University of Missouri
Colorado
Women Get Third Straight With 72-57 Sweep of Buffs
2/18/2006 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Feb. 18, 2006
BOULDER, Colo. - Junior guard Tiffany Brooks (Leavenworth, Kan. / Leavenworth HS / Kansas State) had a season-high 20 points to lead four Mizzou women in double-figure scoring in a 74-57 win over Colorado in Big 12 Conference action Saturday night at the Coors Events Center.
The win gives the Tigers (19-6, 9-4 Big 12) a season sweep of the Buffs for the first time since 1990, and for the night puts Mizzou in sole possession of second place in the conference pending Baylor's contest tomorrow afternoon.
Brooks, who posted her best scoring night since a 16-point outing against Southern Illinois on Dec. 18, was 9-of-15 from the field. Senior center Christelle N'Garsanet (Abidjan, Cote d'Ivoire / Illinois Central College) picked up her 11th double-double of the season, and sixth in the last seven games, with 16 points and 10 rebounds. Junior forward Carlynn Savant (Euless, Texas / Trinity HS) and junior forward EeTisha Riddle (O'Fallon, Ill. / O'Fallon HS) each chipped in 11 points. senior guard LaToya Bond (Urbana, Ill. / Urbana HS) was held under 10 points (seven) for just the second time this season, yet had five assists.
Playing without junior forward Jasmina Ilic, CU's second-leading scorer, the Buffs (8-18, 2-11) were led by Jackie McFarland's 22 points and 12 rebounds. Whitney Law added 15 points, with Yari Escalera (11) the only other Colorado player to score more than six points.
"We had great play from a lot of folks tonight. Our kids were really working hard," Head Coach Cindy Stein said. "Tiffany Brooks hit some big, big shots throughout the game; Marchele Campbell hit a big three; Kacey McFarland came in and did a great job on defense. Whether it was Kassie Drew coming in in the first half, or Tamika Jackson coming in, we had a lot of people come in and give us solid minutes."
The only miss for the Tigers in the first 5 minutes, 11 seconds of play came on a hurried fastbreak layup attempt by N'Garsanet, yet she had back-to-back buckets inside on a scoop and another fastbreak layup. Savant added a pair of 3-pointers in transition, and all five starters had scored by the first media timeout for a 17-5 lead.
The Tigers extended the lead to 20-5 before the Buffs made a 16-5 run, including 12 straight in a span of 5:56, to pull within two (25-23). Yari Escalera and Lauren Lubin both hit 3-pointers, and Jackie McFarland made a pair of baskets in that span.
After making 10 of their first 11 shots, the Tigers missed their next seven in allowing Colorado to close with Savant and Bond both on the bench with two fouls apiece.
Brooks hit a jumper, and N'Garsanet another bucket inside, to stretch the lead back to six before Colorado got six straight points to force the first tie of the game at 29-all. After another tie at 31, Brooks canned another long jumper, and sophomore guard Kassie Drew (Anna, Ill. / Anna-Jonesboro HS) sank one of two free throws with 0.9 seconds left to send the Tigers to a 34-31 halftime lead.
The Tigers slowly built their lead back up to nine points (46-37) to cause Colorado's first timeout of the second half with 13:43 to go before Brooks took over in the second half. She canned four buckets and a free throw in a 5-minute span to keep the Tiger lead at eight (56-48) with 6:20 left in the game.
With Bond and Savant on the bench with four fouls, Kacey McFarland and Campbell each played solidly in a four-minute stretch late in the game, with McFarland blocking Caley Dow and Campbell banging home a key trey.
Mizzou returns home on Wednesday for a 7 p.m. tipoff against Iowa State. Tickets are on sale at the Mizzou Arena Box Office, by calling 1-800-CAT-PAWS (884-PAWS in mid-Missouri) or visiting www.mutigers.com. Mizzou students with All-Sports passes and KMIZ-ZOU cardholders gain free admission to the game.
