Why the Buffs won: CU overcame a rough night of shooting by playing exceptional defense and hitting some timely shots in crunch time. They also dominated in rebounding in the second half.

Three stars:

1. CU’s Lior Garzon: Scored 20 points in her Buffs debut, including a long jumper with 42 seconds left to bump the lead to four.

2. CU’s Sara-Rose Smith: Finished with a game-high 11 rebounds, along with six points.

3. Wyoming’s Allyson Fertig: Posted 18 points and five rebounds despite some foul trouble.

Up next: The Buffs will host Northern Colorado in the home opener on Thursday at the CU Events Center (7 p.m., ESPN+).