Despite a late-game rally by Lamar, who went on a 19-2 run in the fourth quarter that cut a 25-point Utah lead down to just six, the Utes held on to beat the Cardinals 71-67 on Tuesday night. Utah led Lamar 65-40 through three quarters, when it finally took its foot off the gas pedal, only to have the scrappy Cardinals claw their way back into the game.
“I think we were playing not to lose rather than playing to win,” said head coach Lynne Roberts of her team’s near-collapse in the fourth quarter.
The Utes were forced to finish the game with Joeseti Fatuesi manning the middle as Emily Potter fouled out with just minutes to go — but not before Potter hit a career-high in points with 18 and registered a career-high in blocks with seven. Fatuesi stepped up in Potter’s absence by going 2-for-2 from the field and reeling in five boards.
Paige Crozon stepped up big again for Utah by doing all of the little things. She finished with eight points and eight rebounds and was integral to the Utah win, stretching the floor on offense, fighting for loose balls and imposing her size against the smaller Cardinal’s front court.
“I feel like I do a lot of screening, pass cuts, crashing the boards,” Crozon said.
Through the first three quarters the Utes looked like a team that had hit their stride and worked out some early-season kinks. Utah swung the ball side to side and racked up 17 assists for the game, 16 coming in the third quarter alone. Potter was dominating the post on her way to a career night.
Utah went with a two-three zone through the entirety of the game. While a lot of that was to thwart Lamar’s speedy ball-handlers, look for the Utes to keep utilizing the zone and funneling defenders into their rim protector in Potter for the remainder of the season.
As the Cardinals battled back late, Lamar guard Chastadie Barrs found herself at the free-throw line with a chance to cut the Utah lead to four. The Utah band stepped up and did its part, chanting “In your head!” as Barrs missed both free throws to ensure the Utah lead.
The Utes helped secure the victory by having a nearly perfect night from the free-throw line, going 21-for-23. This is all part of the new philosophy Roberts is bringing to Utah. At the end of each practice, Roberts lines her players up along the baseline and randomly selects a player to shoot two free throws.
“I always try to pick the kid that’s not trying to look at me, that’s being most dramatic about it,” Roberts said.
If the player makes them, the Utes get to go home for the day. But if she misses, it’s sprints for the entire team. The practice paid off for the Utes tonight in their near-perfect night from the line.
The Utes have also completely bought into Roberts’ run-and-gun style of play. As the final seconds of the third quarter wound down, Roberts had to shout from the bench, waving her arms, to remind her team to slow down and use the clock on the final possession.
Point guard Dani Rodriguez flashed Roberts a smile as she pulled back her sprint and set up the offense for the final possession of the third quarter.
Utah gelled on the defensive end, holding a fast-paced Lamar offense to just six assists through three quarters. Rodriguez led the defensive charge, grabbing a team-high four steals, and was backed up by Potter, who tallied seven blocks. Utah has the size and athleticism to be a really good defensive team in the Pac-12, and it proved that potential tonight by holding the Cardinals to just 30 percent shooting.
The Utes improve to 2-0 on the season and will host George Mason at the Huntsman Center this Friday at 7 p.m. MST.
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