Fast break
What went right: In the first half, the Buffs were able to slow down Washington leading scorer Kelsey Plum, and that allowed them to stay in the game before intermission.
What went wrong: The Buffs had no answer for Washington star Chantel Osahor, who finished with 24 points and 20 rebounds. Offensively, shooting was once again a problem for the Buffs, as they made just 25.8 percent from the floor (17-of-66).
Star of the game: Haley Smith. Playing about 15 miles from her home town, the senior scored 16 points and pulled down six rebounds for the Buffs.
What’s next: The Buffs visit Washington State on Saturday at 2 p.m. MT.
SEATTLE — Throughout this season, the Colorado women’s basketball team has found a way to remain competitive nearly every night.
Thursday was not one of those nights.
Washington senior stars Chantel Osahor and Kelsey Plum were sensational once again and they led the Huskies to a 79-46 rout of the Buffs at Alaska Airlines Arena.
CU (15-13, 5-12 pac-12) was led by senior and Seattle area native Haley Smith, who had 16 points and six rebounds. Smith Kalebet didn’t get much help, however.
CU nearly pulled an upset of the Huskies on Feb. 5 in Boulder, before falling 79-75. This time, they couldn’t get anything going offensively and couldn’t stop the Huskies on defense.
Point guard Kennedy Leonard, who leads the Buffs in scoring this season, went 1-for-10 from the floor and matched her season low with five points. Starters Makenzie Ellis, Zoe Correal and Alexis Robinson combined to go 3-for-18 for nine points.
Defensively, CU has routinely flustered teams and forced turnovers in bunches. That formula didn’t work against the Huskies, who had just 12 turnovers.
Plum, who leads the country in scoring, was held below her season average of 30.9, but still finished with 25 points and six assists.
Osahor, the nation’s leading rebounder, finished with 24 points and 20 rebounds. She also had five assists.
The Buffs were able to contain Plum before the half and went into the break trailing by just 11, 38-27.
Washington was dominant after the break, however. Plum had 16 points in the second half, helping the Huskies to a 41-19 advantage over the final two quarters.
CU will close the regular season on Saturday at Washington State before returning to Seattle next week for the Pac-12 Tournament.
Notable
The Buffs are 0-9 against Washington in Plum’s career. They were 8-3 all-time against the Huskies before her arrival. … Senior Lauren Huggins, who made her season debut on Feb. 10, scored her first points of the season with a 3-pointer.
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