Cougars Host Santa Clara on Wednesday

PROVO, Utah — BYU women’s basketball (5-1, 1-0) is back in the Marriott Center to take on Santa Clara (5-2, 1-0) on Wednesday, Dec. 30, at 2 p.m. MST. The game will be broadcast live on BYUtv and on the BYUtv App.

Both teams are coming off wins over West Coast Conference opponents on Monday, as the Cougars defeated San Francisco 70-46 at home while the Broncos narrowly beat San Diego on the road, 51-49. Wednesday’s matchup will be the 22nd all-time between BYU and SCU, with the Cougars holding a 19-2 series lead.

BYU vs. Santa Clara Game Notes

ABOUT BYU (5-1, 1-0 WCC)

• The Cougars opened WCC play with a convincing 70-46 win over San Francisco on Monday to move to 5-1 on the season.
• Sophomore guard Shaylee Gonzales leads BYU in scoring (20.3 ppg) while sophomore forward Lauren Gustin (13.7 ppg) and senior guard Paisley Johnson Harding (12.8 ppg) are also averaging double figures in points.
• Gustin currently ranks 3rd in the country in rebounds per game (12.7), 5th in defensive rebounds per game (9.3) and 9th in double-doubles (4).
• Gonzales leads the WCC in scoring and is the 44th highest scorer in the nation.
• In assists, senior guard Maria Albiero leads the team with a 3.5 apg average while also scoring 5.3 ppg.
• Coming off the bench, senior guard Tegan Graham is averaging 6.7 ppg while sophomore guard Kaylee Smiler is scoring 4.3 ppg.
• With 332 career blocks, Sara Hamson is just nine away from passing her older sister, Jennifer, as No. 2 on BYU’s all-time career blocks list.
• As a team, the Cougars rank 19th in the country in free-throw percentage (.782) and 42nd in field-goal percentage (.462)

ABOUT SANTA CLARA (5-2, 1-0 WCC)

• The Broncos opened WCC play with a dramatic win over San Diego on the road to improve to 5-2 on the season.
• Senior forward Ashlyn Herlihy leads SCU in scoring (11.6 ppg) and rebounds (6.3 rpg).
• Junior guard Lindsey VanAllen is scoring 11.1 ppg while fellow junior guard Lexie Pritchard is posting a 9.0 ppg average.
• Sophomore guard Ashlee Maldonado is the Broncos’ assist leader (3.7 apg) while VanAllen leads the team in steals (2.4 spg).
• Santa Clara finished 8th in last season’s WCC regular season standings and lost in the second round of the conference tournament to Pacific. The Broncos were picked to finish 9th in this year’s Preseason WCC poll.
• Head coach Bill Carr is in his fifth season at the helm of the SCU program and has a 54-75 record with the team thus far.

SERIES HISTORY

• BYU leads the all-time series with SCU, 19-2
• The Cougars are 10-0 against the Broncos at home
• Last year, BYU swept the season series

UP NEXT

Following their matchup with SCU, the Cougars face a three-game road trip next week with contests against San Diego, Loyola Marymount and Pepperdine. BYU will first take on the Toreros on Monday, Jan. 4, at 6 p.m. PST. The game will be streamed live on the WCC Network.