Posts tagged Zoe Beard Fails
WBB: Buffs avoid a meltdown, still come up short
Feb 17th
CU’s inside game, led by Swan and Reese, was excellent, but a couple of bad shots in the last three minutes doomed the effort
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By: B.G. Brooks, Contributing Editor
BOULDER – Another chance at a close-game breakthrough eluded the Colorado women’s basketball team Sunday afternoon. Following what has become a painfully familiar script, CU faltered in the final 5 minutes and lost 80-77 to Washington State at the Coors Events Center.
“Well, it seems a little bit like déjà vu,” said Buffaloes coach Linda Lappe, whose team lost its fourth Pac-12 Conference game this season by three or fewer points.
Lappe credited the Buffs for competing throughout and staying close enough to win but again lamented their inability to “make key stops, free throws, passes and shots down the stretch that would have helped us have the outcome we wanted.”
Jamie Swan and Jen Reese both scored 19 points
After trailing by as many as nine points midway through the second half, CU (14-11, 4-10) rallied to tie the score at 71-71. But the Buffs clanked four of their next five free throws, not hitting one until Ashley Wilson converted a pair with 2:52 to play, then sank one of two to put CU up 75-73 with 2:17 remaining.
From there until the final buzzer, the Buffs got only a field goal by Jen Reese in the last 2 seconds that made it a two-point (79-77) game. After one of two foul shots by WSU’s Shalie Dheensaw with 1.1 seconds left put WSU (14-12, 8-6) up 80-77, Reese threw a three-quarter court length pass to Jamie Swan, who caught the ball then passed to Wilson instead of shooting.
Time expired before Wilson could attempt a shot.
Lappe said Reese’s long pass went a step or two too deep, forcing Swan inside the 3-point circle to catch it – thus Swan’s decision to kick it back to Wilson. Reese said the play was designed for Swan to catch-and-shoot, but added, “If there was more time, Ashley could have shot the ball. The pass was there; she had it.”
Swan, again coming off the bench, and Reese led the Buffs with 19 points each, while Ashley Wilson added 12. Arielle Roberson was a point away from a double-double in points and rebounds – nine in each category. Brittany Wilson left the game with 12:19 to play and did not return after suffering a possible concussion.
The Buffs had problems with Washington’s backcourt of Kelsey Plum (25 points) and Jazmine Davis (24) in an 87-80 loss on Thursday night. This was part of Lappe’s déjà vu: On Sunday, CU surrendered 42 combined points to WSU guards Tia Presley (32) and Lia Galdeira (10).
Presley got 22 of her total in the first half, then picked up eight more points in the first 4:55 of the second half. She didn’t get her 32nd point until hitting a layup with 1:27 to play, putting the Cougars up 77-75.
That nearly 14-minute span of keeping Presley in check, said Ashley Wilson, came from “focusing on keeping the ball out of her hands” in the second half. “We had a couple of different players on her (and) when she was driving, just have our bigger post players waiting for her at the basket. It turned out to work in our favor.”
Lappe also thought a different lineup might work in the Buffs’ favor; she used a bigger five of Swan, Reese, Roberson and Rachel Hargis, with Ashley Wilson at guard, in the first half and again to close the game.
But it didn’t matter in CU making enough late plays to win. “There’s no magic formula,” Lappe said. “You just have to do it. You have to figure out that enough’s enough and decide to be tough enough to do that. You have to understand that every team is going to get tougher down the stretch and that’s when the stars are really born. It’s where players step up.”
The Cougars swept the series with the Buffs, winning 70-60 last month in Corvallis, Wash. With their loss to the Huskies on Thursday, the Buffs gave up 80 points or more for the second consecutive game and the fourth time in Pac-12 play. And it marks the first time CU has allowed 80 or more points in back-to-back games since the 2008 WNIT.
The Buffs trailed 44-40 at halftime, surrendering a 25-22 lead taken on a 3-pointer by Roberson with 8:37 left before the break. But CU didn’t get another field goal for nearly 4 minutes, and during that time WSU was building its largest lead of the half – 34-25 – with Presley scoring eight of her 22 first-half points in that stretch.
“She played too many minutes tonight (36), but you really can’t take her out,” said WSU coach June Daugherty. “She’s such a fierce competitor.”
A defensive upgrade had to be among CU’s second-half goals, but that message – if delivered – apparently took a while to register. The Cougars outscored the Buffs 7-2 to open the half, with Presley scoring consecutive baskets to kick off that run. WSU again stretched its lead to nine – 51-42 – on a traditional three-point play by Shane Romberg (14 points, 12 rebounds).
By the 10-minute mark the Buffs still trailed by seven – 64-57 – but they were about to make their move. With Reese getting four points in a 6-0 run and freshman Zoe Beard-Fails scoring on a put-back, CU pulled within 64-63 with 9:07 remaining.
