Cowgirls Beat Buffs For First Big 12 Win
STILLWATER, Okla. — Oklahoma State’s women’s basketball team hung on down the stretch to defeat Colorado, 58-49, for its first Big 12 win of the year on Tuesday night in front of 2,080 fans inside Gallager-Iba Arena.
For the Cowgirls (13-4 overall, 1-3 Big 12), the victory snapped a three-game losing streak that included losses to top-10 foes Texas A&M and Baylor. The setback dropped the Buffaloes to 10-7 and 1-3.
“It wasn’t the prettiest thing in the world, but we found a way to get it done and I was just really happy for the kids,” head coach Kurt Budke said. “If you really look at a lot of the scores of the Big 12 games the last couple weeks, you see a lot of games like this – a lot of grind it out victories that you just find a way to get it done.”
scored the first seven points of the game and never trailed, building its advantage to as many as nine. After a CU run cut the margin to one at 21-20, the Cowgirls scored seven of the final nine points in the half to lead 29-22.
The Buffaloes made several runs during the second half, including a 7-0 spurt to knot the score at 34 apiece with five minutes remaining. However, the Cowgirls answered each time. With the game tied, scored the game’s next eight points with a run spurred by a four-point possession. After senior Precious Robinson converted a layup and drew a foul. Freshman Vicky McIntyre grabbed the rebound off the missed free throw before freshman Carissa Crutchfield hit a layup of her own.
Robinson scored another layup at the 12:09 mark to give its biggest lead at 46-36. Robinson came off the bench to score 10 points and grab three rebounds.
“I thought Precious, tonight, saved us. I thought Precious came off and had some big buckets for us and showed a little senior leadership at key times tonight that helped us get over the hump and get a win,” Budke said.
Trailing by double digits, the Buffaloes clawed their way back with a 10-1 run to move back within a point, but McIntyre answered with five consecutive points. The 6-6 freshman was dominant in thepaint, finishing with 14 points, eight rebounds and four blocks on the night.
“I thought Vicky was really good tonight. That’s why I keep telling you – Vicky’s best days are ahead of her. She’s getting better every single day,” Budke said. “As a freshman in this league at any position, you’re going to have tough nights and tonight I thought she was really good.”
After a 3-pointer by Brittany Wilson drew the Buffaloes with one with 7:29 remaining, CU went without a field goal the rest of the way and was held to just three points off free throws to close out the game.
CU’s Brittany Spears led all scorers with 18 points and had a game-high nine rebounds.
The Cowgirls will return to action on Saturday when they travel to Austin, Texas to face the Texas Longhorns at 5 p.m.
Updated 01-19-2011
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