CU Buffs women's basketball ready for a new era – Longmont Times-Call

Frida Formann and Kindyll Wetta always knew this year would be different for the Colorado women’s basketball team.

They have also embraced the changes along the way.

“It’s different and fun, refreshing and new,” said Wetta, the Buffs’ senior point guard.

On Monday, the Buffaloes officially kick off a new era when they visit Wyoming in the season opener.

Formann and Wetta have both been key figures in CU’s revival over the past three years. In 2022, they helped the Buffs end a nine-year NCAA Tournament drought, then surpassed that with Sweet 16 appearances in 2023 and 2024.

However, the core of those teams is now gone, with Formann the only returning starter. Wetta played starter minutes, but was technically a backup to star point guard Jaylyn Sherrod. Senior Sara-Rose Smith also played an integral role last year.

Colorado’s Kindyll Wetta calls out to a teammate during the game against Colorado School of Mines at the CU Events Center in Boulder on Sunday, Oct. 27, 2024. (Matthew Jonas / Staff Photographer)

Now joining the Big 12 Conference after 13 years in the Pac-12, the Buffs have 10 new players and are eager to continue their success.

“I think this is just a new season,” said head coach JR Payne, heading into her ninth season with the Buffs. “The team is new, our leadership is new, our conference is new. So I think we’re really embracing all the newness that we’re experiencing.

“We couldn’t have a better group of young women in our program. They’re intelligent, they’re funny, they work hard, they’re great for each other. Our locker room culture is great; they are really special. I think that makes it easier to have ten new players in a team.”

To continue their success, the Buffs will have to do things differently than they have in the past.

The Buffs had a strong trio in the paint the past two years with Aaronette Vonleh, Quay Miller and Charlotte Whittaker, but all three are gone. They also very much adopted the identity of Sherrod, a tenacious and speedy point guard who is now in the WNBA.

CU added some size this offseason, but it’s certainly a more perimeter-heavy team than it has been even without Sherrod in charge.

“I think we will be a very different style team this year because we don’t have a big-bodied post player,” Wetta said. “I think we can be a lot faster than our opponents, and we can be a lot more aggressive and be a tenacious basketball team, which I know has always been our identity, but this year I feel like we can really, really lean . in it. We have good athletes, we have disciplined players and some people can really go up and down.”

Here’s a look at each position this season:

Guard: Frida Formann, Sr., 6 feet tall; Lova Lower Member, Fr, 6-0; Kennedy Sanders, R-Fr., 5-8; Johanna Teder, Sr., 5-8; Kindyll Wetta, Sr., 5-9.

Outlook: Formann and Wetta are the two leaders and the most experienced as Buffs. They are all-conference caliber players. Formann is CU’s all-time leader in three-pointers and Wetta was one of the best perimeter defenders in the Pac-12. Teder is a transfer from Washington State who missed last year with an injury, but has a lot of experience and shooting sense. Sanders redshirted last year and is expected to play a key role as a backup point guard, while Lagerlid has good athleticism.

Jade Masogayo of Colorado, left, takes a photo alongside Isa Hensley of Colorado School of Mines, right, at the CU Events Center in Boulder on Sunday, Oct. 27, 2024. (Matthew Jonas/Staff Photographer)

Forward/wing: Nyamer Diew, Sr., 6-2; Lior Garzon, Sr., 6-1; Grace Oliver, Father, 6-1; Erin Powell, Fr., 6-0; Sara-Rose Smith, Sr., 6-1

Outlook: CU has a lot of experience and length here. Smith is the lone returner and she is a versatile player who can rebound, defend and score. Garzon is a fifth-year player who has been a starter at Villanova and Oklahoma State and has the ability to be one of the Buffs’ best three-point threats. Diew has been a key player at Iowa State in recent years and she has untapped potential to be a valuable and versatile player night in and night out. Oliver and Powell are both talented freshmen who can shoot.

After: Tabitha Betson, Fr., 6-2; Ayianna Johnson, So., 6-3; Jade Masogayo, Jr. 6-3; JoJo Nworie, So., 6-5

Outlook: There’s a lot of potential here, but there’s still a lot to prove. Betson was the preseason choice of Big 12 coaches as the conference’s freshman of the year and she has star potential but has yet to play a collegiate game. Masogayo is a thin post but has had a lot of success at Missouri State and can rebound and score. Johnson, a transfer from Minnesota, is packed with strength and athleticism and wants to cut loose. Nworie has remarkable skills but did not play in her two seasons at Texas Tech due to injuries and has yet to be medically cleared at CU.

Overall, CU has a roster full of potential, but many unknowns. What is known, however, is that the level of play in recent years has not changed as CU begins a new campaign and looks for a fourth consecutive trip to the NCAA Tournament.

“We have the same expectations that we always have, and that starts with being excellent in everything we do every day,” Payne said. “We are fortunate to have strong experienced leaders, even if there are not many of them. Our upperclassmen – Kindyll, Frida and Sara – have done a great job of not only welcoming and embracing all our new players, but also setting a very high standard for the way things are done here.

“Our new players have all bought in very quickly, insofar as that has helped us be successful, and we have the same expectations this year.”