Senior Jasmine Sborov reads a play during a home women’s basketball game at the Coors Events Center. (Robert Hylton/CU Independent)
Colorado women’s basketball won its second straight game when it defeated Arizona in Tucson Friday night 66-51. The win moves the Buffs (13-15, 6-11) into a tie with Washington State for eighth place in the Pac-12. The Wildcats have now lost five straight games.
Colorado senior forward Jen Reese led the way with an efficient 20-point performance off of 9-13 shooting. Junior forward Jamee Swan tallied a team-high eight rebounds and scored 15 points off of just nine field goal attempts.
The Buffs had the lead for most of the first half, but Arizona battled back from a 9-3 CU run that opened the game. It was the same in the second half when the game remained close. CU then outscored the Wildcats 23-5 over the course of 12 minutes late in the game. The Buffs outscored Arizona 38-23 in the second half.
Shooting wise, Colorado was able to knock down its shots and hold Arizona on the defensive end. The Buffs shot 47.4 percent from the field and the Wildcats managed just 32.7 percent. CU also didn’t allow an Arizona player to score more than 10 points.
The Buffs were able to share the ball on offense, with 17 assists on 27 made baskets. Though senior guard Lexy Kresl struggled from the field (1-10), she still had five assists. Reese dropped four dimes herself.
Sophomore guard Haley Smith scored 12 points as CU’s third-leading scorer and senior guard Jasmine Sborov added nine points. Colorado also made nine of its 10 free throws.
The Buffs play in their last regular season game at No. 10 Arizona State Sunday at 2 p.m. The Pac-12 conference tournament starts Thursday, March 5 with Colorado’s first-round opponent still to be determined.
Contact CU Independent Assistant Sports Editor Jared Funk-Breay at jared.funkbreay@colorado.edu.
