The University of Arizona women’s basketball team (10-4, 1-1 in Big 12) fell to its first conference loss 69-48 to the University of Utah on Tuesday, Dec. 31 at noon in McKale Center. Heading into this matchup, Arizona opened conference play with a 57-53 victory over BYU on Dec. 21.
Lauryn Swann led Arizona with 22 points, shooting 6-of-7 from 3-point range. Jada Williams followed with 11 points, two rebounds and three assists but it wouldn’t be enough for the Wildcats to overcome the Utes, who had three players land in double-digits.
Arizona’s shots failed to fall early in the first quarter, as Utah jumped out to a 6-0 lead to start the game. Sahnya Jah put up the Wildcats first 2 points with a jumper, followed with a driving layup hit by Williams to get within 4 points. After two minutes of missed shots from both teams, the Utes scored off a turnover to extend their lead to 6 points.
Utah collected 11 rebounds in the first quarter alone, holding Arizona to just 9-points. The Wildcats shot 4-of-15 from the field compared to the Utes’ impressive 7-of-12 shooting in the beginning period.
In the second quarter, Utah’s lead quickly swelled to 11-points after Gianna Kneepkens scored on the fast break. Soon after, the Wildcats went on a 3-0 scoring run capped off by a Skylar Jones layup that narrowed the lead to 20-15. Arizona’s defense couldn’t find an answer for Utah as they scored back-to-back 3-pointers, further extending the lead to 13 points with 4:48 remaining in the first half.
The Wildcats trailed the Utes 31-19 and shot just 31 percent (9-of-29) going into halftime. Despite Arizona’s offensive challenges, Williams led with 8 points, one rebound and one assist.
The Wildcats’ struggles continued in the third period as Arizona experienced multiple shooting errors, failing to convert its shots. The Utes came out strong to start the second half with a 9-0 scoring run, securing a healthy lead.
The Wildcats first made shot of the quarter came with 2:27 remaining in the period, after Swann made a second-chance 3-pointer to cut the lead to 42-22. Despite the efforts of trying to tame the Utes advantage, Arizona found itself down double-digits heading to the fourth quarter.
Utahs biggest lead was in the final quarter where the Utes led the Wildcats by 27. Although the Wildcats were unable to create a dent in the lead, Arizona continued to score with Montaya Dew hitting a 3-pointer, narrowing the deficit to 52-33.
In the end, Arizona could not mount a comeback, collapsing in its first Big 12 loss 69-48 against Utah. Utah out-rebounded Arizona 40-22, holding the Wildcats to shoot a collective 34.5 percent from the field.
Looking ahead
The Wildcats look to get back in the win column as they head on the road to face the University of Central Florida on Saturday, Jan. 4 at noon in Orlando, FL.
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