THE GAMES: The University of Colorado hosts the 25th Annual Omni Hotels Women's Basketball Classic Friday Nov. 25 and Saturday, Nov. 26 at the Coors Events Center.
Friday, Nov. 25Montana State vs. Wisconsin, 5 p.m.Valparaiso vs. Colorado, 7:30 p.m.
Saturday, Nov. 26Consolation, 5 p.m.Championship, 7:30 p.m.
OMNI HOTELS CLASSIC: This is the 25th straight year Colorado has hosted an early season women's basketball tournament. For the first 22 years the tournament was known as the Coors Classic, and is in its third year of being called the Omni Hotels Classic. Colorado is 38-10 all-time in its home holiday classic and has won 14 of the 23 tournament titles contested. The Buffaloes won last season's classic by defeating Evansville and Loyola Chicago. No team champion was crowned at the 2006 Classic as the tournament switched to a true "Classic" format where Colorado and Wyoming played Nevada and Charlotte on consecutive nights, with the Buffaloes and Cowgirls winning both their games.
BROADCAST: Colorado's games can be heard live on KKZN AM 760 with Mike Rice handling play-by-play duties. Live game video for Colorado games only will also be available for BuffsTV subscribers at CUBuffs.com. Live internet audio is available on CUBuffs.com, through the BuffsRadio free subscription.
OPENING TIP: Colorado is looking for its first 4-0 start since the 2000-01 season.
ABOUT THE BUFFALOES: The Omni Hotels Classic kicks off a season-high six-game home stand for Colorado. The Buffaloes are off to their first 3-0 start since the 2003-04 season after claiming an impressive 72-53 road win at Colorado State University on Nov. 20.
Colorado has shown early balance with four players averaging between 11 and 15 points per game and seven averaging at least five per contest. The Buffaloes are averaging 75.7 points over their first three games and shooting at solid 49 percent from the field (88-of-180), ranking second on the early season Pac-12 Conference statistics.
CU's defense has held its three opponents to 57 points per game and allowed only 35 percent shooting. The Buffaloes have forced 63 opponent turnovers through three games, and their turnover margin of plus-5.3 ranks second in the Pac-12.
Junior guard Chucky Jeffery, who made her first start of the season against Colorado State, leads the Buffaloes at 14.7 points, 8.0 rebounds and 5.7 assists per game. She tops the Pac-12 in assists and ranks fifth in blocks (2.0 bpg), seventh in defensive rebounds (6.0 drpg), 10th in scoring and minutes played (32.0 mpg), 11th in steals (2.0 spg), 12th in free-throw percentage (.750) and 13th in rebounding and field-goal percentage (.576).
Sophomore guard Brittany Wilson is second on the team in scoring at 13.3 per game and has been to the line more than any other Buffalo so far, making 8-of-13 attempts. She tied a career-high with 22 points against Northern Arizona in the season opener, a team-season high.
Brittany's twin sister Ashley Wilson was her starting back court mate for the season's first two games, the first two starts of her career. She has made five of her first eight field goal attempts and is averaging 3.7 points and 1.7 assists.
Colorado's front court duo of senior Julie Seabrook and sophomore Rachel Hargis have combined to make 14 of their first 24 shots on the season (.583). Seabrook, 7-of-10 from the field so far, has 11 rebounds and is tied with Jeffery and Brittany Wilson for the team lead in steals with six. Hargis is coming off a career night against CSU, tying personal bests with nine points and eight rebounds in 28 minutes played.
Colorado's bench has been outstanding, accounting for 103 of 227 points or 45 percent of the team's scoring through three games. The freshman inside-outside combination of Jen Reese and Lexy Kresl have accounted for the bulk of that production. Kresl is averaging 13.3 points per game and is CU's leader in 3-pointers with eight. Reese, who had a personal-best 13 points at Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, is averaging 11 points per contest and shooting 54 percent from the field (14-of-26). Against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi the Buffaloes had a season-high 43 bench points (Jeffery 19, Reese 13, Kresl 11).
ABOUT THE CRUSADERS: Valparaiso is 0-3 overall, traveling to Boulder off a 67-55 home setback to Western Illinois on Nov. 22. The Crusaders, out of the Horizon League, have averaged 55 points over their first three games, shooting 35 percent from the field (60-of-173). Valparaiso has hit the glass well, averaging 44.3 rebounds per game and out boarding its opponents by eight per contest.
