UCLA
16-0,5-0Pac-12
Colorado
13-3,2-3Pac-12
No. 8/9 UCLA Edges Colorado in Game of Runs
January 12, 2020 | Women's Basketball
BOULDER, Colo. – The No. 8/9 UCLA women's basketball team survived a late rally by Colorado, holding on for a 65-62 win Sunday afternoon in CU Events Center.
The win improved the Bruins' record to a program-best 16-0. They are one of two remaining undefeated Division I teams, alongside conference-mate Oregon State. UCLA also improved its Pac-12 record to 5-0 for the first time since the 2002-03 season.
Junior Michaela Onyenwere led all players with 19 points and eight rebounds. Senior Japreece Dean and freshman Charisma Osborne each scored 13 points to round out a trio of Bruins in double figures. Dean added six assists.
Mya Hollingshed led Colorado (13-3, 2-3) with 17 points. Emma Clarke and Peanut Tuitele added 11 apiece.
The Buffaloes used a 33-10 second-half run to cut a 25-point deficit to just two, but a 19-0 UCLA scoring spree to start the third quarter proved too much to overcome.
UCLA was slow out of the gate, converting just 4 of its 19 (21.1 percent) first-quarter field goals. During a string of eight missed shots in a row, the Bruins saw their deficit increase to nine with 2:25 to go in the opening frame. A layup by UCLA junior Lauryn Miller put an end to Colorado's run, and first-quarter scoring, as the Buffaloes held a 17-10 lead.
There was a reversal of fortunes led by Onyenwere in the second quarter. UCLA made 9 of 16 shots, including 5 of 7 from 3-point territory, as it turned a seven-point deficit into a seven-point lead. The Bruins tallied seven assists on their nine baskets. Consecutive triples by Onyenwere, sophomore Kiara Jefferson and freshman Jaden Owens helped propel UCLA into the lead. Onyenwere scored 10 of her 15 first-half points in the second quarter as the Bruins took a 35-29 lead into the locker room.
UCLA was firing on all cylinders during the opening minutes of the third quarter, as the Bruins scored the first 19 points of the stanza. Colorado went without a field goal for 11:17 of gameplay across the second and third quarters, but came alive over the final 2:25 of the frame. The Buffaloes scored 11 unanswered points to cut its deficit to 54-40 heading into the fourth quarter.
Onyenwere and junior Chantel Horvat scored the first two baskets of the fourth quarter to briefly put momentum back in the hands of UCLA. Colorado once again took over down the stretch, however, scoring 17 of 19 points during a span of 5:23 to make it a two-point game. A Dean free throw with 13 seconds proved the last point of the game, as a 3-point attempt by Jaylyn Sherrod of the Buffaloes missed in the final seconds.
The Bruins will return to action Friday, Jan. 17, when they travel across town to take on rival USC in a Pac-12 contest. Pac-12 Networks will televise the second meeting of the season between the teams, beginning at 7:30 p.m., PT. UCLA posted an 83-59 defeat of the Trojans in the teams' conference opener on Dec. 29.
