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Games thread- WOMEN'S BBall ends non-conference play hosting Southern Utah (Sat., 12/7/24; 1:00 PM MT; ESPN+) and DU (Tuesday, 7:00 PM MT; ESPN+)

AztecBuff

AztecBuff

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Before beginning conference play with a home game vs. West Virginia on December 21st, Women's basketball (7-2) gets 2 more non-conference home games to improve and fine tune their play and rotations. 1st off it's a visit from the Southern Utah Thunderbirds (SUU; 1-8) Saturday afternoon, followed up with the Denver Pioneers (DU; 3-3) heading up the road to the CUEC for a Tuesday night contest.

For the 1st time I've noticed, there are now current season NET rankings (Of course so early as to be VERY changeable at this point; available at https://www.ncaa.com/rankings/basketball-women/d1/ncaa-womens-basketball-net-rankings). In them (dated 12/2/24 so not including CU's game today), CU is at #79, SUU #335 and DU #189.

As I assume will be the case for most if not all games hosted by a Big 12 school, both games are scheduled to be streamed on ESPN+ for those with a subscription to that paid subscription service. (Further info and links for media options available near the bottom of this post.)

Go Buffs!!!
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Links with more more info on the upcoming opponents:

SUU :
Roster - https://suutbirds.com/sports/womens-basketball/roster
Stats - https://suutbirds.com/sports/womens-basketball/stats/2024-25
Schedule - https://suutbirds.com/sports/womens-basketball/schedule
Their preview article - Not available as I type this.

DU :
Roster - https://denverpioneers.com/sports/womens-basketball/roster
Stats - https://denverpioneers.com/sports/womens-basketball/stats/2024-25
Schedule - https://denverpioneers.com/sports/womens-basketball/schedule
Their preview article - Not available as I type this.

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Media links:

Live video: Both of these games are scheduled to be provided through the premium ($) ESPN+ subscription service, available either on the ESPN app or at:
Vs. SUU - https://www.espn.com/watch/player/_/eventCalendarId/401720124?gameId=401720124
Vs. DU - https://www.espn.com/watch/player/_/eventCalendarId/401718126?gameId=401718126

Live audio - If like last season, the games will usually be available on AM 630 in the Denver/ Boulder area and maybe other stations in the Buff radio network. In addition, free audio streams for the games will be available at:
Vs. SUU - https://cubuffs.com/watch/?Live=2990&type=Live
Vs. DU - https://cubuffs.com/watch/?Live=2992&type=Live

Link to link to live stats (All games) - http://www.statbroadcast.com/events/statmonitr.php?gid=colo
For specific games (If blank, not available as I type this.):
Vs. SUU - https://stats.statbroadcast.com/statmonitr/?id=552027
Vs. DU - https://stats.statbroadcast.com/statmonitr/?id=552029

Game notes: (Note- Left empty for games that don't have any as I type this.)
Vs. SUU - https://cubuffs.com/documents/2024/12/6/WBB_Notes_12_7_24_Game_10_SUU.pdf
Vs. DU - https://cubuffs.com/documents/2024/12/9/WBB_Notes_12_10_24_Game_11_DU.pdf
 
Last edited:
Preview for tomorrow afternoon's game - https://cubuffs.com/news/2024/12/6/...-at-home-vs-southern-utah-five-things-to-know

"

Colorado Continues at Home vs Southern Utah: Five Things to Know​

The Buffaloes tip off against the Thunderbirds at 1 p.m. MT

By: Seth Pringle, Athletic Communications

BOULDER – The Colorado women's basketball team starts an action-packed Saturday at the CU Events Center. The Buffaloes will take on Southern Utah in the first leg of the hoops double-header (1 p.m. MT). The CU men's team follows up with its game against Colorado State later in the evening.

Saturday will be the seventh meeting between the two teams. The Buffs are 6-0 all-time against SUU. CU head coach JR Payne spent five seasons at the helm in Cedar City and led SUU to a school record for wins and a share of the Big Sky Conference regular season championship in her final season in 2013-14 with a 23-10 record.

