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(Press Release)PROVO, Utah - A strong second half propelled the Utah women's basketball team to a 63-55 victory over Brigham Young on Wednesday, Jan. 28.
Morgan Warburton led Utah with 17 points - including 13 in the second half. Katie King had her fourth double-double of the season with 16 points and 13 rebounds. Kalee Whipple was also in double figure scoring with 10 rebounds and had two steals. Halie Sawyer had three blocks.
Although BYU took a six-point lead in the first few minutes of the game before King scored the Utes first basket at the 16:41 mark, Utah quickly caught up and the two teams battled through the first half to a 27-27 tie. The Utes scored the final five points of the first half to carry the momentum into the locker room. Included was two points from Whipple from the free-throw line after getting fouled following a steal with seconds remaining.
The Utes opened the second half with a 10-0 run and extended into a 17-6 surge to take a 44-33 lead with 13:12 remaining - their largest lead of the game. Warburton had six points of the Utah's first 10, while King also had six points during the drive.
BYU continued to battle down the stretch. With Utah up 58-48 with three minutes remaining, the Cougars went on a 7-0 run that was capped by a layup from Keilani Moeaki to cut the lead to three with 44 seconds left, 58-55. However, The Utes scored the final five points of the game - including a steal and layup from Janita Badon with 12 seconds left - to pull ahead for the 63-55 victory.
Deanne Stevenson played for the first time since Utah's season-opening win against Jackson State, scoring two points with a rebound.
The Utes have won 22 straight regular season Mountain West Conference contests.
Utah continues to lead in the Deseret First Duel rivalry series, holding a 26-6 lead. The Utes earned five points with the win and also have victories in men's basketball, football and volleyball (2).
The Utes return to action on Sunday, Feb. 1, against New Mexico at Noon. The Lobos will be looking to tie with Utah for first-place in the conference with a win. The game will be televised live on The Mtn.
(Courtesy University of Utah Athletic Department)
