Tag: JR Payne

JR Payne named to national coach of the year watch list for second straight season

JR Payne is a late-season finalist for the Naismith Women’s Coach of the Year award

After making the late-season watch list for the Naismith Women’s College Coach of the Year award last season, Colorado women’s basketball head coach JR Payne has found herself on the list again.

Of the 15 coaches named to the 2023-24 late-season watch list on Wednesday morning, five hail from the Pac-12 Conference, including Payne. At 20-5 overall and 10-4 in conference play, the Buffs are currently tied for second place in the Pac-12 standings.

In her eighth year as Colorado’s head coach, Payne’s Buffs have spent all 16 weeks of the season ranked in the USA TODAY Sports women’s basketball coaches poll, including 14 weeks in the top 10. CU currently sits at No. 11 in the coaches poll after suffering back-to-back losses for the first time this season.

With the watch list being narrowed down on March 14, Payne and the Buffs are looking to bring a Pac-12 championship trophy to Boulder before the NCAA Tournament begins.

The Buffs will be at No. 7 USC on Friday.

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JR Payne speaks on Colorado’s massive win over Utah

JR Payne gave her thoughts on Colorado’s huge win on Saturday

The No. 8 Colorado women’s basketball team defeated No. 12 Utah, 76-65, on Saturday afternoon in a massive top-15 battle.

The Buffs are now 11-1 on the year after kicking off their Pac-12 schedule with a strong win over a talented Utes team.

After the win, eight-year CU head coach JR Payne gave her thoughts on the performance, giving special praise to Jaylyn Sherrod, who scored a career-high 34 points.

“Our upperclassmen, Jaylyn in particular, talked a lot to the group this week about (how) playing in the Pac-12, everything is harder,” Payne said. “You’ve gotta have a more focused mindset, a more disciplined approach, everything has to be elevated. Our team, I think, really did that whether we were up or down, it didn’t really matter. We stayed locked in. So, super proud of our team. Great win. We’ll enjoy it for about a day.”

Sherrod came into the contest averaging 13 points per game, so this was a massive performance for the veteran point guard.

The Buffs will face both of the Pac-12’s Arizona schools this upcoming weekend away from Boulder.

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LSU vs. Colorado: Preview and prediction for Tigers women’s basketball season opener in Las Vegas

Here’s a preview and prediction as LSU begins its national title defense against No. 20 Colorado on Monday night.

LSU women’s basketball looks to begin its national title defense on Monday night, kicking the year off with a top-25 showdown against Colorado in Las Vegas.

The game will tip at 6:30 p.m. CT and be nationally televised on TNT.

There are several big stories to monitor on Monday night, most notably the anticipated debut of Louisville transfer [autotag]Hailey Van Lith[/autotag]. The arrival of Van Lith along with a few top-rated freshmen, has led to even bigger expectations in Kim Mulkey’s third year.

We’ve gotten a preview of what this team might look like with two exhibitions, but this is its first real test. Here’s what to watch for when [autotag]Angel Reese[/autotag] and the Tigers take the floor tonight.

CU Buffs women’s basketball locked in ahead of highly-anticipated season

Focus hasn’t been an issue for the #cubuffs women’s basketball team amid a chaotic fall in Boulder

This fall has been unlike anything we’ve ever seen before at the University of Colorado. Celebrities, Hall of Fame athletes and cameras are now everywhere as head football coach Deion Sanders has brought Boulder into the center of the sports world.

Understandably so, things have also been different for the other varsity teams on campus, including head coach JR Payne’s women’s basketball squad, which is looking to make its third straight trip to the NCAA Tournament. Although those aforementioned distractions are of the welcomed variety, the Buffs have remained focused with their season opener on the horizon.

“We’re a pretty focused group,” Payne told the media prior to CU’s first official preseason practice last week. “There’s been a lot of distractions in Boulder the last few weeks since we got here, and it’s incredible. We all love it. To have ‘GameDay’ here and Fox ‘Big Noon’ and all of that is so cool, our team has done a good job of keeping us focused. We have our own job to do outside of what everybody else is doing in Boulder.”

Payne, fortunately, has a veteran group this year with Jaylyn Sherrod, Quay Miller, Frida Formann and other upperclassmen aiming to run back last season’s trip to the Sweet 16.

Colorado opens things up against the defending national champion LSU Tigers on Nov. 6 in Las Vegas.

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What the season opener selection means for Colorado

Welcome to the big leagues, Colorado women’s basketball

The spotlight of the college sports world has been taken over by the Colorado Buffaloes, and not just by Deion Sanders and the football team.

The CU women’s squad is becoming a household name when it comes to college basketball, and this is never more apparent after the announcement that they will open the season against LSU in Las Vegas. Head coach JR Payne and her team of gritty Buffaloes stormed their way to the Sweet-16 of last year’s NCAA tournament, including a huge upset over Duke in Raleigh.

