No. 8 Colorado overcomes early deficit to beat Northern Colorado

BOULDER, Colo. (AP) — Jaylyn Sherrod scored 13 of her 16 points in the second quarter, Aaronette Vonleh added 14 and the No. 8 Colorado women recovered from a 14-0 deficit to start the game to beat Northern Colorado 78-56 on Thursday.

The Buffaloes (10-1) showed signs of rust in their first contest since a 95-74 win over UT Arlington on Dec. 5. Colorado missed its opening six shots before settling into a rhythm. The Buffaloes took their first lead on a three-point play by Sherrod with 45.7 seconds remaining until halftime and never trailed again.

Sherrod's jumper led the surge back, scoring all 16 of her points in the first half along with hitting two 3-pointers (she was 1 for 19 entering the game).

The Buffaloes dominated down low and had a 48-14 advantage in points in the paint.

Delaynie Byrne led the Bears (4-5) with 21 points, while Seneca Hackley had 15. Northern Colorado finished with 28 turnovers.

The Buffaloes have won all 10 of their games this season by 10 or more points. But this didn’t have blowout written on it early.

Northern Colorado rode the sizzling long-range shooting of Byrne to a 14-0 advantage as the senior forward hit three 3-pointers. It quieted the crowd, which has a tradition of standing until the Buffaloes score their first point. It took until the 5:33 mark of the first quarter — and through a timeout — before the fans could sit after Frida Formann knocked in a layup.

Colorado switched up the starting lineup for the first time this season, inserting Maddie Nolan and bringing in Tameiya Sadler off the bench. Nolan finished with six points and Sadler added 10 points and four assists.

BIG PICTURE

Northern Colorado: The Bears have lost 11 straight in the series against Colorado. Their last win over the Buffaloes was on Jan. 27, 1978.

Colorado: The Buffaloes had 22 assists. They entered the game averaging 21.4 per game.

UP NEXT

Northern Colorado: Start Big Sky Conference play on Dec. 30 at Northern Arizona.

Colorado: Begins Pac-12 play on Dec. 30 against No. 11 Utah.

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AP women’s college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-womens-college-basketball-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/womens-college-basketball