With the only way into the NCAA tournament a 2015 Pac-12 Tournament Championship win, the University of Colorado women’s basketball team kept that dream alive for one more day on Thursday night with a 75-63 win over USC in the tournament’s first round. Despite dropping both regular season games to the Trojans this season, the Buffaloes won when it counted Thursday night at Key Arena in Seattle. The Buffs may have been the underdog in the matchup, representing the No.9 seed while USC was No.8, but Colorado played like the favorite. Four players tallied double-digit point totals for Colorado, and strong shooting from the free throw line and 3-point range helped the Buffs past the Trojans.
Leading 39-27 after the game’s first 20 minutes, Colorado played a strong first half on both sides of the ball. The Buffaloes shot 58.3 percent from the field while limiting the Trojans to only 22.9 percent. The Buffs were a perfect 9-9 from the free throw line in the half, and both sophomore wings, Haley Smith and junior forward Jamee Swan, tallied double-digit point totals, with 10 and 11 respectively.
Although both players would slow down in the second half, they ended up as Colorado’s leading scorers at the game’s end. Smith led the team with 16 points, with Swan close behind with 15.
Although USC narrowed the Colorado lead to six points, five minutes into the second half, it wasn’t long before Colorado picked up where they left off in the first half. Three-pointers from sophomore guard Lauren Huggins and freshman guard Alina Hartmann contributed to Colorado jumping out to a double-digit lead halfway through the half. Huggins also scored her second 2-point field goal of the season, a fast break layup and she finished the game with 11 points, on a perfect 4-4 shooting performance from the field.
Colorado advances to the second round of the 2015 Pac-12 Tournament, where they will play No.1 Oregon State Friday night at 7 p.m. The Buffaloes lost to Oregon State 66-44 in Boulder on Feb. 20, but it should be noted that that game was tied 26-26 at halftime. Friday’s game will be broadcast on the Pac-12 network.
Contact CU Independent Assistant Sports Editor Sam Routhier at Samuel.routhier@colorado.edu and follow him on twitter @samrouthier.