Payne’s team has been recognized for their efforts with that marquee match-up in Las Vegas and they couldn’t be more excited for the chance to go against LSU presents (h/t Seth Pringle of cubuffs.com):

“We are honored to be included in the Hall of Fame Series in Las Vegas and to be playing LSU on Opening Night,” head coach JR Payne stated. “It will certainly be an exciting environment to kickoff the 2023-24 season. We have loved playing in Las Vegas with the Pac-12 Tournament and are excited about this really cool opportunity.”

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CU Buffs women’s basketball 2022-23 season in review

We were treated to a magical 2022-23 CU women’s basketball season

The 2022-23 season was a magical one for the Colorado Buffaloes women’s basketball team. JR Payne’s squad well exceeded preseason predictions and danced all the way to the Sweet 16.

Colorado seems primed to build upon this success as its core remains intact, and another wave of talent is set to join the team next season. But fans would do well to take a few minutes and relish in the memories that were made this past season. It had been 20 years since Colorado pushed that far into the postseason and the Buffs accomplished this by defying the odds all season.

Read on to see our review of the 2022-23 CU women’s basketball season:

CU women’s basketball: Jaylyn Sherrod announces she’s coming back for fifth season

The heart and soul of the #cubuffs is returning for one final ride

A burning question for the Colorado Buffaloes women’s basketball core has been if Jaylyn Sherrod would return for a fifth season. Sherrod emphatically answered that question on Saturday by announcing on Twitter, “Buffs nation, I’m Back.”

The two-way guard who has made life miserable for other Pac-12 teams for the last four years will lead the Buffaloes for one more go-around after pushing CU to the Sweet 16 this year. Sherrod set new career-highs in field goal percentage (41%), 3-point percentage (31%), points per game (11.3) and total steals (78) while blossoming into a star on both ends of the court. Her fiery on-court demeanor was once again infectious to anyone watching in the stadium or at home.

Needless to say, head coach JR Payne is excited to have her star point guard back:

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Colorado makes ESPN’s way-too-early women’s basketball top 25

Colorado was well-positioned in this way-too-early top 25

The Colorado Buffaloes women’s basketball team is getting some national love after its impressive showing in the NCAA Tournament. ESPN writer Charlie Creme ranked Colorado at No. 20 in its way-too-early top 25 for the upcoming 2023-24 season.

Head coach JR Payne and the Buffs shocked most of the women’s basketball world this last season after being picked to finish eighth in the Pac-12 preseason polls. The Buffs shot all the way up to third when the season ended and captured a No. 6 seed in the NCAA Tournament where many thought No. 11 Middle Tennessee State would get the first-round upset.

CU would dominate MTSU and upset the Duke Blue Devils in the second round to advance to the Sweet 16 for the first time in 20 years before falling to eventual national runner-up Iowa in a hard-fought contest that saw the Buffs hold a halftime lead.

Colorado will not be sneaking up on anyone this year as ESPN points out the returning core and Payne’s recent contract extension as major factors (h/t ESPN and Charlie Creme):

20. Colorado Buffaloes

After the Buffaloes’ first Sweet 16 appearance in 20 years, coach JR Payne was rewarded with a five-year contract extension. It also looks like she will have most of her veteran team back for another run. The top four scorers — Quay Miller, Aaronette Vonleh, Frida Formann and Jaylyn Sherrod — are expected to be back next season. This season marked the second time in 27 years Colorado had won as many as 25 games, and the third-place finish in the Pac-12 was the program’s best since joining the conference in 2011.

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CU women’s basketball head coach JR Payne receives contract extension

Following back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances and a run to the Sweet 16, JR Payne has received a contract extension

Coming off back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances, Colorado women’s basketball head coach JR Payne received a five-year contract extension, as announced by athletic director Rick George on Thursday.

Payne’s seventh season leading the Buffs culminated in a Sweet 16 appearance and a 25-9 overall record. Her 119 career wins are second-most in program history to only the great Ceal Barry (427).

According to Brian Howell of BuffZone, Payne was previously the lowest-paid head coach in the Pac-12 at an annual salary of $417,500, but her new contract is expected to pay her over $700,000 annually through the 2027-28 season (h/t BuffZone).

“I’m so thankful to Rick George and our administration for their support and belief in our staff,” Payne said in a press release. “We have poured our heart and soul into building this program into something special and we’re so thankful for the opportunity to continue to push ourselves to national prominence.”

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Colorado women’s basketball: JR Payne, players share thoughts on reaching Sweet 16 against Iowa

Colorado coaches and players gave their thoughts on Friday’s Sweet 16 matchup against Iowa

The No. 6 seed Colorado Buffaloes women’s basketball team has had quite the NCAA Tournament run so far, traveling all the way to Durham to defeat Middle Tennessee and Duke to reach the program’s first Sweet 16 in 20 years.

Once the celebration of beating the Blue Devils died down, the Buffs set their sights on a new opponent, the No. 2 Iowa Hawkeyes. Colorado stopped in Boulder to practice and meet with the media on Wednesday before heading west to Seattle for Friday’s game against Iowa.

Here are some of the best quotes from head coach JR Payne and players from their meeting with the media on Wednesday: