“Big Dance” jitters end CU women’s tourney bid

After opening the game with a 14-4 run, the Buff’s hands turned as cold as the weather outside. 

Chucky Jeffery is one of the best players in CU history and a first round loss won’t diminish the fact.

But scoring the fifth fewest points of the season while allowing the second most was not a formula for success for the Colorado women’s basketball team, as five Kansas players scored in double figures to lead the Jayhawks to a 67-52 upset over the host Buffaloes in an NCAA Women’s Tournament first round game here Saturday.

Chucky Jeffery

Seniors Carolyn Davis and Angel Goodrich led the scored 14 points apiece for Kansas (19-13, the 12th seed in the Norfolk Region), which basically limped into the tournament after losing six of its last eight games (and 11 of 18). But the Jayhawks, after falling behind by 10 early, played the like the team that opened the year with seven straight wins on their way to an 11-2 start.

Colorado (25-7, seeded No. 5), was playing in the NCAA Tournament for the first time in a decade, but had to make a go of it without starting center Rachel Hargis, who suffered a knee injury in practice a week ago Friday. It’s safe to say CU missed the junior’s 6-foot-4 presence inside, not only her rebounding but her ability to alter shots.

Colorado started out 6-of-7 from the field in building an early 14-4 edge, but then went cold the rest of the way in the first half (5-of-27) and missed its first seven shots of the second half before a Brittany Wilson layup at 14:02 ended the drought. Meanwhile, KU shot 50 percent in the first half (15-of-30), closing with 11 makes in 18 tries; the Jayhawks made 5-of-6 to open the second for a 16-of-24 performance while turning a 15-9 deficit into a 49-29 lead, the first of two 20-point advantages it had in the game (the other coming at 56-36).

It all added up to a whopping 45-15 comeback after Colorado recorded that early lead.

Rachel Hargis knee injury opened up the low post for the Jayhawks two centers

If the Buffaloes were going to get back in it, they needed a quick start in the second half. But the Jayhawks were not to be denied, scoring the first six points to extend their 10-point intermission lead to 43-27. The margin hovered between 14 points, the closest the Buffs would get on three different occasions, and 18 the remainder of the game.

Kansas opened the scoring on a Davis layup but then Colorado went on a 14-2 run in just over a two minute span, fueled by eight points, including a pair of 3-point baskets, by junior Brittany Wilson. The Jayhawks slowly worked their way back into the game, pulling to within 15-13 on consecutive scores by Monica Engelman at the 11:19 mark. A three-pointer by Lexy Kresl and a layup from Chuck Jeffery put the Buffs back up by seven, 20-13 with 9:12 left in the half.

KU then matched and actually exceeded CU’s early run with one of its own, using a 17-3 spree over the next five-plus minutes to take a 30-23 lead, with Davis and Chelsea Gardner each contributing six points. Davis had 10 points in the half, which ended with a Charlicia Harper three-point shot to give the Jayhawks a 37-27 lead.

“We came out and it was rainin’ in here, and then after a while we couldn’t hit anything,” Wilson said. “I mean, we had open shots, I just think … I don’t really know what happened. Then there were open shots, and we kept saying, ‘just step into it and take another shot.’ I don’t know if it was nervousness, I don’t know what it was, but after a while we just couldn’t hit anything.”

Colorado finished just 16-of-63 from the field, the 25.4 shooting percentage easily its worst of the season. The Buffs came into the game hitting at 39.9 percent, while Kansas was allowing its opponents to click at just 41.1 percent. The Jayhawks converted 46 percent of its tries; otherwise, the only other decided statistical advantages belong to Kansas in assists (16-8) and to Colorado in steals (13-5) and free throw attempts (25-6).

It was just the ninth time in 32 games that the Buffaloes trailed at halftime, and only Stanford had a larger lead at intermission over CU than the Jayhawks; the Cardinal, ranked fourth at the time, led 31-14 en route to a 57-40 win in Boulder back on January 4. In addition, Kansas tied CU on the boards with 42, just the seventh time this year the Buffs did not hold the edge in rebounding; Colorado was 0-5 when getting outrebounded and 1-1 when matched.

Arielle Roberson recorded a double-double for Colorado, scoring 11 points and grabbing 12 rebounds; Wilson tied her for the team scoring lead, also netting 11. Jeffery struggled in her final appearance in a CU uniform, scoring just eight points on 2-of-16 field goal shooting, but did have five rebounds, five assists and two steals.

“It’s very disappointing,” Jeffery said of ending the season this way. “We didn’t want it to end this early. It’s kind of sad being my last game, but I wouldn’t have gone through the season with any other team.”

Jeffery finished her career ranked high on several of CU’s all-time charts, including scoring (1,644 points, sixth), rebounds (921, fifth), assists (481, fourth) and steals (283, fourth). She finished with the fifth most double-doubles (30) and had at least one assist in her last 74 games (and in 123 of 125 for her career).

“No one expected us to be here right now,” Wilson added. “But you know I think that’s a great thing. Chucky has her legacy here, and Megan has her legacy here, and I think we sent them out in a great way. I’m disappointed to lose, and of course no one thought we’d end this early. But we had a great year, and no one expected us to do the things that we’ve done. But when we look back, and once the sting of this is over we’ll be ready to come back.”

Kansas will meet South Carolina Monday night for the right to advance to the Norfolk Regional next weekend; tipoff at the Coors Events Center is 7:30 p.m.

South Carolina Advances With 74-52 Win Over South Dakota State

BOULDER — Seniors Ashley Bruner and Ieasia Walker each scored 15 points to pace four Gamecock players in double figures to lead South Carolina over South Dakota State, 74-52, in the first round of the NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournament here Saturday afternoon.

South Carolina, ranked No. 14 in the nation by the coaches and No. 17 by the Associated Press, pulled away from the Jackrabbits midway through the first half. The score was tied six times and there were eight lead changes, with South Dakota State taking its last lead at 14-13 with 12:02 to play; it remained within two, 21-19, at the 9:34 mark but that’s when the Gamecocks found their stride.

Six different South Carolina players contributed in a 21-4 run over the six minutes that broke the game open, with Tiffany Mitchell scoring five and Walker four to give USC a 40-23 lead; the Gamecocks, seeded No. 4 in the Norfolk Regional, led 44-26 at halftime. South Carolina shot 61 percent in the first half, including 7-of-9 shots in the decisive run.

South Dakota State (25-8, the No. 13 seed) made a couple of mini-runs in the second half, but would get no closer than 15. Senior Ashley Eide led the Jackrabbits with 15 points, the only SDSU player in double figures, with sophomore Gabby Boever adding nine.

Bruner had a double-double, as she collected 11 rebounds for the Gamecocks (25-7), who owned a 40-28 advantage on the boards; she also had a game-high four steals. Elem Ibian scored 13 points off the bench and Mitchell had 11, as no South Carolina starter played over 29 minutes.

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