In its third game of its season and second road contest of the year, the University of Utah women’s basketball team (2-1) captured a win against in-state opponent Weber State on Friday night, 85-58.
Thanks to a number of key shots by a handful of Utes and a strong team effort, Utah found success. This win is another confidence builder for the team as it continues its preseason play, gearing up for Pac-12 action. The matchup was an opportunity for Utah to exercise patience and control over its play. Head coach Lynne Roberts was pleased with the outcome of the game because she knew that Weber State would come out ready to compete.
“[Weber State] played with a unique defense where they were sagging,” Roberts said. “So it was tempting to not shoot every time we were open.”
Utah played 10 of its players on the court. The bench brought their game, and it contributed in big ways to the win. The starters also put in work. The top scorer of the night was Megan Huff, who contributed 20 points to the win. Huff was one of five players to score double digits. Along with her were starters Erika Bean and Tilar Clark, as well as Daneesha Provo and Tanaeya BoClair who came off the bench.
Bean had a personal record-setting night with 15 points scored and Provo was close behind with 13. Additionally, Clark and BoClair contributed a combined 22 points to help the Utes to their victory.
“I think our bench was key for us tonight because we wanted to come out and play up tempo and get after it a little bit,” Roberts said. “You have to have depth to be able to do that and the bench has to be able to produce.”
Roberts was especially pleased with the efforts from both Provo and BoClair when it came to their shooting and the way that they were able to show consistency, despite coming off of the bench.
Although they had an early lead through the beginning of the first quarter, the Wildcats could not keep up with the power Utah was bringing. The Utes pushed through the second quarter and ended the half with a 42-29 lead after Huff put up six points, and Bean had three successful 3-pointers.
To start off the second half, Clark chipped in back-to-back 3-pointers. The Wildcats went scoreless for most of the third quarter as the Utes continued to add up the points. They closed the quarter with a 26-point edge.
Utah maintained a steady lead over the Wildcats, and even though they allowed them to score points here and there, the Utes didn’t let that overrun them.
Roberts complimented the team’s overall integrity and performance throughout the entire game.
“We shot the ball well,” Roberts said. “The bench came out and played well.”
The team will return home on Monday, Nov. 20 against Purdue. The game will get underway at 7 p.m. inside the Huntsman Center.
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