Jones leads No. 3 Stanford by No. 21 Colorado in double OT
BOULDER, Colo. (AP) — Haley Jones scored 13 of her 23 points over the two overtime periods and No. 3 Stanford held off 21st-ranked Colorado 73-62 on Thursday night.
Jones also had 11 rebounds and seven assists for the Cardinal (27-3, 15-2 Pac-12), who remain on top of the conference standings with one game left on their regular season schedule. Stanford was picked to win the Pac-12 in the preseason poll.
Lauren Betts, who grew up in Colorado, sent the game into double overtime by hitting one of two free throws with 3.8 seconds remaining. She finished with 14 points.
Jones took over in overtime No. 2, helping the Cardinal pull away in a tight contest.
Jaylyn Sherrod led Colorado (21-7, 12-5) with 19 points, including the game-tying basket with 23.8 seconds remaining in regulation. She briefly left the game in the fourth after appearing to turn her ankle. The Buffaloes, who trailed by as many as eight in the fourth, were missing their third-leading scorer, Frida Formann, due to an illness.
The usually sure-shooting Cardinal missed their opening 15 shots and trailed by as many as 14 points in the first half. They entered on short rest after beating UCLA on Monday.
The games between the Buffaloes and Cardinal are typically back-and-forth. Entering Thursday, six of the last last 10 were decided by single digits, including two that went into overtime. This was another thriller.
Cameron Brink fouled out in overtime after scoring eight points. Her string of reaching double figures ended at 21 straight games.
Stanford didn’t score its first basket of the game until Brooke Demetre hit a 3-pointer with 12 seconds remaining in the opening quarter.
BIG PICTURE
Stanford: Since losing to No. 1 South Carolina in OT on Nov. 20, the Cardinal have now won 10 straight over ranked teams.
Colorado: The Buffaloes remain on three wins over ranked teams this season. The last time they knocked off four in the same season was 2001-02.
HALL OF HONOR
Longtime Colorado women’s basketball coach and administrator Ceal Barry will be inducted into the Pac-12 Hall of Honor. The 2023 class marks the first all-female class to be enshrined in the league’s Hall of Honor. It’s in recognition of the 50th anniversary of Title IX.
UP NEXT
Stanford: Close out the regular season Saturday at No. 8 Utah.
Colorado: Host California on Saturday.
___
AP women’s college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/womens-college-basketball and https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-womens-college-basketball-poll and https://twitter.com/AP_Top25