Arielle Roberson helps lead Colorado to 7th straight win

BOULDER, Colo. -- Arielle Roberson scored 16 points and senior Chucky Jeffery grabbed 13 rebounds in her final regular-season home game, helping No. 20 Colorado hold on for a 68-61 win over Washington on Sunday in front of an energetic crowd that braved blizzard conditions to arrive at Coors Events Center.

The Buffaloes (22-5, 11-5 Pac-12) won their seventh straight game as they took a step closer to securing one of the first-round byes for the conference tournament.

Hours before the tip, Colorado posted a statement on its website imploring fans to be careful on their way to the game. A winter storm swept through the area and was expected to drop nearly a foot of snow. High winds also made travel treacherous.

The Huskies (19-8, 11-5) were led in scoring by Kristi Kingma, who finished with 19 points. Jazmine Davis was held in check most of the afternoon, scoring just nine points. She entered the game averaging 19.6.

Jeffery came up big for the Buffaloes even with a balky left ankle. She fell awkwardly early in the second half and sat on the bench for nearly four minutes as trainers examined her ankle.

With her leadership missing from the floor, the Huskies worked their way back into the game. Although tentative on the ankle the rest of the way, Jeffery did help calm things down when she entered back into the game, especially late in the contest.

She had two key passes that set up baskets from Jen Reese in the final two minutes that ultimately helped the Buffaloes seal the win.

"There's a comfort level with having Chucky on the floor," coach Linda Lappe said.

In addition to her big day on the boards, Jeffery finished with 11 points and four assists. But she also had seven turnovers, which she attributed to nerves on senior night.

Soon after the final buzzer, Jeffery was handed a microphone and addressed the crowd, thanking it for turning out under such snowy conditions. She also thanked her teammates and coaches for helping her to such a standout career. She's currently 10th on the school's all-time scoring list as well as sixth in rebounding and fourth in assists.

As for her vow not to cry, well, she couldn't quite make that happen.

Neither could her teammate and close friend Brittany Wilson, who finished with 13 points. Asked about what Jeffery meant to her, Wilson began dabbing her eyes with her jersey.

"She's been a great leader," Wilson said.

The Buffs close out the regular season with games at Oregon and Oregon State before the start of the Pac-12 tournament.