Junior forward Gina Lange tops Valparaiso at 14.7 points per game while shooting 53 percent from the field (18-of-34). Freshman forward Mallory Ladd has come off the bench the first three games and ranks second in scoring at 11.3 per outing and is tied for the team lead at 8.3 rebounds per game. Senior forward Ashley Varner is tied with Ladd at 8.3 boards per contest while also averaging 9.3 points.
ABOUT THE BOBCATS: Montana State is 3-1 overall and has won two straight, cruising to home wins over Montana Western (83-50) on Nov. 17 and the College of Idaho (99-50) on Nov. 20. The Bobcats' lone loss this season came on the road, an 83-53 decision at Oregon State. MSU, picked to finish fourth in the Big Sky Conference by both the coaches and the media, is averaging 75.2 points per game while shooting 45 percent from the field and 77 percent from the free-throw line. The Bobcats have also played good defense, holding opponents to 59 points an outing and 37 percent from the floor.
Junior forward Rachel Semansky tops Montana State at 20.8 points and 8.8 rebounds per game while shooting an impressive 64 percent from the field (35-of-55). Semansky, who also currently tops the Big Sky in scoring, has two double-doubles this season, including a 30-point, 10-rebound effort against the College of Idaho. Senior guard Katie Bussey, the Big Sky's active career scoring leader at 1,265 points, averages 18.8 points and dishes out 4.3 assists per game. Bussey also shoots 51 percent from the floor and is the team's leader with 11 3-pointers.
ABOUT THE BADGERS: Wisconsin is 1-3 overall and will play at BYU Wednesday night before traveling to Boulder. The Badgers have dropped three straight following a 68-51 season-opening win at Milwaukee. Wisconsin is averaging 58.5 points per game, but registered just 52 and 51 points in recent losses at Marquette (54-52) and at home against Washington State (69-51). The Badgers are shooting 37 percent from the field and 74 percent from the free-throw line. Wisconsin has done well keeping its opponents off the boards, allowing a Big Ten best 28.5 rebounds per game.
Junior guard Taylor Wurtz leads the Badgers with 15.8 points and a Big Ten leading 11.0 rebounds per game. She has two double-doubles on the season, including a 15-point, 15-rebound effort against Oral Roberts. Sophomore guard Morgan Paige is second on the team in scoring at 9.8 per game and paces the Badgers from the field at 57 percent (13-of-23). Senior forward Anya Covington is averaging 8.3 points and 8.5 rebounds per contest.
SERIES RECORDS: This will be the first meeting between Colorado and Valparaiso. The Buffaloes are 4-0 against teams from the Horizon League, most recently defeating Loyola Chicago, 65-34, in last season's Omni Hotels Classic championship game.
Colorado is 5-0 all-time against Montana State, with four of those games in played in Boulder. The last meeting between the two teams was a 68-55 CU win in Bozeman, Mont., on Dec. 22, 1995. CU is 48-19 against teams currently in the Big Sky. The Buffaloes have already faced one Big Sky team this year, defeating Northern Arizona 84-60 in the season opener.
Wisconsin has the win in its only prior meeting with Colorado. The Badgers edged the Buffaloes 60-59 in the first round of the 1982 AIAW National Tournament played in Austin, Texas. CU is 46-44 against the current teams that make up the Big Ten, but take away former Big 8/Big 12 rival Nebraska, which CU leads 41-28, the Buffs are 5-16 against the league's other teams.
CONNECTIONS: Montana State and Wisconsin both have players from Colorado on their rosters. Senior guard Jade Davis is from Lone Tree and played for Highlands Ranch High School. Highlands Ranch was a rival of CU's Meagan and Brenna Malcolm-Peck who starred at Horizon. Montana State's Katie Bussey is a native of Alamosa. Montana State head coach Tricia Binford will be better known to local high school basketball fans as Tricia Bader, who was the 1991 Colorado Girls Player of the Year and guided Roaring Fork High School to three-straight state titles (1989-91). CU assistant coach Jennie Baranczyk will enjoy a small Big Ten reunion this weekend. Baranczyk, formerly Jennie Lillis was a four-year standout at Iowa (2000-04). Not only did she play against Wisconsin for four years, she played against current Wisconsin assistant and former Badgers player Kyle Rechlicz (1998-02). Valparaiso assistant Kelly Komara is also part of the Big Ten family, playing at Purdue (1998-02) and was a member of the Boilermakers' 1999 NCAA Championship team.
ROAD WARRIORS: After dropping its first eight on the road last season, and nine away from home overall, Colorado won its last three games in 2010-11 and upped that streak to five with its two road wins early this year. The current streak of five is the team's best since CU's last NCAA Tournament team won six in a row on the road in 2003-04.
