Sophomore Stacey Barr hit a 3-pointer with 16 seconds on the clock to bring Idaho within three, but the Vandals were unable to get any closer when Colorado escaped with a narrow 70-65 victory Sunday afternoon in Boulder.
It was the second straight loss by Idaho (0-2) after the Vandals fell in their season opener against Wyoming Friday. While it wasn’t a win, Idaho coach Jon Newlee said he was more pleased with his team’s effort than the 86-53 blowout loss on Friday.
“As disappointed as I was in Friday’s effort, we had the effort we needed and then some tonight,” Newlee said. “We had a great practice last night and really came out and competed. We battled and competed and had a good shot to win this basketball game, but we’ll learn from it and we’ll keep getting better.”
The Vandals kept things close all the way through, fighting back every time the Buffaloes made a run. Colorado led by as many as 11 in the game, but the Vandals were able to pull the Buffaloes back, using a late run at end.
The biggest problem for Idaho was Colorado’s Brittany Wilson who led all scorers with 18 points and was perfect from the free throw line. The Buffaloes also out-rebounded the Vandals 46-37, taking advantage of Idaho’s lack of size.
Idaho junior Alyssa Charlston led the Vandals with 16 points while Barr helped the effort with 15. Barr also took four defensive fouls on the night, a performance Newlee was happier with than what she showed on Friday.
“She got a wake-up call by not starting and played the way she usually plays,” Newlee said. “That’s the Stacey Barr we’re used to seeing. Everybody played hard tonight, I’m proud of them.”
Freshman Connie Ballestero also pitched in 11 points and sophomore point guard Krissy Karr added 10 before leaving the game late in the second half with an injury.
The season is just getting started for this young Vandals team and they’ve already proven they can keep up with a good team if they show up ready. The tests will keep coming for Idaho as the competition will keep getting tougher.
Newlee said Sunday’s performance was good to see, especially this early.
“We really came out and competed and that’s what I’m looking for,” Newlee said. “…We could have made some better decisions, for sure, down the stretch, but we battled and competed.”
In the team’s season-opener, the Vandals shot just 22 percent on the night and committed 15 turnovers, which Wyoming turned into 23 points.
Wyoming started the game on a 7-0 run and never trailed the entire game. The Vandals went into the locker room at the half down by 10, but the Cowgirls came back and started the half on a 6-0 run that doomed the Vandals. Wyoming continued to pull away in the second half and glided to an easy 30-point victory.
Idaho’s problems were amplified even more when Charlston, Idaho’ s leading scorer from last season, had to sit through the majority of the first half because of foul trouble. Charlston only had six points on the night, all coming from the free-throw line.
Freshman Christina Salvatore led the Vandals with 12 points, while Barr and freshman Ali Forde had seven. Forde also added 12 rebounds.
This weekend was a rough start for the young Idaho team and things will only get tougher with teams like Gonzaga, Montana and Washington coming up in its schedule.
The Vandals will be back at home Friday when they face Portland.
Kevin Bingaman can be reached at [email protected]