KANSAS CITY, Mo. >> At halftime of Colorado’s game on Thursday, the TCU women’s basketball team found a spot in the corner of T-Mobile Center to relax and watch the Buffaloes and Arizona battle.

As the regular season champion and No. 1 seed, eighth-ranked TCU earned a double-bye into the quarterfinals of the Big 12 Tournament. After a hard-fought, 61-58 victory against Arizona, CU won’t be rested but is ready for the challenge.

“I think we’re all very excited,” CU senior Kindyll Wetta said of facing TCU on Friday in the quarterfinals. “I think if there’s any one of those teams in the top four we want to play against, it’s TCU, especially since we only got to play against them once.”

CU lost to TCU, 63-50, on Jan. 1 in Fort Worth, Texas, and has looked forward to a rematch ever since. The Buffs were within five with 4 minutes, 45 seconds to play before the Horned Frogs closed on an 11-3 run.

“Even though it’s a few months ago, you remember all the games you play in, so yeah, just shift focus and you get already play against them,” Wetta said.

When the teams met on Jan. 1, CU was healthy. It’s been a roller coaster since, as CU hasn’t had its full rotation since three days later when it lost at Baylor. Leading scorer Frida Formann remains out, and other Buffs are banged up.

The Buffs were reeling coming into Kansas City but have fought through two wins to get Friday’s opportunity against TCU.

“It’s super exciting,” CU freshman Tabitha Betson said. “It’s obviously my first time in a Big 12 tournament. So it means so much to me to be able to win and get on this roll now. From how much I love this team, I’m so excited, so happy to play with this team. I love playing with them, so it means so much more. I’m just trying to keep this rolling and get another win.”

At 2-0 this week, CU has won multiple games in a conference tournament for just the third time since 1997 (also 2015 and 2022).

Breakout performance

Wetta spent much of Thursday’s game in foul trouble, playing just 20 minutes, 32 seconds. Often that spells trouble for the Buffs, but her backup, Kennedy Sanders, picked up the slack.

Sanders has been part of the rotation all year, but Thursday might have been her best game, as she posted 14 points, two assists and two rebounds. CU was plus-12 on the scoreboard with her on the court, the best rating for anyone on the team.

“I’m so proud of her,” Wetta said. “She has come such a long way, and I know it’s been a long, hard journey for her, but she’s really growing into a great basketball player, a great point guard, a great leader, and that’s as much as I can ask for. (Jaylyn Sherrod, who graduated last year) did that for me, and I want to be there and be able to do that for Ken. And she played amazing the past few games. She’s killing it. So, really happy and proud of her.”

In the past seven games, Sanders has averaged 9.0 points and 3.4 assists. In her first 19 games, she averaged 3.2 points and 2.1 assists.

Smith steps up

Senior Sara-Rose Smith has been nursing a foot injury and didn’t play Wednesday against Houston so the Buffs could keep her fresh. On Thursday, she came off the bench to score seven points and pull down four rebounds in 15 minutes.

Smith’s seven points all came in the first half, helping CU turn an 11-point deficit into a halftime tie. She then grabbed the rebound on the final play of the game after Arizona missed a potential game-tying 3-pointer.

“I’m just beyond proud of her for what she’s doing,” CU head coach JR Payne said. “All the players that we’ve had that have been injured throughout the year are doing everything they can to get healthy. But I think it just shows what she’s willing to sacrifice for her team.

“Fortunately, we were able to not play her yesterday so that she could feel as fresh as possible for today, but, I mean, she was awesome. She just did what she does, which is handle pressure, be a great rebounder on both sides of the floor. Very fitting that she sealed the deal with the final defensive rebound.”

Notable

CU has reached the 20-win mark for the fourth consecutive year, the first time the program has done that since a four-year run from 2000-04. … After starting 1-for-8 from the floor, CU went 23-for-46 (.500) in the last 32 minutes. … CU led for just 3 minutes, 47 seconds on Thursday, while trailing for 33:11. … Thursday marked just the 11th time in Payne’s nine-year tenure that CU rallied from at least 11 points down to win.