Cougars fall 70-52 to No. 23 Cal

PROVO, Utah – Despite a halftime lead, BYU women’s basketball fell to No. 23 Cal, 70-52 Tuesday in the Marriott Center.

BYU vs. Cal Final Box Score

“I thought we played fairly well,” BYU head coach Jeff Judkins said. “We played a great first half. The girls did what we worked hard on and executed very well. The second half we came out and just weren’t quite as sharp. Defensively, we gave them baskets early and then we fought back and got it down to four points. Then we made some mistakes offensively that ended up getting them baskets down at the other end, but I’m happy with what we did. We can build on the positive part of it and I think this team can learn from this loss.”

Paisley Johnson shot 5 of 10 from the field leading the Cougars with 14 points and seven rebounds while also earning a game-high four steals. Shaylee Gonzales contributed 13 points and five rebounds of her own. Brenna Chase dished out five assists and added eight points.

Maria Albiero scored the first points of the game on a fast-break jumper giving BYU the 2-0 lead. Cal answered with a seven-point run to take a 7-2 lead. Malli Valgardson was first off the bench for the Cougars and knocked down a 3-point shot to close the gap before Johnson evened the score at 7-all with a step-back jumper. Gonzales closed out the quarter with five-straight points, including a 3-pointer from the wing with less than a second left on the clock to take a 14-10 lead at the end of the first period.

The Cougars extended their lead to 16-10 to start the second period with a layup from Jasmine Moody. The Bears responded with back-to-back makes from behind the arc to tie the score at 16. Cal claimed a brief 21-18 lead at the 4:39 mark before Gonzales hit her second shot from deep to tie it back up. Kianna Smith recorded her third 3-pointer of the half for the Bears on the ensuing possession to reclaim the lead 24-21. The Cougars took the lead 25-24 at the half after a deflected pass from Chase made it to Moody under the basket with 18 seconds left on the clock.

Cal started the second half with a 12-2 run to take a nine-point lead, 36-27, four minutes into the period. Johnson stopped the bleeding after getting fouled on a made basket in the paint and making her free throw. Chase hit a 3-pointer from the top of the arc to close the lead to 38-34. The two teams traded baskets with Johnson and Shalae Salmon scoring for BYU. Chase knocked down her second shot of the period from downtown to keep the score within four points, 45-41. The Cougars trailed the Bears 46-41 at the end of the third period after a Bears’ free throw.

Gonzales scored a quick jumper in BYU’s first possession of the fourth period to bring the Cougars within three points, 46-43. After a Cal 3-point make, Moody scored a layup in the post and Johnson hit a 3-pointer to bring the score within one point, 49-48. The Bears extended their lead to six points before Chase capitalized off an offensive rebound to keep the score within four points, 54-50, with 5:39 on the clock. Cal exploded for a 10-point run to take the lead, 64-50, with 2:21 left in the game. The Cougars tried to start a run of their own after Gonzales stole the ball and sprinted for a layup, but the Bears quickly quenched any hope of a comeback, scoring the last six points of the game and win 70-52.

With the loss, BYU goes to 1-1 on the season and concludes its short homestand against Eastern Washington on Saturday, Nov. 17, at 1 p.m. MDT at the Marriott Center. The game will be broadcast on theW.tv.

Postgame Notes

First Quarter

• The Cougars took their first lead with a minute left in the first quarter off a Gonzales jumper

• Gonzales hit a buzzer-beating three as part of a BYU 7-0 run to go up 14-10 after one quarter

• BYU held Cal scoreless the final two minutes of the quarter, Golden Bears shot just 3 for 20 in the quarter

• Valgardson scored her first BYU points with a 3-pointer

Second Quarter

• Gonzales ended a five-minute long scoring drought with her second three to tie it at 21 with 1:30 left in the half

• A putback from Moody gave BYU the lead at the half, 25-24

• Johnson had six points and six rebounds in the first half to go along with two steals

• Valgardson had five points and two blocks in the first half

• Gonzales led all BYU scorers with eight points with two 3-pointers

Third Quarter

• Cal reclaimed the lead with a 4-0 run to open the second half

• Golden Bears stayed on a 10-2 run to force a BYU timeout three minutes in, 34-27

• Chase got on the board with a three to cut the lead to four, 38-34, with 4:30 left in the third quarter

• Johnson reached double-digits for the second-consecutive game with 3:37 left in the third quarter with 11 points

• Johnson had four steals through three quarters

Fourth Quarter

• Gonzales hit double figures on the first possession of the fourth quarter with 11, her second-consecutive game in double-digit scoring

• Johnson hit her first three of the game three minutes into the final period to bring BYU within one

• Salmon fouled out with 5:57 left in the game

• Gonzales got a steal and layup to give the Cougars their first bucket in more than four minutes with under two minutes to go, but BYU made just one of its final eight shots to fall 70-52

• BYU’s defense forced 18 turnovers from the Golden Bears, a new season high