No. 23 Colorado 65, Pepperdine 53

1/4/2008 9:03 PM

BOULDER, Colo. (AP) -Jackie McFarland had 19 points and eight rebounds to help No. 23 Colorado win its 10th straight, 65-53 over struggling Pepperdine on Friday night.

Bianca Smith added 18 points and Brittany Spears had 16 for Colorado (11-2) which is off to its best start since beginning the 2003-04 season 12-1. The Buffaloes begin their Big 12 season on Wednesday against Missouri.

Daphanie Kennedy led Pepperdine (5-8) with 15 points. The Waves have lost six in a row, all on the road. The Waves open West Coast Conference play Jan. 10 at Gonzaga.

Trailing by 15 at the break, Kennedy hit a short jumper to get Pepperdine within 38-33 with 18:08 to play and then McFarland took over for Colorado.

McFarland muscled in four layups and Smith added a 3-pointer in a three-minute span for a 49-32 lead. Two free throws by Kennedy with 1:50 left got Pepperdine to within 61-53 with 1:50 left, before Smith's basket and two free throws put the game away for Colorado.

Pepperdine led only once when Kennedy buried a 3-pointer 39 seconds into the game. The Waves then promptly missed their next 14 shots.

While the Waves struggled, Colorado went on a 19-1 run. McFarland scored seven of the points to put the Buffaloes ahead 19-4.

Miranda Ayim's basket with 7:53 remaining capped an 11-0 run, but Smith came off the bench to hit three 3-pointers in the last seven minutes as Colorado pulled away to a 36-22 halftime lead.