 3, 2013 which was also played on Super Bowl Sunday.
The Buffaloes are 17-5 when winning or equaling their opponent on the battle of the boards; 0-9 when trailing on the glass.
3-POINT STREAK ENDS: Colorado's 285-game streak with at least one 3-point field goal came to an end on Jan. 26 against Arizona State. The Buffaloes were 0-of-4 from beyond the arc against the Sun Devils. The last time Colorado had gone without a 3-point field goal prior to the Arizona State game was a 56-51 win at Missouri on Jan. 18, 2005 (0-for-8).
The Buffaloes did not score from 3-point range against Utah either (0-for-7), marking the first time since Dec. 1-2, 1995, Colorado went back-to-back games without a 3-pointer.
Junior forward Jen Reese put an end to the scoreless string from downtown in the opening minutes of the win over Utah, ending a stretch of 88 minutes, 56 seconds with out a 3-pointer (0-for-13).
Colorado did not make a 3-pointer in the regular season finale against USC (0-for-9). The Buffaloes' three games with out a 3-pointer is the most in one season since the 1995-96 team had five.
TAKING CARE OF BUSINESS: Colorado has a record of 42-21 since the beginning of the 2012-13 season. Of those 21 losses, 12 have been to ranked teams and 11 of those ranked higher than Colorado at the time the game was played. The Buffaloes have won 39 of their last 48 games against unranked opponents.
Colorado prepared for the Pac-12 season with a 10-1 nonconference record, with the lone loss coming on the road at then No. 7/7 ranked Louisville. The Buffaloes have been dominant in the nonconference in the last four years with an overall record of 41-5, including wins in 34 of their last 35 games.
TIGHTENING UP THE 'D': Colorado set a school record for field-goal percentage defense in 2012-13 at 35.0 percent and the Buffaloes are looking to finish with another high ranking season.
Colorado is allowing just 37.0 percent from the field which ranks third in the Pac-12 and a number that would currently rank third on the team's season charts. The Buffaloes have been even more stingy from long range by allowing 31.2 percent shooting beyond the arc.
The Buffaloes, who rank third in the Pac-12 in scoring defense (63.0 ppg), have held 16 opponents under 60 points. Colorado has held its opponents under 70 points in 55 of the last 63 games.
Colorado held UCLA to 42 points, a season-low in Pac-12 play and the 11th time in the last two seasons the Buffaloes have held a conference opponent under 50 points.
MORE OFFENSE: Colorado has hit 80 points in seven games this season, its most since scoring 80 in 13 games during the 2001-02 season. Four of those 80-point efforts came in succession from the Alcorn State through South Alabama contests. It marked the first time that the Buffaloes had hit 80 points in four consecutive games since late in the 1982-83 season when Colorado achieved the mark in five straight (Feb. 12-Mar. 5, 1983).
Colorado's 94 points against South Alabama were its most since a 96-90 overtime win over TCU in the third round of the 2008 Postseason WNIT, and the most in regulation since the last time the Buffaloes hit the century mark, a 100-71 win over Cal State-Fullerton on Nov. 18, 2005.
The Buffaloes scored 85 at New Mexico, the most on the road, in regulation time, since a 101-56 win at TCU on Dec. 7, 1993. Colorado scored 90 on the road in a one-point overtime loss at Baylor on Feb. 23, 2000 and that same number in a 9-point overtime win at Kansas on Feb. 24, 1995.
FREE THROW HISTORY: Sophomore Arielle Roberson had one of the top free-throw performances in team history in the win over Denver. Her 13 free throws made tied for the fifth best single-game performance in team history and most since Jackie McFarland had 13 against TCU in the 2008 WNIT, just days after setting her school record of 15 against Villanova. Roberson's 17 attempts tie for the second most in team history, just one off the school-record 18 attempted by LeaAnn Banks at Colorado State on Dec. 5, 1984.
