WOMENS BASKETBALL
Utah 94, UCLA 81
MATTHEW COLES
ASSOCIATED PRESS
SALT LAKE CITY - Kennady McQueen had a season-high 21 points, Dasia Young and Matyson Wilke each made four 3-pointers and No. 16 Utah upended No. 2 UCLA 94-81 in overtime.
Young and Wilke each had season highs of 16 points to overcome an off-game by their star Alissa Pili, who had 16 points on 4-of-15 shooting.
Utah (14-5, 4-3 Pac-12) had never defeated a team ranked this high and had never beat the Bruins (15-2, 4-2) three times in a row.
Gabriela Jaquez scored 21 points, Kiki Rice added 16 and Charisma Osborne had 14 for the Bruins, who were outscored 22-9 in overtime after a remarkable fourth-quarter comeback.
In overtime, Pili finally made her mark with a rebound putback and two free throws on consecutive possessions to put Utah up 83-76 with 2:01 remaining. UCLA, which was outrebounded for the first time all season (38-35), never got close after that.
Utah’s Ines Vieira, who had 12 points, made a driving layup to send the game to overtime after Camryn Brown made a free throw with four seconds remaining in regulation.
The Bruins clamped down in the fourth quarter, forcing five turnovers and 1-for-9 shooting before Wilke hit her fourth 3-pointer of the game to make it 70-64.
Jaquez, Rice and Brown made three shots in a row to give UCLA its first lead, 71-70, since the first half with 53.9 seconds left. The Bruins blocked Pili twice in the final minute of regulation.
BIG PICTURE
UCLA: With the height advantage they enjoy nearly every game, UCLA gave Pili problems but couldn’t cash in with many easy baskets on the offensive end. The Bruins defense couldn’t keep up as Utah generated wide open 3s with their drive-and-kick offense.
Utah: The Utes take the vast majority of their shots around the basket or beyond the 3-point line, so when the 3s (13 of 28) are falling Utah’s offense really hums. Perhaps the keys was Utah’s all-out hustle with swarming defense and bodies on the floor nearly every play.
January 22, 2024