"The head coach for Southern Utah was my college teammate, and her daughter is a fifth-year senior on her team," Payne said following CU's win over Tennessee Tech. "I'm always cheering for Southern Utah, except for the day that we play them. A couple of our college teammates are actually coming up for the game, and it'll be really great to see her and see them."

Payne became the second CU bench boss to reach 150 wins in CU's 91-79 win over TTU. Colorado (7-2) scored a season-high 54 points off the bench, led by Ayianna Johnson and Nyamer Diew, who both finished with 15 points. The Buffs trailed by as many as eight in the first quarter before surging to a 21-point lead in the third quarter.

Southern Utah (1-9) enters Saturday on a three-game skid. The Thunderbirds went 0-3 last week at the Nugget Classic in Reno, Nev. SUU's lone of the season was an 86-45 defeat of Bethesda University of California.

Five Things to Know
  1. Vs. Former Team – JR Payne has been successful in both meetings against her former school. The two teams met in back-to-back seasons, with CU going to Cedar City for the first time in 2001 (81-47). SUU made the return trip to Boulder in 2022 (78-48). Coincidentally, both previous meetings fell on Dec. 7.
  2. Top Gun(s) – Frida Formann and Lior Garzon rank among the NCAA's active leaders in 3-pointers. Formann is eighth among active DI players with 273 career makes. Garzon is 13th with 259 career triples.
  3. Vs. Bee Hive State – Saturday is the third of five games Colorado will play this season against teams from Utah. The Buffs are 2-0 this season with wins over Utah State and at Utah Tech. Trips to BYU (Jan. 29) and Utah (Feb. 12) remain on the docket.
  4. Fresh off the Bench – CU is averaging 28.8 points per game off the bench. It's the second-best average in the Big 12 behind TCU's 29.7. Colorado's bench scored a season-high 54 points against TTU, marking the most points by the bench unit since totaling 54 last season against Le Moyne.
  5. 50 Burger – CU scored 52 points in the first half against Tennessee Tech. It was the most points scored in a half since totaling 52 in the second half at Utah (Feb. 16, 2024). Colorado scored 50 points in a half eight times last season.
Thad Anderson and Rachel Galligan will have the call on ESPN+.

Cory Lopez and Carol Callan will have pregame coverage starting 30 minutes before tip-off on the Colorado Radio Network.

Up Next: Dec. 10, Denver (7 p.m. MT)
"
_______________________________________________________________

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1864469393830269039
 
It's 47-31 CU at the half.

The 1st quarter didn't look great, as SUU was getting quite a few open (many inside) baskets and kept it close to only be down 4 going into the 2nd. Thankfully, the Buff D tightened up quite a bit in the 2nd quarter, and the shooting has been VERY good for CU throughout (6-12 from 3, 54% overall).

The Buffs also hold a BIG 23-9 rebounding advantage.
 
CU gets the win 76-59. The 2nd half seemed very calm, with the lead never going below 14 or above the low 20's.

When both the main point guards get knocked out (hope their concussions are mild!) a day or 2 before, any win should be appreciated. Also nice to see the tallest Buff (Ms. Nworie) getting her 1st playing time in a long time.

Way to go Buffs!
 
Media after today's game:

Article - https://cubuffs.com/news/2024/12/7/womens-basketball-shorthanded-buffs-strike-down-thunderbirds

"

Shorthanded Buffs Strike Down Thunderbirds​

Colorado picks up the 76-59 win over Southern Utah

By: Seth Pringle, Athletic Communications

BOULDER – The shorthanded Colorado women's basketball team had little problems with its new rotations Saturday at the CU Events Center, sending the visiting Southern Utah Thunderbirds packing, 76-58.

The Buffaloes improved to 8-2 on the season, playing without the comfort of its two true-point guards. Senior Kindyll Wetta and freshman Kennedy Sanders were sidelined due to injuries suffered earlier this week in practice. For Wetta, it was the first game she's been sidelined for, snapping a streak of 108 consecutive games played.

