Late Spurt Lifts Utes Over Cougars

PROVO -- A 32-16 run late in the second half helped No. 13 Utah defeat the BYU women's basketball team 67-55, Friday night at the Marriott Center.

A 12-2 run to open the second half, including eight points from junior guard Stacy Jensen put BYU up 39-33 with 13:37 to go. The Utes, however, responded with a 22-9 run over the next eight minutes to take a 57-48 lead with 3:59 remaining. That was as close as the Cougars would get as Utah made six free throws and two jumpers down the stretch to secure the win. Jensen led BYU with 16 points while Caroline Beus added 11 points and seven rebounds, including five on the offensive end. Sophomore All-American Erin Thorn was held to a season-low four points on 2-of-7 shooting. Utah went 26-of-30 from the free throw line while BYU was 9-of-13. The Cougars shot 35.1 percent from the field for the game and had 20 turnovers while the Utes shot 43.2 percent with only 12 turnovers.

"We played some great spurts tonight, but need to cut down on the turnovers," BYU coach Trent Shippen said. "The girls battled hard but we played a good team. They (Utah) shot the ball well and hit some big shots that were momentum breakers."

A three pointer by Heather Cheesman put BYU up 16-8 with 10:43 to go in the first half, but Utah went on a 23-9 run over the next 10 minutes to lead 31-25 at halftime. The Utes had five players in double figures. Amy Ewert lead the way with 13 points while Whitney Sutak added 12, including two three pointers.

With the loss, the Cougars fall to 15-10 (7-5) and remain in third place in the conference. Utah improves to 23-2 (10-0) on the year. BYU will next play New Mexico, Thursday at 7 p.m., in the Marriott Center.