Houston Cougars guard Shun’teria Anumele (24) goes for a layup against Colorado forward Tabitha Betson (17) during the second half of an NCAA college women’s basketball game on Wednesday Jan. 11, 2026, in Houston, Texas. | Raphael Fernandez/The Cougar
The Houston Cougars trailed the Colorado Buffaloes 73-63 in a determined conference game on Feb. 11 at the Fertitta Center for their Play4Kay game. With this loss, the Houston Cougars go 1-4 all-time against the Buffaloes.
Houston opened the first quarter with an early two-point lead, but a scoring drought set in after two minutes against Colorado. The Cougars’ man-to-man defense wasn’t tight enough to keep the Buffaloes outside the paint. With only three minutes left, the Houston Cougars narrowed the scoreboard to 7-10.
With the first quarter wrapped up, Houston’s junior guard Kierra Merchant led the Cougars with six points in the first quarter, but the Colorado Buffaloes still led 9-16
The second quarter commenced with the Cougars putting up two points, and snagged the score to 12-16.
The Cougars had a rough time scoring at the start of the second quarter. However, senior guard Briana Peguero splashed a three-pointer, which sparked a mood change in the quarter. This left the Colorado Buffaloes on a three-minute scoring drought.
The Cougars raised the pressure with a hand on the Buffaloes’ tail, and kept the score 23-26. However, Colorado remained at ease and put up numbers on the scoreboard.
The quarter break was a tough fight for the Cougars and the Buffaloes, which ended with the score 23-32.
The third quarter started with a foul toward graduate guard Briana Peguero, who easily sank the free throw, but the Colorado Buffaloes seamlessly tracked the scoreboard with a 7-0 run against the Cougars.
As the energy on the court shifted, the Buffaloes had a rough run, scoring only once on seven attempts which kept the Cougars on strong defense and ran the Buffaloes’ shot clock.
At the end of the third, Houston fought hard, but couldn’t put up enough shots to tighten the margin which ended 39-52.
At the top of the fourth, Houston was only down by a 10-point difference, as they tried to narrow the lead that Colorado created. However, the Buffaloes’ game became an offensive strategy that consistently found ways to put the ball in the net.
With this offensive strength on full display, the Colorado Buffaloes did not fail to maintain their lead against the Houston Cougars the entire game. Colorado would eventually win against Houston 73-63.
Houston’s Peguero kept the floor hot with 21 points and went 66% from the three-point line. Senior guard TK Pitts owned the paint with eight rebounds and a block.
Despite the loss, the Houston Cougars will try to bounce back on their Valentine’s Day game against the Kansas Jayhawks, on Saturday, Feb.14, at Allen Fieldhouse in Kansas.
sports@thedailycougar.com
