Fast break
Reason for Buffs’ Victory: The Buffs displayed more aggression from the beginning. Their exceptional defense held BYU to 30.9% shooting, while dominating rebounds with a 50-26 advantage.
Top Performers:
1. CU’s Anaelle Dutat: Achieved a career-high of 19 points, along with 10 rebounds, three assists, and three steals.
2. CU’s Jade Masogayo: Contributed 15 points on 7-of-11 shooting and grabbed eight rebounds.
3. CU’s Desiree Wooten: Scored 16 points, dished out seven assists, grabbed six rebounds, and made three steals.
Next Up: The Buffs will face off against Arizona on Tuesday in Tucson, Arizona (6 p.m. MT, ESPN+)
Colorado’s women’s basketball team showcased impressive statistics on Saturday.
Head coach JR Payne was particularly impressed by her players’ willingness to dive for loose balls and compete for rebounds during their 76-46 victory over BYU at the CU Events Center.
“Our team continues to show that we have tremendous balance and a tremendous fight,” Payne said. “Like, every single player that played I think hit the floor at some point on purpose; like, actually dove on the floor to save a ball or get a rebound or what have you.”
Throughout the game, the Buffs maintained control and were able to secure a comfortable lead. In their previous 11 games, eight were decided by less than 10 points, highlighting the significance of their dominant performance against BYU.
“Very nice. It was a nice relief,” said sophomore Tabitha Betson, who scored 11 points. “I feel like we get into situations where sometimes we can play down to who we’re playing against. I think today was a huge growth for us because we didn’t do that, you know? We stepped on the gas and we kind of kept playing like that the whole time. So it was definitely a relief and it was nice to kind of coast through the end.”
Anaelle Dutat recorded her second consecutive double-double with a career-high 19 points, 10 rebounds, three assists, and three steals to lead the Buffs, supported by strong performances from Jade Masogayo, Desiree Wooten, and Tabitha Betson.
“I think we played pretty well, like just our intensity,” Payne said. “We didn’t have a lot of prep time. The games feel like they’re just really back-to-back with very little prep time right now, but our team is really maturing before our eyes.”
The Buffs limited the Cougars to 30.9% shooting from the field and outrebounded them 50-26, showcasing their maturity and readiness for each game.
“Just intensity and focus and communication and all the things that we know lead to success on the floor,” she said. “I think we’re seeing us just continue to really grow each and every day.”
The game started with a three-minute scoring drought, but CU quickly took control and established a 14-4 lead. The Buffs dominated the boards in the first quarter, out-rebounding the Cougars 19-6 and scoring seven second-chance points.
“Definitely that was one of our offensive keys,” Dutat said of the Buffs hitting the offensive glass. “Really hit the glass real hard, get second-chance points, get easy baskets, easy points to get our offense going.”
CU, which never trailed, finished with 17 offensive rebounds and 17 second-chance points.
CU led 58-31 after three quarters and stretched the lead to 32 points early in the fourth quarter, completing perhaps their most dominant win of the season.
“I knew we were going to play well because we were very focused and we knew that this was a really important game for us,” Payne said, “but I did not necessarily see that coming.”
Noteworthy
In the past two games, Dutat has averaged 15.5 points and 11.5 rebounds. … Freshman Jade Crook played well off the bench, with seven points and two rebounds. … CU’s plus-24 rebounding margin was its best since a plus-26 against Houston on March 5, 2025, in the first round of the Big 12 Tournament. … This was BYU’s fourth consecutive road loss by at least 16 points.
Colorado 76, BYU 46
BYU (17-9, 6-8 Big 12)
Benally 1-5 0-0 2, Gibb 3-12 5-6 11, Rohkohl 1-4 0-0 2, Hudgins 1-4 0-0 2, Cannon 1-3 0-0 2, Yussuf 2-5 0-1 4, Hamlin 6-13 0-0 14, Mackey-Williams 1-2 2-2 4, Barber 0-4 2-2 2, Gunlock 1-1 0-0 2, Hamson 0-0 1-2 1, Ogden 0-2 0-0 0. Totals 17-55 10-13 46.
COLORADO (18-8, 9-5 Big 12)
Walker 0-4 1-2 1, McErlane 0-1 0-0 0, Masogayo 7-11 1-2 15, Dutat 5-9 9-10 19, Betson 4-6 0-0 11, Gooden 1-5 2-2 4, Wooten 6-14 3-3 16, Nworie 0-1 0-0 0, Crook 3-4 0-0 7, Greer 1-5 1-2 3, Zadel 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 27-60 17-21 76.
BYU 8 10 13 15 – 46
Colorado 17 24 17 18 – 76
3-point goals – BYU 2-17 (Hamlin 2-4, Gibb 0-6, Benally 0-2, Ogden 0-2, Rohkohl 0-1, Cannon 0-1, Barber 0-1), Colorado 5-17 (Betson 3-5, Wooten 1-3, Crook 1-2, Greer 0-3, Walker 0-1, McErlane 0-1, Dutat 0-1, Gooden 0-1). Rebounds – BYU 26 (Yussuf 7), Colorado 50 (Dutat 10). Assists – BYU 8 (Barber 3), Colorado 18 (Wooten 7). Steals – BYU 12 (Barber 4), Colorado 13 (Dutat, Betson, Wooten 3). Turnovers – BYU 19, Colorado 21. Total fouls – BYU 16, Colorado 13. Fouled out – None. Attendance – 3,251.
