No. 3 Colorado upset by No. 5 UCLA 76-68

Buffaloes lose a key Pac-12 matchup with Bruins bouncing back after USC loss

Jason Jones/BuffsBeat

No. 3 Colorado tried to pull off a tenth straight win but failed to mount a comeback over No. 5 UCLA, losing 76-68 at CU Event Center on Friday night. An over capacity crowd packed the arena to watch the top ten battle with a few notables like Shedeur Sanders and Jordan Seaton in attendance.    

Jaylyn Sherrod had 17 points as the Buffaloes (15-2, 5-1 Pac-12) saw four players score in double-figures in their first Pac-12 loss of the season. Frida Formann finished with 16 points, along with Quay Miller and Aaronette Vonleh scoring 10 points each on the night. 

UCLA had the largest lead of the game at 70-62 with 1:42 left. There were 20 lead changes and six ties up to that point. But CU wasn't going to go without a bit of a fight. Frida Formann drained a three-pointer to cut the Bruins lead to 70-65 with 1:25 remaining. However, time was not on CU's side as they watched UCLA secure the victory. It was a redemption moment for Cori Close's squad after falling apart in the second half on Sunday against USC.

Colorado took a 35-32 lead going into halftime and appeared to be firing off on all cylinders. But that faded for the Buffs down the stretch with miscues and turnovers playing a factor. UCLA dominated the boards with a 44-27 rebound margin. They has nearly half of their points in the paint with a total of 36.   

Charisma Osborne had 22 points to lead all scorers. The senior guard became the UCLA all-time leader with 257 career 3-pointers. She was joined by Lauren Betts and Angela Dugalic, who each had a double-double. They combined for 31 points and 24 rebounds to go along with 12 points from Kiki Rice.

Colorado went 22-for-52 (42.3%) from the field and 6-for-20 (30%) from beyond the arc. They tried to pull ahead in the second half, but the Bruins hung tough and never stopped chipping away in the fourth quarter. 

The crowd of 11,338 was a record for a women's game at Colorado and represented the team's first sellout since March 17, 1995. Only two men's games have drawn bigger crowds to the arena, which opened in 1979, according to CU athletics. 

UP NEXT: 

Colorado hosts No. 6 USC on Sunday (3 p.m. ET/TV: PAC12N).

UCLA heads to Salt Lake City to face No. 20 Utah on Monday night.