CU Buffs women’s basketball rolls past UNC in home opener – Boulder Daily Camera

by Junna Base November 9, 2024

Quick break

Why the Buffs won: CU won the battle in the paint, outscoring the Bears 38-22 and outrebounding them 39-28. The Buffs also turned 22 UNC turnovers into 22 points.

Three stars:

1. Jade Masogayo: Before she was fouled in the final minutes, she scored a game-high 19 points along with five assists and two rebounds. She made 8 of 12 shots.

2. Kindyll Wetta: Scored just four points but dished out a career-best 10 assists and kept the offense going all night.

3. Nyamer Diew: She finished the game with 14 points and three rebounds and made two of her four 3-point attempts.

Next: CU begins a two-game road tournament at Boise State on Sunday at 2 p.m. MT.

Jade Masogayo felt some nerves before the game on Thursday night, but it didn’t last long.

The Colorado junior scored four points to start things off and finished with 19 points, helping the Colorado women’s basketball team to an 81-66 win over Northern Colorado at the CU Events Center in its home opener.

“I’m the type of person that gets nervous early on when it comes to playing games and things like that,” Masogayo said. “But once I know my teammates are getting me going and stuff like that, I know I have a lot of support around me, so it’s just great.”

It was a bit of a rollercoaster night for the Buffs (2-0), but they never trailed on their way to victory.

“It was pretty up and down,” CU head coach JR Payne said. “A lot of good things, there is still a lot to learn.”

In addition to Masogayo’s big night, Nyamer Diew scored 14 points, Johanna Teder had 10 points and senior Kindyll Wetta added a career-high 10 assists for CU. Freshman Tabitha Betson also had a good night with eight points, eight rebounds and three assists.

A year ago, UNC took a 14-0 lead before CU rolled to a 20-point win. This time, CU got off to a fast start, taking a 12-2 lead after just four minutes. Wetta set the tone with an immediate jump shot and three assists in the early stages – two of which went to Masogayo.

Colorado’s Kindyll Wetta (right) appears to overtake while being covered by Northern Colorado’s London Gamble (left) at the CU Events Center in Boulder on Thursday, Nov. 7, 2024. (Matthew Jonas/Staff Photographer)

“Kindyll was really good at attacking and getting those pops of color,” Teder said.

It wouldn’t be an easy night for the Buffs, however, as the Bears hung around for most of the game.

CU took a 41-27 lead midway through the second quarter on a 3-pointer from Lior Garzon, but went ahead 3:15 into the next nine minutes. During that time, UNC cut the Buffs’ lead to 49-41 midway through the third quarter.

Kennedy Sanders then sparked a 10-1 CU run that extended the lead to 59-42 late in the third. That would be CU’s biggest lead, but UNC didn’t let up. Tatum West scored six points in a 16-8 UNC lead that cut the Buffs’ lead to 70-61 with 3:33 to play.

Tabitha Betson and Johanna Teder scored late three-pointers to secure the win for the Buffs.

“Proud of our ability to weather the storm,” Payne said. “I think we stuck together really well.”

Remarkable

CU honored legendary coach Ceal Barry at halftime, unveiling a banner in the rafters to commemorate her induction into the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame in 2018. Barry is the winningest coach in CU athletics history, with a record of 427-242 in her 22 seasons (1983-2005) with the women’s basketball program. … Senior guard Frida Formann missed her second game with a foot injury. … The Buffs have won 17 straight home openers and improved to 49-2 all-time in home openers. … Under Payne, the Buffs have a 49-2 record in non-conference home games, including a current 37-game winning streak.

Colorado 81, Northern Colorado 66

NORTHERN Colorado (1-1)

Fields 1-1 3-4 5, Hall 1-4 4-6 6, Nativi 5-6 1-2 13, West 3-8 4-9 10, Van Weelden 3-7 0-0 8, Gamble 3-10 4-4 12, George 3-5 1-2 8, Moore 0-2 0-0 0, Rummery-Lamb 2-4 0-0 4, Saleh 0-0 0-0 0. Total 21-47 17-27 66.

COLORADO (2-0)

Diew 5-10 2-3 14, Garzon 2-12 0-0 5, Masogayo 8-12 3-4 19, Wetta 2-9 0-0 4, Betson 3-4 0-0 8, Johnson 3-4 1 -2 7, Sanders 1-1 3-4 5, Powell 0-0 0-0 0, Smith 4-8 0-0 9, Teder 4-6 1-2 10, Grace 0-0 0-0 0. Total 32-66 10-15 81.

No. Colorado 15 19 10 22 – 66

Colorado 25 19 16 21 – 81

3-point goals – UNC 7-17 (Gamble 2-6, Van Weelden 2-4, Nativi 2-3, George 1-1, Moore 0-2, Rummery-Lamb 0-1), Colorado 7-20 ( Diew 2-4, Betson 2-2, Garzon 1-8, Teder 1-3, Smith 1-1, Wetta 0-2). Rebounds – UNC 28 (West 8), Colorado 39 (Betson 8). Assists – UNC 13 (Fields 6), Colorado 26 (Wetta 10). Steals – UNC 8 (West 3), Colorado 12 (Smith 4). Turnovers – UNC 22, Colorado 16. Total Fouls – UNC 16, Colorado 18. Fouls – Masogayo. Attendance – 2,161.

Originally published: November 7, 2024 at 9:40 pm MST