The Buffs finally tied the Cougars at 71-71 when Swan hit both ends of a one-and-one with 4:23 left. On the previous possession, With 5:51 to play, Swan scored what would be CU’s next-to-last field goal – the last being Reese’s jumper with 2 seconds left.
After Ashley Wilson hit one of two free throws to give CU its 75-73 lead with 2:17 left, WSU got four free throws from Galdeira, Presley’s layup and one of two foul shots from Dheensaw to account for its 80 points.
The Cougars were up 80-77 and the Buffs needed a nearly full-court pass and full-blown miracle to force overtime. They got the first but not the second.
“We have to forget about this game, but we have to learn from it as well and move on,” Reese said. “We just have to finish down the stretch . . . hopefully good things will come.”
CU is at Arizona State on Friday night (6:30 p.m.) and at Arizona next Sunday (3 p.m.). The Buffs close out the regular season at home against UCLA on Feb. 28 and USC on March 2.
CU women b-ballers nip CSU at the last moment
Nov 13th
Roberson and Sborov carry the scoring weight for team
By: B.G. Brooks, CUBuffs.com Contributing Editor
FORT COLLINS – In the post-Chucky Jeffery era, even though the Colorado women’s basketball team might still be in search of a specific go-to player, the No. 17 Buffs made a significant opening-night discovery.
They had talked about having each other’s backs, and when crunch time arrived against their in-state rival Tuesday night, they backed each other up. CU withstood a late Colorado State comeback and escaped with a 63-59 win in its 2013-14 season opener at Moby Arena.
“We stuck together and that’s a major accomplishment,” said forward Arielle Roberson, whose layup with 6:43 left was the Buffs’ last field goal of the night. “One of the things we talked about was having each other backs. I think we had that, especially down the stretch. I didn’t feel like I was playing one-on-one; I felt like my teammates had my back. I think everyone felt that way.”
Jasmine Sborov and Arielle Roberson shard high game points at 13 each.
CU led by as many as 13 points twice in the final 10 minutes, including 59-46 on Roberson’s final basket. But the Rams outscored the Buffs 13-1 during that span and pulled to within 60-59 on a basket by Ellen Nystrom with 2:15 to play.
CSU had an opportunity to go ahead on a possession in the final minute, but Roberson stole the ball with 51 seconds left. Jasmine Sborov hit two free throws with 27 seconds showing, giving her a career-high 13 points and putting the Buffs ahead 62-59.
After Buffs center Rachel Hargis blocked Elin Gustavsson at the other end, Brittany Wilson hit one of two free throws with 2.4 seconds remaining – and the resilient Rams were done. The Buffs, who won 72-46 last season in Boulder and padded their series lead to 34-11, return to the Coors Events Center on Friday night to play Alcorn State in their home opener (7 p.m.).
The versatile Sborov, who has seen her role undergo alterations in each season of her college career, said hitting the two late free throws “felt good, I’m not going to lie. It was really comforting to know my teammates and coaches trust me with those shots. I feel comfortable taking them and they give me reassurance.”
But, she added with a smile, if she had dwelled too much on the scenario when she stepped to the free throw line, “I would have been a head case. I tried not to think about it and tried to act like it was a regular free throw in practice. And that’s what Jen (Reese) said – shoot it just like practice.”
The Rams’ late 13-1 run included a pair of free throws by Caitlin Duffy following a technical foul called on CU coach Linda Lappe. Duffy, who had hit a three-pointer on the previous possession, sank both free throws and pulled the Rams to 60-57 with 2:30 to play. CSU closed to within one on Nystrom’s basket but could get no closer.
Lappe’s explanation of her ‘T:’ “My clipboard fell . . . I didn’t say anything . . . it wasn’t the smartest move. But the players have each other’s back and my back. When you’re a team and you’re family, people make mistakes. There were a lot of missed shots, a lot of fouls, and I definitely made a mistake. I think it shows a lot of resilience from our team.”
Said Roberson: “I think with the technical we definitely could have folded, but we didn’t. I think that’s a positive for us.”
Lappe called her team’s victory “gutsy,” adding, “We found a way to win, which is really important. First game of the year, on the road against your rival . . . CSU is a good team. We got stops when we needed to, got rebounds and made free throws when we needed to. There’s a lot of things to take out of this game.”
And there are areas that obviously need improvement. The Rams turned the Buffs’ 19 turnovers into 15 points and outscored the visitors 28-24 in the paint. Gustavsson scored a game-high 21 points and got assistance from Duffy with 13 and Sam Martin with 10.
CU benefited from balanced scoring from its five starters, with Roberson and Sborov each scoring 13. Reese added eight points and guard Lexy Kresl grabbed a career-high nine rebounds, with four points and four assists.
Kresl said the Buffs knew the Rams “had improved from last year. We didn’t want to underestimate them. They had five people on the floor that could score. It was a really big challenge for us defensively.”
