Colorado bounced from Pac-12 tourney, falls to Oregon State in double OT 85-79
Colorado left it all out on the court and still ran out of gas. The fifth-seeded Buffs were knocked out of the Pac-12 tournament Thursday, falling to fourth-seeded Oregon State 85-79 in a double-overtime thriller. It was the first Pac-12 women’s tournament game in history to go into a second overtime. It was also the third time the Buffaloes lost to the Beavers this season.
JR Payne’s squad got off to a fast start and led 17-10 after the first quarter. The Beavers battled back in the second to trail 25-22 at the break thanks to the strong play of Raegan Beers, who had 16 points in the first half. The Buffaloes surged ahead in the third quarter and built a 12-point lead with 7:36 remaining in the game on a Frida Formann three-pointer. Oregon State then went on a 15-3 run to tie the game at 53-53 with 1:08 left. Following a Talia von Oelhoffen missed three pointer, Jaylyn Sherrod had a chance to win for the Buffaloes in regulation, but her pull up jumper at the buzzer rimmed out.
Colorado jumped out to a five-point lead in overtime behind a Sherrod jumper and Formann three pointer. But once again, Oregon State had an answer. Freshman Dominika Paurova knocked down a huge three pointer with :21 seconds remaining to give the Beavers a 63-61 lead. Eight seconds later, Sherrod countered with a tough jumper in the paint to tie the game. Von Oelhoffen’s shot at the buzzer came up short sending it to a second overtime.
Paurova made a pair of big layups, the second one coming with 1:12 remaining to give Oregon State a 74-71 lead in the second extra period. Four consecutive free throws by Timea Gardiner and Donovyn Hunter put the Beavers up 78-71. Colorado’s Sara-Rose Smith drained a three-pointer with :10 seconds left to cut the deficit to four, but it was a little too late for the Buffaloes.
Beers led all scorers with 27 points and 13 rebounds. Gardiner, Hunter, von Oelhoffen, and Paurova each had 13 points. Sherrod paced the Buffaloes with 23 points, seven assists, six rebounds and four steals. Aaronette Vonleh added 20 points and Formann finished with 19.
Colorado (22-9) will now have some time off before the NCAA Tournament begins. ESPN’s Charlie Creme had the Buffaloes slotted as a four-seed in his latest Bracketology updated on March 4. Selection Sunday is set for March 17 at 8 p.m. ET on ESPN, with the first round taking place March 22 and 23.
