Cougs Look to Stay Hot on the Road Sunday at Colorado
BOULDER, Colo. – The Washington State women's basketball team will look to make it a perfect trip through the mountains this weekend, as the Cougars are set to take on the Colorado Buffaloes this Sunday, Jan. 3, in Pac-12 Conference action. Tip-off from the CU Events Center is set for 11 a.m. PT and will air live on the Pac-12 Network Washington
WASHINGTON STATE (5-1, 3-1 Pac-12) at Colorado (4-4, 2-3 Pac-12) | Sunday, Jan. 3 | 11 a.m. PT | CU Events Center
Live Stats | WSUCougars.com
Watch | Pac-12 Network Washington (Thad Anderson and Kami Synder)
Listen | WSU IMG Radio Network (Steve Grubbs)
Game Notes | Click Here
STARTING FIVE
>> The Cougs will be looking to wrap up their current road trip with a perfect record after collecting a 79-74 win at Utah this past Friday. WSU had four double-digit scorers, led by freshman Charlisse Leger-Walker's game-high 23 points. Junior Ula Motuga and sophomore Bella Murekatete followed with 16 points each, while redshirt senior Krystal Leger-Walker tallied 12 points in the win.
>> Washington State will be looking for their second-straight win over Colorado after knocking off the Buffalos, 69-59, in Pullman last season. WSU leads the all-time series against Colorado, 11-7, however wins have been scarce for the Cougs in Boulder, as they are just 2-6 all-time at the CU Events Center. The last WSU win at Colorado came on Jan. 4, 2016 with a 74-66 victory.
>> The reigning Pac-12 Freshman of the Week Charlisse Leger-Walker started her campaign for third weekly conference honor on Friday, as the guard scored 23 points in the win over Utah. Leger-Walker continued her recent hot streak from behind-the-arc against the Utes, as she nailed a career-high five 3-point field goals in the victory. After a frigged start from distance to open 2020-21, Leger-Walker has now made 11 3-pointers over the past three games.
>> The Cougs come into Sunday's contest having won back-to-back Pac-12 road contest for just the second time since the 2014-15 season. Washington State will be seeking its first three-game Pac-12 road winning streak since the 2013-14 season heading into Sunday's contest.
>> The youngest Leger-Walker sister will be looking to extend her double-digit scoring streak to seven games when she takes the court against the Buffalos this Sunday. Only Borislava Hristova has a longer double-digit scoring streak to begin their WSU career. Hristova had a 10-game double-digit scoring streak to open her Coug career back during 2015-16 season.
Another 20-Point Performance
Freshman Charlisse Leger-Walker scored 23 points against Utah on Friday to give the freshman her fourth 20-plus-point performance of the season. Leger-Walker's four games of 20-plus-points ties her with Lia Galderia and Alke Dietel for the fourth-most games by a WSU freshman with 20-or-more points. Borislava Hristova currently holds the WSU freshman record with seven 20-point performances.
Establishing New Career Highs
Sophomore Bella Murekatete set a new career high in points and blocks against Utah on Jan. 1. The 6-3 center tallied a new career-best 16 points against the Utes, while also collecting a career-best four blocks. Murekatete ranks fourth in the Pac-12 in block shots per game at 1.83.
Leading the Pac
Freshman Charlisse Leger-Walker enters Sunday's contest as the Pac-12's leading scorer at 19.5 points per game. Leger-Walker is also second in the Conference in steals per game at 2.8 swipes per contest.
Locking Them Up
Defense has been key for the Cougs early success to open the 2020-21 season. Washington State is currently allowing 59.5 points per game, which is the 59th-best scoring defense in all of NCAA Division I. WSU has held all but one opponent to under 70 points this season, while they've held four teams to 60-points-or-less this season.
Scouting the Buffalo
Colorado comes into Sunday's matchup sporting an even 4-4 overall record and a 2-3 mark in the Pac-12 Conference. The Buffaloes are coming off a 60-50 win over Washington this past Friday. Colorado comes into Sunday's game against the Cougars having lost four of its last six games.
Senior Mya Hollingshed leads a trio of double-digit scorers for Colorado. The 6-3 forward leads the team in both scoring (14.9 ppg) and rebounding (8.6 rpg), while she is currently riding a five-game double-digit scoring streak. The forward scored 19 points in Friday's win over the Huskies. Sophomore Jaylyn Sherrod (11.3 ppg) and freshman Frida Formann (10.5 ppg) round out Colorado's of double-figure scorers. As a team, the Buffaloes are averaging 69.3 points per game, while connecting on 41.6% of their shots from the floor.
Colorado is giving up 61.9 points per game to the opposition, while limiting foes to just a 36.7% success rate from the floor. The Buffaloes have been prone to give up shots from behind the arc, as teams have made a total of 59 3-point field goals. Teams are shooting 31.9% from distance against Colorado.
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