Cougars Pull Out Double Overtime Win Against Aggies

PROVO -- Cold shooting in the second half did nothing to deter the BYU women’s basketball team as it came back to claim a double-overtime 61-60 win against Utah State on Saturday. With the win the Cougars improve to 7-2 on the season.

With 1.7 seconds remaining in regulation, Coriann Wood hit a three-point shot to tie the score 43-43 and send the game into overtime.

“The kid’s clutch,” said BYU head coach Jeff Judkins. “When we got in that huddle and drew up the play for her, you could tell she was very confident in taking that shot, and the team was confident she would make it.”

Cassie King led all Cougars with 14 points against USU, while Wood also scored in double-figures with 13. Shawnee Slade, Keilani Moeaki and Jazmine Foreman all recorded a team-high eight rebounds on the day.

“I’m really proud of this team,” said Judkins. “They showed a lot of heart and character tonight, not giving up. What this team did tonight is worth more than a blow out. They believed in each other and believed we could win.”

The Cougars jumped out to an early six-point lead at 12-6 thanks to back-to-back makes from King on BYU’s first possessions of the game. BYU totaled six rebounds and 6-of-10 shooting heading into the first media timeout.

Despite the Cougars’ tough defensive play, which forced several USU shot clock violations, the Aggies battled back to tie the score 12-12 with 11:40 remaining in the first half. Both teams traded baskets back-and-forth, tying the score four more times before the halftime break. A key defensive rebound by King resulted in a layup by Moeaki, helping secure a 24-22 lead as both teams headed into the locker room.

Held scoreless to begin the first nine minutes of the second half, the Cougars found themselves still found themselves leading 29-26 with 10:05 remaining in the game. A fast-break layup and three-point play by Mindy Nielson gave BYU its first points of the half, and was followed by the basket by King.

The Aggies jumped out to a six-point lead with 5:23 remaining in regulation, but four trips to the free throw line put the Cougars behind by three points with time for one last possession. Wood’s three-pointer with 1.7 seconds on the clock tied the score 43-43, sending the game into overtime. Wood’s make from behind-the-arc marked BYU’s first in the game.

In the first overtime, Nielson started things off for the Cougars, scoring two before the Aggies followed with a basket of their own. Free throws by both teams kept the score close, as the Cougars tied things up once again, 51-51, after King’s 2-for-2 trip to the line.

“We did a good job hitting the foul shot late in the game when we had to,” said Judkins.

The second overtime continued much like the first, with neither team building more than a one-possession lead. Foreman’s steal and layup put the Cougars up 59-57, while Wood’s two free throws with 7.8 seconds remaining on the clock sealed the win for BYU.

Up next the Cougars travel to take on Long Beach State on Dec. 20 at 5:30 PT.

Official Basketball Box Score
Utah State Aggies vs Brigham Young
12-13-08 3:00 PM at MARRIOTT CTR  BYU  PROVO UTAH
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VISITORS: Utah State Aggies 4-4
                          TOT-FG  3-PT         REBOUNDS
## Player Name            FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA OF DE TOT PF  TP  A TO BLK S MIN
50 JOHNSON, Nicole..... f  2-6    0-1    3-5    1  7  8   3   7  4  1  2  2  43
35 WHITEHEAD, Lydia.... c  3-6    0-0    3-4    1  5  6   5   9  0  3  0  0  22
04 SNELGRO, Danyelle... g  4-14   0-3    8-10   3  6  9   0  16  1  3  0  2  47
13 CODDINGTON, Alice... g  3-10   2-5    3-4    1  2  3   1  11  2  1  0  3  43
15 PARES, Ana.......... g  4-16   1-7    1-2    2  2  4   2  10  1  7  0  1  46
10 HOWARD, Stacey......    0-0    0-0    0-0    1  0  1   0   0  0  1  0  0   4
20 BURNS, Chelsea......    0-0    0-0    0-0    0  0  0   0   0  0  1  0  0   3
21 WHITE, Amber........    0-1    0-0    0-0    0  1  1   0   0  0  0  0  0  11
22 POPE, Shawnta.......    1-1    0-0    1-4    0  1  1   2   3  0  1  0  0   8
23 DIOP, Ndoumbe.......    2-2    0-0    0-0    0  1  1   5   4  0  0  0  1  21
42 DIOP, Banna.........    0-0    0-0    0-0    0  0  0   1   0  0  0  0  0   2
   TEAM................                         5  2  7
   Totals..............   19-56   3-16  19-29  14 27 41  19  60  8 18  2  9 250
TOTAL FG% 1st Half: 10-23 43.5%   2nd Half:  4-20 20.0%   OT:  5-13 38.5%   Game: 33.9%  DEADB
3-Pt. FG% 1st Half:  1-4  25.0%   2nd Half:  0-6   0.0%   OT:  2-6  33.3%   Game: 18.8%   REBS
F Throw % 1st Half:  1-2  50.0%   2nd Half: 13-20 65.0%   OT:  5-7  71.4%   Game: 65.5%    5
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HOME TEAM: Brigham Young 7-2
                          TOT-FG  3-PT         REBOUNDS
## Player Name            FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA OF DE TOT PF  TP  A TO BLK S MIN
32 SLADE, Shawnee...... f  3-11   0-6    2-4    4  4  8   1   8  0  2  1  0  45
45 MOEAKI, Keilani..... f  4-7    0-0    0-0    6  2  8   3   8  1  1  1  1  30
54 KING, Cassie........ c  3-6    0-0    8-8    3  1  4   4  14  0  3  0  0  30
03 FOREMAN, Jazmine.... g  3-16   0-7    2-2    2  6  8   3   8  2  0  0  3  44
22 NIELSON, Mindy...... g  3-13   0-7    1-1    1  6  7   3   7  7  5  1  2  43
01 JACKSON, Jenteal....    0-1    0-1    0-0    0  0  0   0   0  0  0  0  0   4
13 JUDKINS, Jaime......    0-0    0-0    0-0    0  0  0   0   0  0  0  0  0   4
14 HOSTETTER, Sarah R..    0-4    0-3    0-0    1  0  1   3   0  0  1  0  0   8
23 WOOD, Coriann.......    4-9    1-4    4-6    2  4  6   3  13  0  2  0  2  28
35 RILEY, Kristen......    0-3    0-1    3-4    1  1  2   1   3  0  2  1  0  14
55 MARKS, Megan........    0-1    0-1    0-0    0  0  0   1   0  0  0  0  0  0+
   TEAM................                         7  4 11
   Totals..............   20-71   1-30  20-25  27 28 55  22  61 10 16  4  8 250
TOTAL FG% 1st Half: 10-27 37.0%   2nd Half:  5-33 15.2%   OT:  5-11 45.5%   Game: 28.2%  DEADB
3-Pt. FG% 1st Half:  0-12  0.0%   2nd Half:  1-15  6.7%   OT:  0-3   0.0%   Game:  3.3%   REBS
F Throw % 1st Half:  4-4  100 %   2nd Half:  8-13 61.5%   OT:  8-8  100 %   Game: 80.0%    2
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Officials: JACK JONES, BRENDA PANTOJA, LAURA RAHE
Technical fouls: Utah State Aggies-None. Brigham Young-None.
Attendance: 604
Score by Periods                1st  2nd   OT  OT2   Total
Utah State Aggies.............   22   21    8    9  -   60
Brigham Young.................   24   19    8   10  -   61
OFFICIAL FINAL