Colorado senior guard Jaylyn Sherrod has been manifesting this moment for months. The Buffaloes play No. 1-seed in the Sweet 16 on Saturday for a second straight . A year ago, in the program's first appearance at that stage of the Tournament since 2003, the Hawkeyes prevailed 87-77 en route to the national championship game. Twelve months later, it will be repeat or revenge this weekend. But both teams entered the tournament with higher expectations than last March. received a No. 5 seed, up from No. 6, and Iowa entered with national title ambitions. Sherrod anticipated the heightened hopes by acknowledging before the postseason began that they are no longer under the radar outside of the Pac-12. "It's not about proving that we're good anymore," she told back in January. "Everybody knows we're good. We're not going to sneak up on anybody at this point in time. "It's about moving from being good to great. And how do you be great? You beat other greats. You just go out there and solidify who you really are as a ball club... you can only establish yourself as one of the greats by beating one of the greats." Sherrod has undoubtedly already established herself as a Buffaloes
basketball great. Arriving in Boulder as a three-star recruit out of Ramsay High School in Birmingham, , the team had not even made the tournament in six years. Five years later, she is one game away from an Elite 8 appearance, which would only be the third in program history. And her name is now all over the school's record books. Sherrod is the all-time leader in starts, second in games played and assists, and only the third player in program history with 1,000-plus points and 600-plus assists. A two-time All-PAC-12 selection and three-time All-Defensive team member, Sherrod also leads the way in the classroom. She is a three-time Academic Honor Roll recipient, the same number of degrees she has earned. After gaining an undergraduate degree in Sociology, Sherrod has achieved a Masters Degree in Organizational Leadership and will leave with an additional Masters in Criminal Justice. She was also named the conference Scholar-Athlete of the Year. On the court, the guard also sets the standard. Sherrod leads the Buffaloes in assists (4.9 on a joint-team-high 2.4 turnovers), minutes (27.3) and steals (2.2) while playing all 33 games and scoring a career-high 12.9 points per game. That earned her AP Honorable Mention All-American honors. But her impact is felt beyond the box score. “If I’m not the most energetic, most passionate player on the floor, I’m not doing my
Job,” said earlier this year. "I know that in terms of energy, the team goes as I go.” Sherrod's first tattoo exemplifies that: "Without struggle, there is no progress." Going from good to great by reaching the Elite Eight at Iowa's expense would be progress aplenty for
Colorado and only add to Sherrod's legacy in Boulder.