She conceded the Buffs eased up when they opened their 13-point leads, but called the way the win was finally secured “good . . . especially in the first game of the year. It shows you a lot about our team and our heart.”
The Buffs opened the night by hitting four of their first eight field goal attempts and went ahead 10-4 before cooling off. When the cold touches arrived, they lingered; CU went 0-for-7 from the field during a 6:18 stretch and CSU took advantage.
The Rams caught and overtook the Buffs 11-10 at on a Martin three-pointer with 11:15 left in the first half and increased their lead to as many as four (22-18) just under 5 minutes later. During that Rams run, the Buffs’ lone spark was freshman Zoe Beard-Fails, who got five points and two rebounds in 2 minutes. She also picked up two fouls and Lappe said Beard-Fails needed to improve her defense before getting significant minutes against scorers like CSU puts on the floor.
“Right now, she’s not quite ready to guard a team like CSU where all five players can shoot the three, drive, score one-on-one,” Lappe said. Beard-Fails did not play in the second half.
With about 5 minutes left before halftime, CU appeared to at least temporarily solve its turnover (10 for the half) and shooting problems and launched a 13-0 run that opened a nine-point lead. After an Ashley Wilson basket to start the surge, Reese scored on a put-back and a turnaround jumper from the foul line, Roberson hit a jumper, Reese followed with another and Lauren Huggins drained a three-pointer.
Suddenly, the Buffs were up 31-22, although by halftime the Rams had trimmed that lead to 33-27.
The second half started as the Sborov show. The 6-0 junior scored CU’s first six points of the half on two field goals and a pair of free throws, jump-starting an 11-5 run that sent the Buffs up by 12 (44-32).
They led by as many as 13 points twice in the final before the Rams launched their comeback and put a large opening-night scare into the visitors.
“They’re a really good team, much better than last year,” Sborov said. “But I do think making a big run like that, you do start getting a little too comfortable. That’s what need to work on – keep our foot on the gas pedal, keep going until the game’s over.”
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CU Buff women blast Lazio All-Stars
Aug 19th
ROME – Colorado head coach Linda Lappe was anticipating the opportunity to give her four new freshman valuable playing time during the team’s trip to Italy. She is getting exactly what she was hoping for, and possibly more.
Zoe Beard-Fails had 14 points and Bri Watts grabbed double-digit rebounds for the second straight game as Colorado blasted the Lazio All-Stars 96-22 Sunday at the Stella Azzurra.
Zoe Beard-Fails had a double double and led all scorers with 14 points.
All 12 Buffaloes scored with four in double-digits. Jen Reese, Brittany Wilson and Jamee Swan had 12 points apiece. Watts had a game-high 10 rebounds to go with five points and four assists.
Not to be outdone, freshman guard Desiree Harris had seven points and seven rebounds while classmate Haley Smith pitched in six points, three rebounds and three assists.
“(The freshmen) are doing a really nice job fitting in to what we are doing,” Lappe said. “They are getting a lot of minutes and they are capitalizing on that. We’ve seen some really good things from everybody and the freshmen are no different.”
Beard-Fails filled out her stat line nicely with five rebounds, four steals and three of assists while making 7-of-10 from the field.
“We had confidence and cohesiveness,” Beard-Fails said. “We have been spending a lot of time together (on this trip) on and off the court and it’s beginning to show.”
Sunday’s game was over quickly. Colorado scored the first 13 points and led 29-4 after the first 10-minute quarter. Wilson hit her first of three 3-pointers during CU’s opening run, setting the tone for the contest.
“We tried to set the tone to be quicker, and that carried through the game,” Wilson said
The Buffaloes hit 58 percent in the first quarter (11-of-19). Lazio managed just six field goal attempts hitting two, and had 14 turnovers in the first quarter alone.
Colorado built its lead to 49-4 at the half, and didn’t allow more than seven points in any one quarter. The Buffaloes final margin of 74 was its largest. Lazio was 6-of-44 from the field (14 percent) and it took a late 3-pointer by Sbolci to allow the all-stars to break 20 points. Lazio hit 9-of-16 from the foul line.
Colorado scored 64 of its points in the paint, many of them in transition, and scored 45 points of 32 Lazio turnovers.
The Buffaloes made 54 percent from the field. Swan and Reese each hit 6-of-8 from the field.
“We had a few goals for tonight and one of them was to be much sharper,” Lappe said. “We did a fantastic job defensively and that really spurred our offense, that allowed us to get stops, and we did a much better job converting in transition.”
Wilson echoed Lappe’s pregame plan of focus…”Our mindset was to come out more sharp and that took care of everything else. We were more aggressive on defense…we came out more intense and ready to play.”
Colorado will play its third off four games Monday at 7 p.m. local time, 11 a.m. MT, against Latina.
Troy Andre
Assistant SID/Internet Managing Editor
University of Colorado
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