PROVO — The BYU women’s basketball team was as cold as the wintry weather Saturday afternoon in Provo.

And then, suddenly, they weren’t.

Cassie Broadhead continued her dazzling scoring pace with 23 points and four assists, while Kalani Purcell supplied 10 points, 10 assists and eight rebounds as the Cougars picked up a 68-50 win over Pacific in the Marriott Center.

“Coaches really emphasized bringing out more energy,” Purcell said. “It felt pretty dead to me, and I think everybody took that personally.”

Why the lack of energy? Excuse or not, the Cougars’ return flight after Thursday night’s win at Pepperdine was delayed nearly three hours. They didn’t get back to Provo until after 5 p.m. Friday evening, and didn’t practice until shootaround and film study on Saturday morning.

“I thought we looked a little tired, but we did a good job of fighting through it,” said BYU coach Jeff Judkins, who gave his team the option for a free night — and it paid off.

“Traveling back and forth every week is hard on our bodies,” Broadhead said. “But we had yesterday off and I think that really helped. This team is really good at coming out on the second game of the week. We have the ability to focus and re-energize, and I think we play a lot better as a team.”

By the middle of the second quarter, the physical aspects of extended travel were healed.

After failing to score over a 10-minute stretch that spanned the first and second quarter, Kristine Nielson drained her third 3-pointer of the first half, the Cougars (12-7, 6-2 WCC) went on a 14-2 run, and never looked back in holding on to a share of the lead in the West Coast Conference.

Nielson hit back-to-back 3-pointers to cap an 8-0 run in the first quarter and give BYU a 12-4 lead with 5:05 left in the opening stanza.

It was the last shot the sluggish Cougars would get in the quarter, and Pacific (8-11, 4-4 WCC) took a 13-12 lead on Ameela Li’s buzzer-beating 3-pointer.

BYU made just four of its first 17 shots before waking up midway through the second quarter.

Both teams combined for one shot from the field until Nielson stepped back and swished a triple with 5:42 to go until halftime.

“Fuller came on in the first half, and she looked like she was going to have one of those games,” Judkins said. “I pulled her out, and got her out of rhythm. That’s probably my fault.”

Makenzi Pulsipher converted a pair of turnovers into easy buckets on the ensuing pair of possessions, and Amanda Wayment hit back-to-back shots, including a three-point play that capped BYU’s 14-2 run en route to a 28-19 halftime advantage.

“We had better ball movement toward the end of the second quarter, and in the first bit of the game, we were all just trying to get the feel of the game,” Purcell said. “Being able to hit shots in the first half transitioned into ball movement in the second half.”

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Cassie Broadhead poured in a career-high 30 points and seven rebounds to help BYU to an 81-63 win over San Diego and retain a share of first place in the West Coast Conference.

Even when the Cougars had trouble scoring, they kept the Tigers at bay with defense. BYU forced 18 steals, including four each from Purcell and Pulsipher, while Pacific only led 3:34 of game time.

“We were able to help each other,” Purcell said of the team’s defense. “From the travel, we were pretty tired and they were able to drive on us quite a bit. Being able to help each other and get in the right spots really picked it up for us.”

After the break, BYU’s usual suspects found their shot. Broadhead scored nine points in the third quarter, including a scoop shot to cap a 9-2 run with 4:21 left and a buzzer-beater to end the quarter to put BYU up 48-31.

The junior from Glenville, New York, was assessed a technical foul over frustration near midcourt in the third quarter. Broadhead smacked a nearby scorer’s table, listened to the whistle — and then went 6-for-6 from the field in the second half.

“I think I play really good when I’m mad,” she said. “I may have looked calm, but I was boiling inside.

“That moment for me sparked it. I was ready to do this.”

Purcell dished to Broadhead for a 3-pointer with 2:13 left on the clock for the New Zealander’s 10th assist, and the Cougars took a 66-44 lead into the final two minutes.

It was her final play of the game that led fittingly to her 11th double-double of the season.

“Kalani is Kalani,” Judkins said, before adding, “And Cassie … what do you say? She’s the most consistent shooter on the team, and handled herself well. She hit some big threes when she was open. That’s the key to life.”

BYU hosts Santa Clara next Thursday in the Marriott Center.

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