Grad transfers Johanna Teder and Lior Garzon were both tasked as the fill-ins. Teder, who started every game she played at Washington State (86), got her first start as a Buff and led the team with a career-high seven assists. Garzon, who had started every game this season, came in off the bench and led the team with 20 points.

"I'm really proud of us," head coach JR Payne expressed after the win. "It's a difficult thing to play without the players that have been playing point guard position. These guys [Teder and Garzon] did great stepping in at that position. JoJo [Nworie] played who hasn't played in two years. She came in, hit a 3, and blocked a couple of shots. That was really incredible to see. Just overall a good team effort. We still have things, obviously, to work on, but I'm proud of how we played tonight."

Colorado led for all but 49 seconds of Saturday's contest and shots over 50.0% from the field for the third consecutive game. Frida Formann put in 15 points on 6-of-8 shooting. Formann and Garzon combined for five of the team's seven 3-pointers. Jade Masogayo snuck into double-figures with 10 points to round out the day.

"Our offense is structured to spread the ball and share the ball," Payne added. "I think that's why our assist numbers are so high. I think we're among the top 15 assists in the country. We have unselfish players that are happy to share the ball. I think it's incredible when you have players capable of going for 20 or 28 like she [Lior] had one night. We have many players that are capable of that, but we don't rely on anyone for that. I think that's the strength of our team, is that sure it could be Lior tonight for 20; it could be Johanna, who had 14 a couple of weeks ago, and Frida had 20, so I love that about our team. We don't absolutely rely on anyone, and we're happy to share the ball, and it shows up in the box score."

Four different Buffs handed out 17 assists on 30 made field goals despite missing their top assist leader in Wetta. The senior guard has averaged 6.8 assists per game this season.

"I did have the ball in my hands a lot more," Teder said about filling in. "We just talked with Coach about being more aggressive and finding the open shots. I think it was just really good practice. Even if I haven't played [at point guard], I've still always been in that rotation. I was comfortable, and I had everyone's trust."

Sophomore JoJo Nworie became the final Buff to make her debut this season. She scored her first collegiate points in the second quarter, finishing with five points, one rebound and a block.

"JoJo and I take a class together three times a week, and every time we go back to practice, we always say, 'I can't wait to see you.'" Garzon explained. "Seeing her today, when she banged the 3, I looked at her and was like, 'You're back.' It's real now. I think it was very special today for her to get on the court again. It was just about being there with us on the court, feeling that again, and being a part of the rotation. I think that's amazing."

Southern Utah (1-9) was led by Sydney Gandy and Daylani Ballena with 11 points each.
...

Up Next
Colorado closes the non-conference season on Tuesday, hosting Denver at 7 p.m. MT.

Notes
Colorado improved to 7-0 all-time against Southern Utah…Coach Payne is now 3-0 against her former team…The past three games against Southern Utah have all fallen on Dec. 7…Garzon leads the team in 20-point performances with three this season…Garzon now has 262 career 3-pointers…Colorado recorded its third game season with 40 or more points in the paint (42)…The team also had 42 points off the bench…CU had its largest rebounding margin of the season (+19)…CU is now 3-0 against teams from Utah this season.
"
_________________________________________________________________________

Box score - https://cubuffs.com/sports/womens-basketball/stats/2024-25/southern-utah/boxscore/17279




 
MarkW said:
https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1865480749492613576
Click to expand...

I listen to Cory Lopes and Carol Callan while I stream the game. Wetta got the worst of this. She had to get stitches.

Carol said that this is also difficult because of finals coming so soon and they are not supposed to be on screens. I saw Sanders on Instagram last night but nothing from Wetta.

Carol seemed to think Wetta will not be out of concussion protocol by the DU game.

We all know there is not timetable for concussions. Hope Wetta is back soon.
 
Preview for tomorrow night's game with the 4-4 Pioneers - https://cubuffs.com/news/2024/12/9/...et-for-front-range-battle-five-things-to-know

"

Buffs Set for Front Range Battle: Five Things to Know​

Tuesday's tip off against Denver is set for 7 p.m. MT

By: Seth Pringle, Athletic Communications

BOULDER – The Colorado women's basketball team closes the non-conference season on Tuesday night with a showdown against front-range rival Denver. The Buffaloes and Pioneers will renew acquaintances at the CU Events Center with a 7 p.m. MT tip.

