PROVO, Utah — After rebounding in the second half, the Cougars narrowly fell to the Buffaloes 67-66 at the Marriott Center on Wednesday night.
BYU began the game with an 8-2 run, but Colorado came back in the second quarter, outscoring the Cougars 23-14. Undeterred by the deficit, BYU trimmed the Buffaloes’ lead in the third quarter and held them to a field-goal percentage of 16.7 in the frame. Despite their comeback, the Cougars fell short of a win with a missed jumper in the closing seconds of the fourth quarter.
Delaney Gibb, Kemery Congdon and Emma Calvert led the Cougars with 19, 13 and 13 points, respectively. Congdon recorded season highs in field goal attempts and 3-point field goal attempts, hitting three key triples to keep BYU in the game.
Calvert tallied 11 rebounds to go along with 13 points for her fourth career double-double. The senior also recorded a season-high four assists, three blocks and a steal. Junior Hattie Ogden recorded eight season highs and contributed two 3-pointers to the comeback effort.
First Quarter
The Cougars kicked off the night by forcing a Buffs turnover, followed by back-to-back 3-pointers from Gibb and Amari Whiting. Colorado came back with two jumpers, narrowing BYU’s lead to 8-7 heading into the media timeout. The teams traded shots, seeking to end the quarter with the lead. Whiting attempted a layup under pressure but failed to break the tie, ending the quarter deadlocked at 13-13.
The Buffs' defense in the first quarter resulted in a 33.3 field-goal percentage for the Cougars, with nine rebounds, two assists and one steal.
Second Quarter
Whiting made the first layup of the second, followed by layups from Calvert and Gibb. The Buffaloes kept the score within one possession with layups of their own before knotting the game at 21 going into the media timeout. Following another layup from Whiting, Colorado’s Nyamer Diew sank two straight 3-pointers, and the Cougars called their first timeout.
Despite two more BYU layups from Congdon and Calvert, the Buffs ended the half with a 36-27 lead.
The Cougars posted 18 rebounds, five assists, one block and one steal by the end of the first half. BYU shot 34.4 percent from the floor, compared to Colorado’s 50 percent.
Third Quarter
The Buffaloes recorded the first points of the third quarter, but the Cougars came back with three 3-pointers from Gibb, Calvert and Congdon. Colorado called its first timeout of the game with a 40-38 lead. BYU called a timeout after tying the score with a layup from Gibb, then took the lead for the first time in the second half. The teams traded free throws, and the Buffs regained the lead 47-45 at the end of the quarter.
BYU shot 38.5 percent from the field, recording ten rebounds, forcing four turnovers and holding Colorado to just 16.7 percent shooting in the period.
Fourth Quarter
Ogden contributed her first points with a 3-pointer that pulled the Cougars within oneat 49-48 with 9:35 remaining. The Buffaloes regained a four-point lead, but Congdon and Hattie Ogden each hit a 3-pointer, tying the game 58-58 with 5:13 to play. Following the media timeout, Calvert, Gibb and Congdon hit shots to give BYU a 2-point lead with 1:20 remaining. Colorado sank a 3-pointer and gained a one-point lead with just over a minute left, resulting in a BYU timeout.
After the Cougars failed to take the lead, Whiting was forced to foul and. BYU quickly regained possession after forcing a Colorado turnover and called another timeout. Gibb attempted a layup and was knocked to the floor without a foul called. The Cougars maintained possession but couldn’t get a shot off before the buzzer sounded, with Colorado taking home a 67-66 victory.
Up Next
The Cougars will face Arizona State on Saturday, Feb. 1, in Tempe, Arizona at 6:30 p.m. MST. The game will be streamed on ESPN+ and broadcast on BYU Radio.