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LAS VEGAS — The BYU women's basketball team is a long way away from where it was at this time last year going into the familiar confines of the Orleans Arena in Las Vegas.
As the Cougars headed into the 2015 West Coast Conference women's basketball tournament in Las Vegas, they were reeling with four losses in the final five games of the regular season. But they rattled off four straight wins to secure the tournament crown, including a 76-65 win over San Francisco in the title game, and grabbed the league's autobid to the NCAA Women's Tournament as a No. 5 seed.
That was only the beginning, said leading scorer Lexi Eaton Rydalch, who was named tournament MVP a year ago. And the Cougars aren't done yet.
"We loved winning that title, because it was such an uphill battle and really showed the character of our team," said Rydalch, now the league's all-time leading scorer and 2015-16 player of the year. "We want to do it again, and keep pushing and winning championships. "I think every time you win championships, it keeps springboarding your program. It's always something to build off. Past success creates future success, naturally."
BYU (24-5, 16-2 WCC) will take the top seed into the tournament's quarterfinals Friday, when the Cougars will face the winner of Thursday's first-round game between Pacific (13-16) and Pepperdine (6-23). Every game will be broadcast on BYUtv, with Tuesday's championship game on ESPNU.
That alone is a significant difference from last year, when the fifth-seeded Cougars won games over No. 4 Saint Mary's and regular season champion Gonzaga before downing the Dons in the tournament title game. BYU won't meet the No. 2 seed Gaels — who received the tournament's other first-round bye — until at least Tuesday's championship.
"It's a little more comfortable, just because we have that first-round bye compared to last year's five-seed," Rydalch admitted. "We're excited that we have more days to prepare, get focused and get refreshed physically. We're in a good spot."
BYU also has the No. 15 RPI in the nation, meaning the conference tournament isn't do-or-die for coach Jeff Judkins' Cougars, who have won 20 or more wins for seven-straight years. The 20-win mark is a significant winner of postseason placement — BYU has made the postseason every year during its seven-year run, in large part because of WCC coach of the year Judkins.
"He's been a great coach," point guard Kylie Maeda said of her coach. "His work ethic — he's more stressed out after we win because he doesn't want us to go backwards, but to keep improving. I think that's something I've learned from him."
This year's team has taken heavily from Rydalch, who ranks fifth in the nation with 24.1 points per game. But it also has WCC newcomer of the year Kalani Purcell, who ranks fifth in the NCAA with 12.5 rebounds and leads the WCC — as a power forward — with 4.8 assists per game.
But Judkins said one of the biggest differences in this year's squad is his bench, and being able to rely on consistent contributions from players like Cassie Broadhead, Kristine Nielson and Amanda Wayment.
"We've had probably the best bench effort since I've been here," Judkins said. "Our bench has come in and been really, really good this year. I hope we can do that in the tournament; you're going to get into foul trouble or have something, and to have depth and somebody to give you a spark is really important."
WCC Top Honors
Collinsworth, Rydalch named WCC players of the year
BYU point guard Kyle Collinsworth and BYU wing Lexi Eaton Rydalch were announced as the West Coast Conference men's and women's basketball players of the year, the WCC announced Tuesday.BYU also unlocked another scoring weapon in its final game of the year, a 73-55 loss at Gonzaga in which Maeda scored a career-high 19 points on 7-of-10 shooting, turning the game-manager point guard into another scoring threat.
"This loss could be a blessing for us, just to re-focus us and re-energize us," said Maeda, who averaged 5.6 points and 3.5 assists per game as a senior. "It gets us going for the tournament."
Still, there's no reason to risk missing out on the WCC's lone autobid to the NCAA Tournament.
"We're definitely not settling, even though there's a chance we can get in," Rydalch said. "We want to win the tournament, and leave no question in our minds or leave it up to chance."