Tuesday will be the 13th meeting between the two teams. The Buffs are 9-3 all-time against DU. CU dropped the last meeting, 85-84, at Hamilton Gymnasium in Denver back on Dec. 8, 2020. Frida Formann had 17 points in the loss. The Buffs are a perfect 6-0 at home against Denver.

Colorado improved to 8-2 on Saturday with its 76-59 win over Southern Utah. The Buffs led for all but 49 seconds in the contest and shot 51.7% from the field. Lior Garzon led the team with a game-high 20 points off the bench. Formann (15) and Jade Masogayo (10) closed the day in double figures.

Denver (4-4) got the upper hand over Portland State, 57-41, on Saturday. The Pioneers have won four of their last five games after a 0-3 start to the season.

Five Things to Know
  1. No PG(s), No Problem – Colorado was without the services of PGs Kindyll Wetta and Kennedy Sanders against Southern Utah. It was the first game Wetta missed in her career, having played in 108 straight. CU handed out 17 assists in the win. Johanna Teder dished out a career-high seven assists, and Sara-Rose Smith also had a career-high with five.
  2. Garzon in the Zone –Lior Garzon recorded her third 20-point game of the season against Southern Utah. She leads the team this season in 20-point efforts and is the only player with multiple 20-point games this season. She is averaging 14.8 points per game in CU's eight wins this season.
  3. Helping Hands – The Buffs are 17th in the nation and sixth in the Big 12 with 18.7 assists per game. Despite missing Saturday's game, Wetta remains ranked seventh in the NCAA with 61 total assists. Colorado has had 20 or more assists in five games this season. The team is 22-1 over the last two seasons when posting 20 or more assists.
  4. Three-da – Frida Formann has scored double figures in five of her six games since returning to the lineup. She's leading the team with her 14.7 points per game. Formann ranks 15th in program history with 1,414 career points. She moved into a tie for 13th all-time in games started, making her 108th career start on Saturday.
  5. Debuts – Sophomore JoJo Nworie became the final Buff to hit the court this season. She made her DI debut on Saturday, finishing with five points, one rebound and one block in her eight minutes.
Quotable
"We've known JoJo. We recruited her out of her junior college after her freshman year, so we've known her since then and really believed in her then. She's a National Junior College Player of the Year, so she's extremely talented and gifted and she has always believed that she could be a great college player. To fight back from the two injuries that she had took a significant amount of heart, desire, and work, so if anyone's willing to work as hard as she did to come back, we knew that she would do it again and be able to get out on the floor." – head coach JR Payne on Nworie's debut.

Thad Anderson and former Buff Kami Carmann Snyder will have the call on ESPN+.

Cory Lopez and Carol Callan will have pregame coverage starting 30 minutes before tip-off on the Colorado Radio Network.

Up Next: Dec. 21, West Virginia (6 p.m. MT)
"
 
Did a quick twitter search looking for any updates for the CU point guards. Couldn't find anything new about that, but it is nice to see from a "College Basketball Reference" account (some of which is also noted in the preview article quoted above) that Ms. Wetta's 6.8 assists per game is currently 6th in the NCAA (the leader is Amoore with Kentucky with 7.8) and 2nd in the Big 12 (behind only ISU's Ryan's 7.2).
(She's also been efficient, with an over 2.5 assist to turnover ratio (61 assists vs. 24 turnovers). And, with her defensive prowess, she has almost as many steals she's made (19) as turnovers against.)
 
The game got a little scary as DU got it down to an around 10 point CU lead with around 6-7 minutes left and CU couldn't grow their lead much after with DU hot and CU cold from outside' but still ends up a nice 78-61 W.

Way to go Buffs!
 
going to need the top two point guards especially Wetta in conference. They still have a ton of trouble with the trap
 
Buffs finished the non-conference portion of the season at 9-2. Up next is West Virginia at home on the 21st.

