PROVO, Utah — BYU women’s basketball pulled out a gritty win to beat Westminster 69-61 in an exhibition at the Marriott Center on Tuesday. 

Final Box Score

"Our bigs worked really hard this off-season," BYU women's basketball head coach Jeff Judkins said. "Shalae [Salmon] was really active tonight, as was Jasmine [Moody]. That’s what's nice about our inside presence this year. Nice to get the win against a team that can shoot it." 

Shalae Salmon led the Cougar offense, adding 16 points on 60 percent shooting. Junior guards Paisley Johnson and Maria Albiero were key contributors as well, scoring 15 and 13 points apiece. Jasmine Moody also grabbed 10 rebounds.

The Cougars started hot from outside, going 4 of 6 from deep in the opening quarter. Senior guard Brenna Chase Drollinger made two-straight three-point shots while the team made 46.2 percent of its shots.

However, Westminster’s Sarah McGinley helped lead the Griffin attack, scoring 11 points of her own. The Griffins consistently got to the paint and attacked BYU’s defense, taking a 23-17 lead at the end of the first. 

The Cougars struggled to shoot the ball in the second quarter, going 4 of 14 from the field. Johnson and Albiero paced BYU’s offense, scoring seven points apiece by the end of the half. Center Sara Hamson also logged two blocks for the Cougars in the half. Westminster continued its hot shooting, going 3 of 6 from deep taking a 38-28 lead at the half.

BYU went on a run early in the third quarter behind three straight layups by Salmon to trim the lead to two. However, the Griffins responded with a 6-0 run of their own midway through the third to make it a 50-39 contest. BYU got into the bonus with a little over a minute remaining in the period with Hamson making three key free throws. Johnson drained a three in the final seconds to bring the score to 51-45 at the end of the third in favor of the visiting Westminster team.

The Cougars began the fourth quarter with a bang, scoring 10-straight points behind shots from Babalu Ugwu and Johnson. The Cougar defense created a turnover and Johnson pulled up from deep to give the team its first lead of the game, 53-51 since early in the first period.  

Albiero made a contested midrange shot to bring the lead to 55-51. Westminster battled back, tying the game at 56 with 4:35 left in regulation. 

Drollinger made a critical steal late and took it all the way to the hoop to make the lead 65-61 for BYU. Two more steals by Drollinger and Hamson sealed the game for BYU, finishing the night with their largest lead of the game, 69-61.

BYU returns to action on Saturday, Nov. 2, at 2 p.m. MDT at home in the Marriott Center hosting Antelope Valley in another exhibition contest. The game will be broadcast on the WCC Network.

Team Notes

• BYU took a 53-51 advantage after a Paisley Johnson 3 with 8:02 left in the fourth quarter, giving the team its first lead since being up 6-5 in the first quarter.
• Three different Cougars scored in double-figures as Shalae Salmon dropped 16, Paisley Johnson recorded 15 and Maria Albiero had 13.
• BYU shot 44.4 percent from the field, 40 percent from 3 and 65 percent from the free-throw line.
• The Cougar bench had 21 points in the win, compared to two for Westminster.
• BYU outnumbered the Griffins in total assists, 18 to 15, in blocks, four to one and in steals eight to four.

Player Notes

• Shalae Salmon scored a team-high 16 points on 6 of 10 shooting. She also added two assists and a rebound.
• Paisley Johnson was 4 of 5 from 3 on her way to posting 15 points, five rebounds and five assists.
• Maria Albiero had 13 points and five assists, while Brenna Chase Drollinger had nine points, six assists and a team-high four steals.
• Jasmine Moody led the way in rebounds with 10, six of which were defensive. She also had eight points.

PROVO, Utah — In preparation for the 2019-20 campaign, the BYU women’s basketball team will play two exhibition games on Tuesday and Saturday.

The Cougars host Westminster Oct. 29, at 7 p.m., and the University of Antelope Valley, Nov. 2, at 2 p.m. Both games will have a live online video stream on the WCC Network.

 ABOUT BYU

• BYU concluded the 2018-19 campaign with a 26-7 record, picking up the 12th 20+win season under Judkins. The victories were just two games shy of a career-best 28 wins.
• BYU advanced to the Second Round of the NCAA Championships for the fourth time in program history. It was the 13th appearance in the NCAA Championships for the Cougars and the third as a No. 7 seed. The invitation was the ninth under head coach Jeff Judkins.
• The Cougars received the WCC’s automatic bid into the NCAA’s after defeating Gonzaga 82-68 in the WCC             championship, recording their third tournament title since joining the conference.
• In the WCC, the team tallied a 15-3 record, finishing in second place
• With 393 total wins, coach Judkins enters the 2019-20 season as the all-time winningest men’s or women’s BYU basketball head coach
• The BYU team returns scoring leaders Paisley Johnson (14.5) & Brenna Chase Drollinger (12.8)
• Junior center Sara Hamson returns leading in rebounds (5.9) and blocks (2.8)
• Chase Drollinger leads in assists with 3.9 average and has the team’s best 3-point field goal percentage (.352)
• Senior Jasmine Moody returns with most playing experience (97 total games)

ABOUT WESTMINSTER

• Westminster College compiled a 21-9 record and went 17-5 in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference last season.
• The Griffins participated in the NCAA Division II basketball championships, losing 76-61 to Angelo State University in the NCAA South Central Regionals
• Westminster finished the season with an 11-3 home record and went 9-5 on the road.
• Head coach Shelley Jarrard is in her eighth at the helm of the Griffins women’s basketball program.

ABOUT UNIVERSITY OF ANTELOPE VALLEY

• Last season the team went 27-6 overall and 12-2 in the California Pacific Conference.
• Antelope Valley advanced to the NAIA Div. II Women’s Championship, falling 75-60 to Southeastern University.
• The Pioneers had a 14-2 home record last season and had an 8-2 mark on the road.
• Head coach Deon Price is in his third season with UAV.

UP NEXT FOR BYU

The women’s basketball team opens the 2019-20 campaign on the road, taking on Washington State, Saturday, Nov. 9, at 1 p.m.  PT.

The Cougars return home for their season opener against Texas A&M Kingsville on Thursday, Nov. 14, at 7 p.m.