Freshman guard Chucky Jeffery dribbles past UC Irvine guard Keyonna Johnson during a Nov. 15 game. (CU Independent file/Lee Pruitt)
The weather might be frigid and frightful, but the Colorado Buffaloes women’s basketball team is prepared to heat up the court.
The team hopes to continue this season’s strong start as they travel to Fort Collins to face their in-state rival, the Colorado State Rams, at 7:05 p.m. Friday at Moby Arena.
“We’ve been feeling really good about our preparation all week going into the game [last Sunday] against Seton Hall,” Buffs head coach Kathy McConnell-Miller said. “Our goal is really to match that intensity day in and day out. When you have a young team, you don’t have the consistency that you need, but it’s something that you need. It’s something we are striving for everyday.”
The Buffs, who are 6-1, have four Colorado natives on the team, including twin freshmen Meagan Malcolm-Peck and Brenna Malcolm-Peck from Boulder.
McConnell-Miller wants to keep the best Colorado players at home and she believes the Buffaloes are doing just that.
“We felt really good last year when we got Alyssa Fressle, who was the Gatorade Player of the Year,” McConnell-Miller said. “This year, we felt like we got the best player in the state in Chucky Jeffery. We concentrated on Meagan and Chucky, and thankfully we got them.”
Meagan Malcolm-Peck says staying in her hometown and close to her family was always important to her. It was a major influence on why she chose CU.
“It was definitely one of the highest things on our list – to keep it near the family and everything like that,” Meagan Malcolm-Peck said. “We love the coaches. They have been to every one of our games since my last two years of high school, so they were really committed to recruiting us. We got really comfortable with the program.”
With the game against the school’s biggest in-state rival, she appears to remain cool and collected.
“I think we all have a lot of confidence and play really well together, and we all guard each other’s back,” Meagan Malcolm-Peck said. “I think every game is extremely important to win and we have that mentality of going in to play hard and get the ‘W.’ So, I don’t know if you could say it’s any more important than winning any other game.”
As far as the close proximity from Fort Collins to Boulder is concerned, McConnell-Miller wants to emphasize that they aren’t playing at home. The Buffs need to give it everything they have got against their nemesis.
“It’s not our home court, it’s an away game,” McConnell-Miller said. “Regardless if it’s 30 miles or if it’s 1,500 miles, when you’re on the road, you don’t have the luxuries of playing at home.
“But we don’t focus on that. We focus on we’ve got a game that’s an in-state rivalry. It’s a great match up. They are playing great right now. We’re playing fairly well right now. Both teams have gotten off to great starts.”
CU junior guard Kelly Jo Mullaney was a former Colorado State player who transferred to CU following the 2006-07 season. The coach noted that Mullaney will be just fine returning to her old court and that they have had a conversation about the situation.
Mullaney made the transition to CU so she could stay in Colorado and move up to the Big 12 Conference. She said she’s happy with her decision.
“University of Colorado is a great school,” Mullaney said. “I love Boulder. I was moving up to the Big 12, so that was obviously a positive.”
As far as the upcoming face-off, Mullaney says it’s “just another game.” But it doesn’t mean she isn’t thinking about her former team.
“I have a lot of good memories,” Mullaney said.
Fans shouldn’t expect her to focus too much on the past, though. She’s ready to take on CSU despite any flak she might receive from her father, Mark Mullaney, a former CSU defensive end and Minnesota Vikings player.
“It’s just another big rivalry for us,” the younger Mullaney said. “It’s our first one. Nebraska’s always another big one. But I’m just focused on going there with this team and really excited about the team we have this year and the depth we have. I think it’ll be a really good game.”
Contact CU Independent Staff Writer Marlee Horn at Marlee.horn@colorado.edu.