Lots of points of off the bench tonight with Lior Garzon and Aiyanna Johnson going for 14 each.
 
Media after tonight's win:

Article - https://cubuffs.com/news/2024/12/10...fs-fend-off-pioneers-in-non-conference-finale

"

Buffs Fend off Pioneers in Non-Conference Finale​

Colorado wins the Front Range battle 78-61

By: Seth Pringle, Athletic Communications

BOULDER – Colorado women's basketball wrapped the non-conference season with a 78-61 win over neighboring Denver on Tuesday at the CU Events Center.

It was CU's bench unit that provided the spark on Tuesday. Colorado (9-2) entered the night leading the Big 12 with 30.1 points per game. The Buffs had five different bench players hit the score column on the night, totaling 41 points as a unit. Ayianna Johnson and Lior Garzon led the way with 14 points apiece in relief.

"I don't know where we rank as far as points off the bench, but it has to be pretty high," head coach JR Payne commented after the win. "There have been a handful of games where at least half our points are coming from the bench. We have a really unselfish team. Our assist numbers are really high, and our bench points are high. I think that's because we like to share the ball. As a coach, it's awesome to have firepower coming off the bench."

Frida Formann continued to succeed since her return to the court, posting her sixth game in double figures with 11 points on the night. Sara-Rose Smith was a rebound shy from her second double-double of the season, closing with a team-high nine boards and 10 points.

The Buffaloes built up a 25-point lead in the third quarter, but Denver didn't go away quietly. The Pioneers hit seven second-half 3-pointers and 12 on the night to keep Colorado on its toes until late in the fourth quarter.

"We knew that they all could shoot," Payne noted about Denver's perimeter. "We recognized that a lot of them have taken a ton of 3s. Not a lot of them have made a lot at a high percentage yet. Anytime a team is taking that many, they can shoot. Otherwise, their coaches wouldn't let them continue with the volume of shooting. I thought that they got great looks, some our fault and some, they're just good at what they do. It's just an area we have to get better, for sure."

Colorado played its second consecutive game without their top two point guards, Kindyll Wetta and Kennedy Sanders. Grad transfer Johanna Teder once again filled the starting role and recorded four of the team's 19 assists. The Buffs dominated the paint against the undersized Pioneers, outscoring DU 48-12 down low.

"We're also two really different teams. They run a five-out system where they don't even go to the paint unless they're penetrating," Payne added. "I'm not surprised the number was different because we're a different type of team, but we wanted to get the ball inside. We even repped it out in practice, basic actions that allowed us to get the ball inside. We wanted to do that, and I thought every post that played did a pretty good job of that. AJ [Johnson], in particular, was really good."

Denver (4-5) had three players hit double figures. Jordan Jones finished the night as the top Pioneer with 15 points.

More to follow..
"
_______________________________________________________________


Box score - https://cubuffs.com/sports/womens-basketball/stats/2024-25/denver/boxscore/17280








 
Good win, Buffs! Happy to see the bench contributing so much. Hopefully Wetta's injury heals quickly and completely. WVU is very good; that's gonna be a tough match-up for CU.
 
Scotch said:
Taking care of business vs. the locals!

@buffgal How do you think the Buffs will do in conference?
Click to expand...

With the number of ranked teams in the Big 12 and our lack of center, I think CU will struggle. I hope I am wrong. I know JR is an excellent coach and will get everything possible from the players.

If Wetta can't play, it will be a bigger struggle.

I don't expect this season to end in the Dance but I hope they prove me wrong.
 
buffgal said:
With the number of ranked teams in the Big 12 and our lack of center, I think CU will struggle. I hope I am wrong. I know JR is an excellent coach and will get everything possible from the players.

If Wetta can't play, it will be a bigger struggle.

I don't expect this season to end in the Dance but I hope they prove me wrong.
Click to expand...
agree. they will be a tough out but no inside game will be a problem in the big 12 and no Wetta is a huge issue.
 
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