The 13-1 Colorado Buffaloes have established themselves as one of the premier teams in the Big 12 Conference in women’s basketball over the last couple of years.
The 5-10 Oklahoma State Cowgirls are trying to put together a program that is similar to that of the Buffaloes.
Tonight, OSU and CU will battle it out at 7 p.m. in Gallagher Iba-Arena.
“Every game in the Big 12 is a big one,” OSU coach Julie Goodenough said. “There are no nights off, there are no easy games — every game is going to be a challenge.”
The Buffaloes have won 10 of their last 11 games and are currently riding a two game winning streak with a 74-54 win against the Nebraska Cornhuskers and a 71-50 win against the Kansas Jayhawks. CU is 3-1 in the Big 12 and have a road record of 5-1.
OSU has a 3-3 home record and are currently 1-3 in the Big 12.
The Cowgirls won their last game at Gallagher-Iba against the Kansas Jayhawks by a score of 60-56 on Jan. 15, but the team is coming off of a 95-45 loss against the Texas Tech Lady Raiders in Lubbock at the United Spirit Arena in front of 13,280 fans.
The last time that the Cowgirls lost by 50 points or more to an opponent was a 91-39 loss against Michigan State on Dec. 29 against Michigan State at East Lansing, Mich.
The Cowgirls followed that up by beating then-No. 8 ranked Arkansas 60-58 three days later at Gallagher-Iba.
The Buffaloes have defeated the Cowgirls the last two times they have played in Stillwater. CU leads the series between the two schools by a 23-19 margin.
The Cowgirls made the trip up to Boulder last year and lost by a final score of 79-57, despite a 24-point and 11-rebound effort from Cowgirl Trisha Skibbe.
Mandy Nightingdale had 16 points and five assists to help the Buffaloes come out on top.
The key matchup tonight will be between Skibbe, the OSU junior center, and CU junior center Tera Bjorklund. Skibbe averages 16. 3 points per game and 6.7 rebounds. Bjorklund, an All-American candidate, averages 16 points per game.
Junior guard Kate Fagan and senior forward Sabrina Scott average 13.3 and 10.3 point a game for the Buffaloes, respectively. Scott also averages 6.8 rebounds per game to lead CU.
“Colorado does a great job running their triangle offense,” Goodenough said. “Our defensive awareness will have to be tremendous for us to win.”
The Buffaloes are coached by Ceal Berry who has coached CU for the past 20 seasons. Berry has led the Buffaloes to a 20 win season eleven times and won the inaugural Big 12 Tournament in 1997.
Along with Skibbe, OSU is led by freshman guard Meghan Craig who averages 7.7 points per game and senior guard Thia Willis who is averaging 7.2 points per game. Craig scored nine points and led the Cowgirls with three assists in the loss against the Lady Raiders on Saturday.
“The key is to stop their dribble penetration,” OSU guard Deidra Johnson said of CU’s offense. “We will have to play hard and communicate on defense.”
Brian Nachtwey can be reached
via e-mail at
bnachtwey@ocolly.com
Loading ...
All Articles