Most Free Throws Made In One Game (Attempted):
15 - Jackie McFarland vs. Villanova, Mar. 27, 2008 (16)
14 - Jackie McFarland vs. Texas Tech, Mar. 6, 2007 (16)
14 - Shelley Sheetz vs. Arkansas, Dec. 8, 1992 (16)
14 - Debbie Descano vs. Montana State, Feb. 20, 1980 (16)
13 - Arielle Roberson vs. Denver, Dec. 12, 2013 (17)
13 - Jackie McFarland vs. TCU, Mar. 30, 2008 (14)
13 - Shelley Sheetz vs. Nebraska, Mar. 18, 1992 (16)
13 - Gretchen DeWitte vs. Nebraska, Feb. 7, 1987 (13)
Most Free Throws Attempted In One Game (Made):
18 - LeaAnn Banks at Colorado State, Dec. 5, 1984 (9)
17 - Arielle Roberson vs. Denver, Dec. 12, 2013 (13)
17 - Tera Bjorklund vs. North Carolina, Mar. 24, 2003 (12)
17 - Erin Scholz vs. Auburn, Mar. 17, 1996 (12)
17 - Bridget Turner vs. UNLV, Mar. 18, 1989 (11)
ROBERSON PAC-12 PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Sophomore Arielle Roberson was named the Pac-12 Conference Women's Basketball Player of the Week for the week of Dec. 2-8, the league office announced on Dec. 9.
For Roberson it's her first Player of the Week honor and sixth conference weekly award overall. She was a five-time winner of the Pac-12's Freshman of the Week award last season.
Roberson averaged 15 points, 11 rebounds while hitting 48 percent from the field in Colorado's wins over Wyoming (63-59) on Dec. 4, and Illinois (79-56) on Dec. 7.
Roberson scored 13 points and matched a season-high with 12 rebounds in the win at Wyoming. Eight of her rebounds were on the offensive end, one less than she had in her previous four games combined. She hit 6-of-15 from the field and also dished out an assist.
Against Illinois, Roberson led Colorado in scoring, tying a season-high with 17 points, hitting 58 percent from the field (7-of-12). She pulled down 10 rebounds, logging her fifth career double-double.
Roberson's honor is CU's ninth weekly award in the Pac-12 since the Buffaloes joined the conference in 2011; fourth in the Player of the Week category.
AGAINST RANKED TEAMS: Colorado is 0-6 against ranked teams this season after dropping a 69-54 decision to No. 4/3 Stanford in the Pac-12 Tournament. The Buffaloes have lost their last 12 to ranked opponents and are 3-17 under Linda Lappe. Only one of those opponents, No. 19/19 California on Jan. 10, was ranked lower than Colorado at the time. Twelve of Colorado's last 16 ranked opponents have been ranked No. 8 or higher.
CU is 62-154 all-time against ranked opponents.
FAST OUT OF THE GATE: Colorado's 9-0 mark to start the season is the fifth best in team history. Three of the top five all-time best starts in program history have come in the last three seasons. CU's best start was a 15-0 mark to begin the 1992-93 season. Here are Colorado's top-eight all-time season starts:
Year Start Final Other
1992-93 15-0 27-4 NCAA Elite 8
2011-12 12-0 21-14 WNIT Quarterfinals
1980-81 12-0 28-5 *AIAW National Tourn. First Round
2012-13 11-0 25-7 NCAA First Round
2013-14 9-0 ?? 33 straight regular season nonconf wins
1993-94 7-0 27-5 NCAA Sweet 16
1982-83 7-0 21-8 #Big Eight Semifinals
*-CU's first national tournament appearance; #-First year of Big Eight Conference round-robin play.
LIGHTS OUT: Colorado had one of their best shooting stretches in recent memory during the three-game span of New Mexico through the Omni Classic. CU hit an impressive 52.8 percent (93-of-176) during that span and finished above 50 percent in all three contests, including a season-best 55.6 percent (30-of-54) at New Mexico.
