The No. 3 seed has never lost to the No. 6 seed in the history of the MWC Championship. BYU won its only other first-round game as the No. 3 seed vs. Wyoming in 2002.
Colorado State's Sara Hunter set a MWC Championship freshman record for three-point baskets in a single game with seven. The previous record was four set by SDSU's Courtney Fritz (2004) and BYU's Erin Thorn (2000). She was just one shy of the overall record of eight set by Erin Thorn of BYU (2002). Hunter's nine field goals was also a MWC Championship freshman record. Her 70 percent three-point percentage (7-for-10) was a MWC Championship overall record and a freshman record (breaking Erin Thorn's 57.1 percent mark set in 2000), while her 10 attempts tied a freshman record. Hunter had a career-high 25 points, to set another MWC Championship freshman record, breaking Utah's Kim Smith's mark of 19 (2003). Hunter scored Colorado State's final seven points of the game in the final 3:37 of the game.
There were 14 lead changes and ten ties in the game, including 12 lead changes and six ties in the first half.
BYU outscored Colorado State, 42-20, in the paint, including a 26-10 advantage in the first half.
BYU's Julie Sullivan tied her career high with 22 points, including 4-for-4 from the free throw line in the final 1:16 of the game.
The Cougars overcame 60.9 percent free-throw shooting for the game, including just 47.1 percent (8-for-17) in the second half.
BYU defeated Colorado State all three times the teams played this season. It is the first time the Rams have lost to the same team three times in one year since they lost to San Diego State three times in 1993-94.
Colorado State led 54-51 with 10:56 to play when BYU went on a 9-0 run to go up by six, 60-54, with 6:14 to play.
After BYU scored the opening bucket of the second half, Colorado State went on an 8-0 run to tie the game at 42 with 17 minutes to play. Melissa Dennett had five straight points for the Rams in that 1:30 stretch.
BYU scored seven unanswered points in the final 1:30 of the first half to take a six-point halftime lead, 40-34.
After each team traded buckets to start the game, BYU went on an 11-2 run to open up a nine-point lead, 13-4, with just over 15 minutes remaining in the half. Colorado State then answered with seven straight points in the next two minutes to close to within two points at 13-11. Ambrosia Anderson stopped the run with a field goal to push the lead back to four, 15-11.
Colorado State took its first lead, 16-15, with 10:18 left in the first half but BYU promptly tied it up on two Kristen Kozlowski free throws.
Colorado State tallied assists on 12 of its 13 first-half field goals.
Vanessa Espinoza's field goal with 15:25 remaining in the first half broke a personal 56-plus minute streak without a field goal. The junior scored one free throw against New Mexico and was scoreless against Air Force to close out the regular season. That was her only field goal of the night, giving her just one field goal in her last 86-plus minutes of action.
The Mountain West Championship drew 3,321 fans in the first session and 3,123 fans in the night session. It is the first time in the history of the Mountain West Championship that there have been more than 3,000 fans at both quarterfinal sessions.
