This week, Utah’s women’s basketball team traveled to Oklahoma State and lost 73-55, before heading back home and losing a hard-fought game to BYU 86-74. Over the last 10 Big 12 games, the Utes are 5-5, with a grueling schedule that included multiple NCAA tournament teams. Over the last five games, they are 1-4.
The Big 12 is a very competitive women’s basketball conference, and it will send anywhere from 5-9 teams to the NCAA Tournament this season.
Utah head coach Gavin Petersen on being in the NCAA tournament bubble: “Nothing changes from our program’s perspective, and the expectations of nothing but their best and focus, which is something they have shown all year long. They are a resilient group, and we will go to Boulder, try to go 1-0. At this point, let’s play our way into the tournament.”
On the brutal Big 12 schedule: “I think the coaching and the teams are no joke, and I think the Big 12 is one of the best conferences in the country, hands down, from top to bottom. Just look at the records, we are beating up on each other,” Petersen said.
If the Lady Runnin’ Utes manage to string together four to five more wins (two regular season, at least three in the Big 12 Tournament), they will have a very strong resume to make the tournament. In a lot of ways, the Utes control their own destiny. Consecutive losses to Oklahoma State and rival BYU hurt the Utes, but it is not a death sentence for the Utes’ chances. Wins over ranked TCU and West Virginia are big positives on their resume, but losing both matchups to BYU, twice to Arizona State, and non-conference losses to UConn, Syracuse and Washington were big missed opportunities to help Utah’s case.
Game 1: Oklahoma State
The Utes struggled to get going offensively, even with freshman guard LA Sneed scoring the first five points of the game by herself. Oklahoma State played great defense all game, holding Utah to 17 of 44 (39%) from the field and 6 of 18 from 3-point range. Utah’s offense in wins has been heavily reliant on three-point volume and efficiency. When the Utes shoot a lot of shots from behind the arc and make 10 plus shots, they win. Oklahoma State was able to force 24 turnovers and scored 26 points off those turnovers.
Senior guard Maty Wilke and senior forward Samantha Crispe tied for the team lead with 10 points each, the only two Utes to score in double digits. Crispe and Wilke both hit two three-pointers, hitting four out of the team’s total six. Senior guard and leading scorer Lani White had an uncharacteristically quiet game, only scoring seven points. Sophomore guard Brooke Walker added eight points and four rebounds off the bench. Utah made a couple of scoring runs, but this game was not particularly competitive for any stretch. Oklahoma State controlled the scoreboard and the pace of the game for four quarters to win 73-55.
Game 2: BYU
Once again, BYU held Utah to 19/57 from the field and 8/28 from three. Over the last five games, the Utes’ offense has grown stagnant and inefficient as the grind of the Big 12 schedule has worn them down, losing four games and only winning one. The pattern that emerged during that stretch has been poor shooting from the field and behind the arc. This game was closer than the Oklahoma State game, but BYU again controlled the pace and scoreboard of the game. White scored 20 points, Wilke scored 13, but BYU’s sophomore guard Delaney Gibb dropped 37 points on 13/21 shooting to lead the Cougars past the Utes for the second time this season. Before their matchups this year, the Utes had won every game since 2021. The Utes lost this game because BYU hit their shots and Utah couldn’t. The Cougars shot 54% from the field and 46% from three. The Utes managed to keep the game close at the free-throw line, hitting 28/32.
The Lady Runnin’ Utes close out the regular season this week at Colorado on Feb. 24 and versus Arizona at home on Senior Night Feb. 28. Depending on how their last two games go, they will be seeded and compete in the Big 12 Tournament starting March 4 and ending March 8.