CHUCKY REBOUNDS: Junior guard Chucky Jeffery had a career night on the glass at Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, grabbing 16 rebounds in the win over the Islanders. It was her 12th career game in double-digit rebounds and surpassed her previous personal best of 13, which she had achieved three other times, most recently in the win over CSU last year in Boulder.
Her 16 rebounds were the most by a CU player since Jackie McFarland recorded 18 at Kansas on Feb. 6, 2007. With 19 points, Jeffery also recorded her 11th career double-double, and CU's first this season. Her 12 career double-digit rebounding games rank 14th on CU's career list and her 11 double-doubles are 11th.
LEXY'S RECORD NIGHT: Freshman guard Lexy Kresl had a memorable collegiate debut making 5-of-6 3-point attempts in the first half of CU's 84-60 win over Northern Arizona. She tied a school record for 3-pointers made in one half, a feat that had happened five previous times by three players. Bianca Smith, who was the last person to hit five in one half (vs. Nebraska on Jan. 31, 2009), did it three times. Kate Fagan and CU Athletic Hall of Famer and All-American Shelly Sheetz are the other two.
STEALING THE SHOW: Colorado recorded 16 steals against Northern Arizona in the season opener, its most in a single game since swiping 18 against Texas Southern on Dec. 14, 2007. It's just the third time since the 2003-04 season that the Buffaloes have had 16 or more steals in one contest (16 vs. Pacific on Dec. 8, 2005).
Seven different Buffaloes registered steals against Northern Arizona, led by sophomore Brittany Wilson who had a career high with five. Freshmen Jasmine Sborov and Jen Reese each had three in their collegiate debuts.
SPEAKING OF STEALS: Three Buffaloes share the current team lead in steals with six. Two of the leaders won't surprise anyone, Chucky Jeffery and Brittany Wilson were among the team's leaders in 2010-11. But the third? Senior forward Julie Seabrook has had two steals in each of CU's three games, tying a personal best in each instance. Seabrook had just 15 steals through her first 85 career games.
MALCOLM-PECK AMONG BEST FROM 3-POINT RANGE: Junior Meagan-Malcolm Peck is currently 14th on CU's all-time list for 3-pointers made with 64 and needs one to catch former Buff Veronica Johns-Richardson, who had 65 from 2001-05, for 13th.
Malcolm-Peck made 38-of-106 from downtown as a sophomore, which percentage wise (.358) ranked 13th in the Big 12. Her career .339 average (64-of-189) would rank 16th in school history just behind the .339 career average of former teammate and all-time leading scorer Brittany Spears (237-of-699).
JEFFERY MOVING UP IN STEALS, ASSISTS: Junior guard Chucky Jeffery had four steals against Colorado State, moving into 18th on CU's all-time list for steals at 140. She needs just five steals to jump into the Top 15. The Pac-12's leader in assists through three games, Jeffery is 20th on CU's all-time list with 242.
HOME AT THE CECC: Colorado is traditionally tough at home with a 356-120 all-time record at the Coors Events/Conference Center (.748). The Buffaloes have won 10 or more games in a season at the CECC in 22 of the previous 33 years. The Buffaloes have enjoyed five undefeated seasons (1980-83, 1992-94) at the CECC.
BUFFS ON TV: Colorado's regular season schedule will feature at least nine regionally or nationally televised games in 2011-12. CU will make its first appearance on The Mtn as the Buffaloes travel to Colorado State on Sunday, Nov. 20, at 2 p.m. Colorado will have eight games air on ROOT Sports Rocky Mountain, beginning with the Nov. 30 game against San Francisco. Also scheduled for ROOT sports are Idaho (Dec. 4), Denver (Dec. 8), Stanford (Jan. 14), at Arizona (Jan. 22), UCLA (Jan. 29), Utah (Feb. 18) and Oregon (Mar. 1). All ROOT Sports Rocky Mountain games are available nationally on DIRECTV and DISH Network.
The games with Arizona and UCLA are part of the Pac-12's FSN national package. In addition, CU's home game against Arizona State on Saturday, Feb. 11, is part of the Pac-12's FSN Wildcard Weekend. One of the five league contests scheduled for that date will be picked up for national broadcast, but that determination won't be made until the last week in January. If the CU-Arizona State game is selected for FSN the game time will change from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. MST, per conference guidelines.
CU has appeared on 91 regional or national telecasts over the last 10 seasons.
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