PROVO, Utah—Morgan Bailey tied a career-high with 18 points to lead BYU women’s basketball to a 61-44 victory over Santa Clara Saturday at the Marriott Center.

"I thought the first half we played very good defense," head coach Jeff Judkins said. "We didn't score the ball very well but I thought our defense was very good. The second half we came out sluggish and weren't as sharp defensively. Morgan had another great game and I saw some very good things from the bench."

Bailey also tallied 13 rebounds to record her second straight double-double and fourth of the season. Kim Beeston contributed 12 points and Ashley Garfield hauled in 13 rebounds. Jennifer Hamson scored 6 points and had 8 rebounds.

The Cougars (16-4, 6-3) trailed 8-3 early behind two quick 3-pointers by Santa Clara (7-13, 3-6) but a 3-pointer from Beeston and a fast break layup by Kylie Maeda tied the game. A put back by Garfield gave the Cougars a 15-13 lead with nine minutes left in the half. Bailey scored three straight buckets and Beeston hit a three as part of a 25-4 run to extend the lead to 33-17 with one minute left in the half. Xojian Harry also had a three-point play during that span. Bailey had 14 points and eight rebounds in the half as the Cougars took a 33-19 lead into the break.

Highlights and Interviews

With 14 minutes left in the game, BYU scored seven straight to push the lead to 42-23 . After extending its lead to 21 at 47-28, Santa Clara went on a 9-2 run to cut the advantage to 14 points. A three from Ricki Radanovich and a layup by Jo Paine got Santa Clara to within 11, at 53-42 with five minutes to play, but that is as close as the Broncos would get.

Radanovish led the Broncos with 16 points. Paine contributed eight points and Marie Bertholdt had seven rebounds.

The Cougars return to action next Thursday, Jan. 30, when they travel to Moraga, Calif., to take on Saint Mary’s.

Postgame Notes
Team

The Cougars had just 10 turnovers, tying a season low.

BYU shot 32 percent from the field and held the Broncos to 26 percent shooting.

The Broncos outscored the Cougars with points from the bench, 28-11.

Santa Clara led by as many as five points with 14:48 left to go in the first half. BYU had its largest lead at 21 with 11:42 left in the second half.

Player

Morgan Bailey led all scorers in the first half with 14 points and eight rebounds. She finished the game with a double-double, tying her career-high 18 points and adding 13 rebounds.

Ashley Garfield finished the game grabbing 13 boards for the Cougars, her second-straight game in double digit rebounds. She also recorded three assists, a team-high in that category.

Kim Beeston was the only other Cougar to score in double figures, getting 12 points. It was her 14th game of the season and fourth straight scoring in double figures. 

With an impressive 81-47 home win over West Coast Conference foe San Francisco, the BYU women’s basketball team (15-4, 5-3) continues league play at home. The Cougar women host Santa Clara (7-12, 3-5) Saturday at 2 p.m. The game can be seen live on BYUtv.

About BYU
Senior center Jennifer Hamson is one of three Cougar players who are putting up double digits in scoring, averaging 17.4 points per game. She has scored in double figures in all but three games. Sophomore guard Lexi Eaton is averaging 15.8 points per game with teammate Kim Beeston rounding out the double-digit output, contributing 11.7 points per contest.

As a team, BYU is averaging 70.8 points per game and is holding opponents to 65.3 points. The Cougars have recorded more blocks than opponents in all but one game (at Gonzaga) and have dished out more assists in 15 of the 19 games played to date. They have also recorded more rebounds in 14 contests.

About Santa Clara
Santa Clara comes to Provo with a 7-12 record and a 3-5 mark in league action after losing at San Diego 79-55 Thursday.

Three Broncos are putting up double figures in scoring led by 15.3 points from Nici Gilday. She’s followed by Jo Paine who is tallying 10.7 points, with Ruta Zurauskyte contributing 10.7 points per game. Marie Berthold leads the team in rebounds pulling down 5.8 boards per contest. Santa Clara is shooting 42 percent from the field, 76 percent at the free throw line and is scoring 69.6 points per game.

Series History
BYU leads the series 6-1. When playing in the Marriott Center, Santa Clara is 0-3.

Last Meeting
In last year’s WCC campaign, the Cougar women recorded a sweep over the Broncos. They won 65-48 on Feb. 2 in Santa Clara and then picked up a 65-42 victory on Feb. 14 in Provo.

Up Next
After Saturday’s game against Santa Clara, BYU travels to northern California to battle league foes Saint Mary’s and Pacific on Jan. 30 and Feb. 1