Oklahoma State too deep for CU
The No. 21 Oklahoma State Cowgirls outlasted the Buffs in their 82-71 victory at the Coors Event Center Saturday night.
Despite racking up their sixth loss in seven games, CU head coach Kathy McConnell-Miller said her squad’s performance was great. She said a lot of question marks were answered in the game.
Defensively, the Buffs set up a brick wall throughout the first ten minutes of the game – they allowed the No. 1 offense in the Big 12, which averages 79.4 points per game, only eight points in the first 10 minutes.
The Buffs saw their 19-10 lead expire after Oklahoma State went on 20-4 run to pull ahead.
However, as the first half wrapped-up, the favored Cowgirls commanded only a one-bucket lead over the Buffaloes, 33-31.
“I felt in the first half, we were only down by two, but there was a lot of open point-blank shots I usually make that I didn’t,” senior forward Jackie McFarland said after going 0-6 from the field in the first half.
The Buffs as a whole were out-shot 33 percent compared to the Cowgirls’ 39 percent going into the half.
In the second half, however, featured Big 12 scoring leader Andrea Riley, the starting point-guard for the Cowgirls. Riley threw up 30 points in the game, including 20 in the second half.
“When (Riley) gets the ball, she can pretty much do whatever she wants,” McConnell-Miller said. “She’s fun to watch, classy, respectful on the floor and I like her. I wish- I wish I had her.”
The second half saw the lead change between the Cowgirls and Buffs eight different times in the first 10 minutes. Once the Cowgirls reclaimed the lead at 49-48, though, they never looked back.
The Buffaloes finished the game shooting only 37 percent, but it was the 34 three-point attempts that McConnell-Miller said bothered her the most.
Freshman forward Brittany Spears shot 12 from behind the arc, while sophomore Bianca Smith took 11.
“I don’t want to rely on a freshman and a sophomore shooting the three-pointer to win,” McConnell-Miller said. “If you are asking what my preference is, I want the ball inside.”
Colorado only made 10 of their 34 three-point attempts as the clock ran down to triple-zero.
Game Notes
Records Oklahoma State (17-3, 5-2); Colorado (13-8, 2-6)
Key Stat The Cowgirls out-rebounded the Buffs 50-36.
Player Spotlight sophomore Bianca Smith made her first start since last season at Missouri.
Contact Campus Press Staff Writer Brent New at brent.new@thecampuspress.com
