Quick break
Why the Buffs misplaced: That they had no reply for Iowa star Caitlin Clark and will by no means achieve any momentum on offense.
Three stars:
1. Iowa’s Caitlin Clark: The primary-team All-American had 29 factors, 15 assists, six rebounds and solely two turnovers.
2. Iowa’s Kate Martin: Completed with 14 factors and grabbed 9 rebounds.
3. CU’s Aaronette Vonleh: First half foul bother restricted her effectiveness, however when she was on the ground, she was nice, scoring 13 factors on 6-of-9 capturing, whereas additionally having 5 rebounds, two blocks and two steals.
Up subsequent: Colorado will head to the offseason after falling within the Candy 16 for the second yr in a row.
ALBANY, N.Y. – It actually wasn’t truthful to Colorado head coach JR Payne to see tears drip down the faces of Quay Miller and Jaylyn Sherrod, watch them go away the rostrum after which must discipline a query about what they and different seniors have meant to this system.
“See I used to be up right here to carry their hand whereas they had been crying after which they left me,” Payne joked via her personal tears following CU’s 89-68 loss to Iowa within the Candy 16 at MVP Enviornment.
“Yeah, there actually are not any phrases to explain the influence that Jaylyn, Quay, Maddie, Charlotte, Sophie – all of our seniors have had on this program. The best factor about it, I used to be saying to Jay and Quay is simply lots of people discuss household of their applications, and typically it’s and typically it isn’t, however these guys are household perpetually.
“In 20 years after they’re going via one thing, we’ll be the primary ones that they name for help. And after I’m going via one thing 10 years from now, they’ll be the primary ones that I name. That relationship is what makes what we achieve this particular. The basketball is simply the enjoyable half. However the issues that we now have final perpetually, and no, I’ve no phrases to explain precisely what meaning.”
Whereas the life-long relationships Payne has with Miller, Sherrod, Maddie Nolan, Charlotte Whittaker and Sophie Gerber, in addition to the remainder of her staff, will proceed, the sting of understanding the basketball half is over was painful.
A bought out crowd of 13,878 – the second-largest crowd ever for a CU ladies’s recreation – obtained what it got here to MVP Enviornment to see, and that wasn’t good for the fifth-seeded Buffaloes.
The stands had been crammed with No. 22 Iowa jerseys and the No. 22 on the court docket was sensational – as ordinary. Megastar Caitlin Clark completed with 29 factors, 15 assists and 6 rebounds to guide the top-seeded Hawkeyes.
CU (24-10) was eradicated within the Candy 16 by the Hawkeyes (32-4) for the second consecutive season. Iowa advances to Monday’s Elite Eight in opposition to LSU in a rematch of final yr’s nationwide title recreation. LSU, the defending champion, knocked off UCLA, 78-69, earlier on Saturday.
“I imply, yeah, it’s powerful,” Sherrod stated. “You by no means need to exit like that. However there was some issues that we will all look again at it now and say there was some issues we might have accomplished higher. However on the finish of the day, I’m pleased with this staff, pleased with how we got here out. No give up in any way on this ballclub. There’s at all times issues to be important of after a loss, however it’s what it’s.”
The Buffs knew that containing Clark, the possible nationwide participant of the yr, can be troublesome. She leads the nation in scoring (31.8 factors per recreation) and assists (8.8 per recreation).
“I imply, she will be able to shoot it from wherever on the ground,” Sherrod stated. “It’s type of similar to choose your poison nearly.”
Sherrod then joked, “However, I imply she had 29, in order that’s two lower than her common.”
“Man, we locked her up,” Payne quipped.
It wasn’t Clark’s 29 factors that harm a lot, although, particularly along with her going simply 3-for-11 from 3-point vary. It was her 15 assists, which, from the beginning, obtained her teammates concerned.
Clark had six of her assists within the first quarter and she or he wound up having 4 teammates rating in double figures: Sydney Affolter with 15, Gabbie Marshall and Kate Martin with 14 and Hannah Stuelke with 11 (together with 10 rebounds).
“That’s the half that I’d say is the laborious piece is that she obtained everyone else concerned,” Sherrod stated. “It simply speaks to the kind of participant she is. She’s unselfish and she or he obtained everyone else going. … That’s simply powerful when everyone else is hitting, too.”
The Hawkeyes went on a 10-0 run to open up a 27-14 lead a minute into the second quarter. They stretched the result in 19 within the first 75 seconds of the third quarter and put the sport out of attain with a 10-2 run late within the third. Iowa’s lead obtained to 27 within the fourth quarter.
“Only a full basketball recreation is what it felt like,” Clark stated. “I believe this was the primary time in about three video games we had been capable of put collectively what felt like an entire basketball recreation on each ends of the ground.”
Whereas the Hawkeyes had been rolling offensively, CU by no means obtained its personal offense going.
Aaronette Vonleh had 13 factors and 5 rebounds, whereas Frida Formann and Nolan had 12 factors every to guide the Buffs, however they hit simply 37.5% (27-of-72) of their pictures.
“We had been simply making an attempt to only get going and discover a rhythm however each time I believe we type of tried to make a run, they simply got here again and made threes,” Formann stated. “We by no means actually obtained the momentum for greater than two minutes perhaps.”
That was an uncommon feeling for the Buffs, who had been in each different recreation this season – apart from a Nov. 25 loss to North Carolina State.
“Helpless is likely to be the proper phrase, solely as a result of we had been making an attempt so many alternative issues and nothing actually appeared to stem the tide,” Payne stated. “However as all of us noticed, our staff is constructed on toughness and grit, by no means give up, by no means cease. We competed the entire evening. However yeah, they had been simply higher than us right this moment.
“I believe we’re a extremely nice staff. I believe we might have received. We believed that we’d win the sport. However they had been higher than us right this moment.”
Iowa 89, Colorado 68
COLORADO (24-10)
Vonleh 6-9 1-2 13, Miller 2-8 0-0 5, Sherrod 4-9 1-4 9, Formann 4-13 1-2 12, Nolan 4-11 1-2 12, Wetta 2-5 2-4 7, Sadler 3-8 0-0 6, Whittaker 1-3 0-0 2, Smith 0-3 0-0 0, McLeod 1-2 0-0 2, Gerber 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 27-72 6-14 68.
IOWA (32-4)
Stuelke 3-9 5-7 11, Affolter 6-6 3-4 15, Martin 5-11 2-2 14, Clark 13-22 0-0 29, Marshall 5-8 0-0 14, O’Grady 1-3 0-0 2, Feuerbach 0-2 0-0 0, McCabe 0-1 0-0 0, Ediger 1-2 0-0 2, Gyamfi 1-1 0-0 2, Goodman 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 35-65 10-13 89.
Colorado 14 21 12 21 – 68
Iowa 22 26 20 21 – 89
3-point targets – Colorado 8-29 (Nolan 3-9, Formann 3-8, Miller 1-4, Wetta 1-3, Sherrod 0-2, Sadler 0-1, Smith 0-1, Gerber 0-1), Iowa 9-22 (Marshall 4-5, Clark 3-11, Martin 2-4, Feuerbach 0-1, McCabe 0-1). Rebounds – Colorado 34 (Vonleh, Miller, Nolan 5), Iowa 43 (Stuelke 10). Assists – Colorado 19 (Sherrod 10), Iowa 20 (Clark 15). Steals – Colorado 14 (Wetta 5), Iowa 7 (Feuerbach 2). Turnovers – Colorado 13, Iowa 19. Complete fouls – Colorado 15, Iowa 12. Fouled out – None. Attendance – 13,878.