When the Colorado women’s basketball team left West Virginia on Thursday morning, the message was simple.
“I said, ‘When we leave West Virginia, we’re leaving West Virginia,’” head coach JR Payne said after her team’s 73-46 loss to the 20th-ranked Mountaineers on Wednesday night.
The Buffs (12-5, 3-3 Big 12) are looking to move past that one quickly as they visit Cincinnati on Saturday.
“Since we got here, it’s just all been focused on getting ready for Cincinnati,” Payne said.
In turning the page, CU could have easily set its focus on the season-high 30 turnovers it committed against West Virginia – the most for the program in a game in 18 years. Fixing the turnover issue wasn’t the main message, however.
“There were definitely technical things (that led to the turnovers),” Payne said. “But, really, we talked a lot more about how do we handle adversity as a group in the moment? And how can we make sure that one or two mistakes doesn’t snowball into six or seven mistakes?”
When CU wasn’t turning the ball over on Wednesday night, it played well, but the turnovers came in bunches.
Three in a row in the first quarter led to an 8-0 WVU run. They had four in a row and 10 overall in the second quarter, contributing to an 11-0 WVU run. Four in a row in the third helped to spark West Virginia’s game-changing 15-0 run in the third quarter. A several turnovers in the fourth led to 14-0 WVU run that put the game away.
During each of those stretches, the Buffs not only lost the ball, but lost some composure. That’s what Payne and her staff are looking to fix.
“This group is still learning each other and trying to make sure that we’re at our best when we need to be at our best,” she said. “I thought it was a really productive film session and meeting (on Thursday). Everybody’s in really good spirits.”
Payne was also quick to point out that while there are several other good teams on the schedule – including Cincinnati – very few do what West Virginia does. The Mountaineers force, by far, the most turnovers in the Big 12.
“You don’t play a lot of teams that are such an assault on your senses like that,” she said. “You definitely want to learn from it, and other teams can press and create turnovers, but really, more it was about sort of the cohesiveness of the group in those moments.”
Cincinnati will present some different challenges, especially on the boards. The Bearcats have two of the better rebounders in the conference in Jillian Hayes (9.7 per game) and Alliance Ndiba (6.9 per game). They also shoot more free throws per game (22.8) than any other team in the conference.
“Two areas to focus on: keep them off the line and box out,” Payne said.
Bouncing back is crucial for the Buffs, who are 0-3 on the road in the conference so far. They need road wins to make a push for the top end of the conference standings and boost their NET ranking.
“This one is really important,” Payne said. “We need to play well. They’re a good opponent. They’re coming off couple wins and we’ve got to be ready.”
CU Buffs women’s basketball at Cincinnati
TIPOFF: Saturday, 4 p.m. MT, Fifth Third Arena in Cincinnati, Ohio
TV/RADIO: ESPN+/KHOW 630 AM
RECORDS: Colorado 12-5, 3-3 Big 12; Cincinnati 10-5, 2-3 Big 12
COACHES: Colorado — JR Payne, 9th season (155-107; 256-220 career). Cincinnati — Katrina Merriweather, 2nd season (24-23; 175-93 career).
KEY PLAYERS: Colorado — F Nyamer Diew, 6-2, Sr. (7.2 ppg, 3.1 rpg); G Frida Formann, 5-10, Sr. (13.7 ppg, 2.3 rpg, 2.4 apg, .429 3pt%); F Lior Garzon, 6-1, Sr. (10.9 ppg, 3.0 rpg); F Jade Masogayo, 6-3, Jr. (12.3 ppg, 4.4 rpg, .586 FG%); G Sara-Rose Smith, 6-1, Sr. (5.6 ppg, 6.4 rpg); G Kindyll Wetta, 5-9, Sr. (5.6 ppg, 3.7 rpg, 5.9 apg, 1.9 spg). Cincinnati — F Jillian Hayes, 6-1, Sr. (15.8 ppg, 9.7 rpg, 1.7 spg); G Tineya Hylton, 5-7, Sr. (12.3 ppg, 3.3 rpg, 3.2 apg, 2.2 spg); G A’riel Jackson, 5-9, Jr. (7.6 ppg, 2.3 rpg, 2.2 apg); G Reagan Jackson, 5-8, So. (8.8 ppg, 1.9 rpg); G Chloe Mann, 5-8, Fr. (8.4 ppg, .814 FT%); F Alliance Ndiba, 6-3, Jr. (5.3 ppg, 6.9 rpg).
NOTES: CU will try to bounce back from Wednesday’s loss at West Virginia as it visits Cincinnati for the first time. … This is just the second meeting ever between the two teams, but it’s the second year in a row that they have met. CU beat the Bearcats, 77-60, on Nov. 23, 2023, during the Paradise Jam Classic in St. Thomas, Virgin Islands. … Formann needs just seven 3-pointers to reach 300 for her career, becoming the first in CU history to reach that mark. … The Buffs will play without freshman Tabitha Betson (concussion) for the fourth consecutive game. She is averaging 4.7 points and 3.3 rebounds in 14.4 minutes when healthy. … CU is 2-4 in road games, including 0-3 in Big 12 play. Cincinnati is 6-2 at home. … CU ranks in the top half of the Big 12 in field goal percentage (7th, 46.5%) and 3-point percentage (8th, 34.5%), while Cincinnati is at or near the bottom in both, shooting 37.9% overall (15th) and 25.2% from 3-point range (16th). … The Buffs are fourth in the conference in rebounding margin (plus-8.7), while Cincinnati is 11th (plus-4.1). The Bearcats do have two of the top rebounders in the conference, though, including Hayes, who is second at 9.7 per game. … The Bearcats snapped a two-game skid on Wednesday with a 64-58 win at Central Florida. Hylton had 17 points and seven rebounds.
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