In 2012-13 Colorado had only two games above 50 percent for the entire 32-game season. The last time the Buffaloes had hit 50 percent in three consecutive games was from Nov. 27-Dec. 4, 1998, current head coach Linda Lappe's freshman season.
NUMBERS FROM DEEP: Colorado hit 10-of-18 3-pointers at New Mexico, its best performance percentage wise since the home game against the Lobos last season. The Buffaloes hit 62 percent from long range (8-of-13) in their 84-39 win over New Mexico in Boulder on Dec. 29, 2012. The 10 3-pointers were Colorado's most in a game on the road since hitting 15 at Oklahoma State on March 25, 2012, in the WNIT Quarterfinals. Colorado also had 10 at home against Oregon on Feb. 10, 2013.
Jen Reese and Jasmine Sborov both went 2-for-2 from long range against the Lobos, setting new career-highs for 3-pointers made for both players. In fact the duo, 4-for-4 on the day, had been a combined 7-for-48 (.146) in their careers prior to the New Mexico game.
ROAD WARRIORS: Colorado is 6-7 on the road this season and has won 25 of its last 41 true road contests. Prior to the start of this run, The Buffaloes had just five wins in their previous 37 road games dating back to the 2008 Big 12 Conference schedule. Overall the Buffaloes are 29-21 away from Boulder dating back to the tail end of the 2010-11 season.
BIG WIN STREAKS: Colorado saw its 33-game regular season nonconference win streak come to an end at Louisville a string that had began with a 74-52 win over Colgate on Dec. 30, 2010. This run is just one of several enjoyed by the Buffaloes over the last three seasons.
Colorado had claimed perfect 11-0 nonconference marks in each of the last two seasons, comprising of two of the top eight overall winning streaks in team history. The 2011-12 team actually began the season 12-0, including a win in its first ever Pac-12 Conference game, tying for the fifth-best streak in team history and the second longest to begin a season.
The Buffaloes' 11-game streak to start the 2012-13 season ties for the eighth best overall. Throw in a 10-game streak at the end of the 2012-13 campaign, and the Buffaloes have registered three separate double-digit winning streaks in the last two seasons.
Colorado has 10 double-figure win streaks in its history. Head coach Linda Lappe has presided over three of those streaks, one behind her mentor Ceal Barry who coached the Buffaloes to four different double-figure win streaks over her 22 seasons on the bench.
NATIONALLY RANKED: Colorado was ranked in the first 11 polls this season (including preseason), reaching as high as No. 11 in the Associated Press poll and No. 14 in the USA Today Sports Coaches Poll.
The Buffaloes were ranked in 25 straight AP polls from Dec. 17, 2012 to Jan. 13, 2014. Colorado has been ranked in 183 all-time AP polls, ranking third in the Pac-12 behind only Stanford and USC.
For the first time since 2003, Colorado was ranked in both the Associated Press and USA Today Sports Coaches Top 25 Preseason polls, coming in at No. 19 in each.
Prior to the 2003-04 campaign the Buffaloes were ranked 20th in both polls. The preseason rankings were Colorado's highest since debuting at No. 12 (AP) and No. 13 (Coaches) heading into the 2001-02 campaign.
Colorado was not ranked in the final 2012-13 Coaches poll, coming in as the first team listed in the receiving votes category. The Buffaloes appeared in 11 Coaches polls in 2012-13, reaching has high as No. 18 the week of March 4, 2013.
HOME AT THE CECC: Colorado is traditionally tough at home with a 392-135 all-time record at the Coors Events Center (.744). The Buffaloes have won 10 or more games in a season at the CEC in 25 of 36 years. The Buffaloes have enjoyed five undefeated seasons (1980-83, 1992-94) at the CEC.
Colorado finished the regular season 10-6 at Coors in 2013-14 and has won 17 of its last 24 and 28 of its last 38 at home.