Fast break
Why the Buffs won: They kept their composure, especially late, against one of the most physical and athletic teams in the Pac-12. CU hit shots when needed, rebounded well and played exceptional defense.
Three stars:
1. CU’s Quay Miller: One of her best games of the year, with 19 points and 12 rebounds, along with two assists. She was 3-for-4 from 3-point range.
2. USC’s JuJu Watkins: The most dynamic freshman in the country finished with 20 points and four steals.
3. CU’s Kindyll Wetta: Only scored two points, but she had six assists, two steals, drew four fouls and played stellar defense.
Up next: CU begins a four-game road swing, starting Friday at Oregon State at 8 p.m. MT in Corvallis, Ore.
Beating elite opponents doesn’t always require pretty basketball, but it does require smart basketball.
On Sunday afternoon at the CU Events Center, the third-ranked Colorado women’s basketball team didn’t play its best game, but the Buffaloes were great when it mattered most.
Leaning on a veteran core, CU knocked off No. 6 USC, 63-59 in front of 8,474 fans to earn yet another win against a top-10 team.
“Another great crowd, awesome environment,” CU head coach JR Payne said. “I’m really, really proud of our team because we haven’t played a ton of really close games this year, where every single possession was crucial. But our veterans totally led us down the stretch of the game.”
Forward Quay Miller posted 19 points and 12 rebounds. Point guard Jaylyn Sherrod finished with 17 points – five of those in the last 4 minutes, 35 seconds – and a season-low one assist, but it came on a dish to Aaronette Vonleh for a go-ahead bucket with 51 seconds to play. Sherrod also took a charge that resulted in USC star JuJu Watkins fouling out with 5:50 to go.
Vonleh, meanwhile, shook off a rough first half to post eight points and six rebounds – getting half of that in the fourth quarter alone. After USC missed a potential game-tying layup in the final seconds, Vonleh secured the rebound, got fouled and then hit two free throws to put the game away.
And Kindyll Wetta had two massive steals in the fourth quarter and played lock-down defense, mainly on Watkins.
It was all sparked, Payne said, by “next level” communication by the veterans down the stretch.
“Just lots of really high level thinking at the end of the game,” she said. “I’m just really proud of these guys. Having that mindset down the stretch, I think, allowed us to be able to win the game.”
Coming off a 76-68 loss to No. 5 UCLA on Friday, the Buffs needed this one, but USC didn’t make it easy.
Neither team led by more than seven at any point, even after Watkins, the second-leading scorer in the country, fouled out when she ran into Sherrod near midcourt with 5:50 to go and CU leading 52-49.
“Jaylyn’s a very smart player and that was a very smart play,” Wetta said . “A huge play for us and we expect her to make those plays. It was, I think, no surprise. We were all just really excited for it.”
Watkins had 20 points, but USC didn’t flinch with her out, outscoring the Buffs 7-4 to tie the game at 56-56 going into the final minute. The Trojans’ Kayla Padilla then drained a 3-pointer with 16 seconds left, and USC had a chance to tie or win in the closing seconds.
“JuJu is one of the best scorers in America, no doubt about it, but they’re a really good team,” Payne said. “They have a lot of fifth-year veterans that have played a ton of basketball. So (when Watkins fouled out) people outside of us might have thought, ‘Oh, great, we got it.’ We knew that they had enough pieces they could still win the game.”
CU has those pieces, too, and they showed up in the clutch as the Buffs beat a top-10 opponent for the third time this season – marking the first time in program history they’ve defeated three in one season.
“Hearing it, yes (thatap big),” Miller said, “but … we’re a team thatap just like, ‘All right, who’s next?’ We go back, watch the film and, like, there’s been times where we’ve won games and we’re just disappointed in how we play. I think thatap what I love most about being a part of this program. We’re always looking for ways to get better and thatap what makes us scary.”
No. 3 Colorado 63, No. 6 USC 59
USC (13-3, 3-3 Pac-12)
Bigby 3-7 5-6 14, Watkins 8-22 4-4 20, Marshall 1-3 0-0 2, Forbes 3-10 2-2 11, Padilla 2-5 0-0 5, Samuels 0-1 0-0 0, Davis 1-1 1-3 3, Makolo 1-2 0-0 2, Akunwafo 1-1 0-0 2. Totals 20-52 12-15 59.
COLORADO (16-2, 6-1 Pac-12)
Sherrod 6-14 5-8 17, Formann 2-5 4-4 8, Miller 7-12 2-2 19, Vonleh 3-9 2-2 8, Nolan 0-3 0-0 0, Sadler 3-5 0-0 7, Wetta 1-1 0-0 2, McLeod 0-0 0-0 0, Whittaker 1-3 0-0 2. Totals 23-52 13-16 63.
USC 18 12 17 12 – 59
Colorado 14 18 17 14 – 63
3-point field goals – USC 7-20 (Forbes 3-8, Bigby 3-6, Padilla 1-2, Watkins 0-3, Samuels 0-1), Colorado 4-16 (Miller 3-4, Sadler 1-2, Sherrod 0-3, Formann 0-3, Nolan 0-3, Vonleh 0-1). Rebounds – USC 27 (Marshall 6), Colorado 37 (Miller 12). Assists – USC 8 (Forbes, Padilla 3), Colorado 13 (Wetta 6). Steals – USC 10 (Watkins 4), Colorado 7 (Wetta 2). Turnovers – USC 12, Colorado 15. Total fouls – USC 16, Colorado 12. Fouled out – Watkins. Attendance – 8,474.
