PROVO — Hanna Zavecz scored a career-high 32 points to lead Wyoming past BYU 74-63 Thursday evening in the Marriott Center.
"We got outplayed tonight in probably every part of the game," BYU coach Jeff Judkins said. "I think they outhustled us. They wanted it more than us. It was an uphill battle from the start."
Judkins also said that Wyoming did a great job of executing its game plan. He said they were able to use a majority of the shot clock, which took his team out of the fast-paced game it wanted to play.
BYU forward Ambrosia Anderson said that it is hard to guard a player like Zavecz because she is so versatile.
"We haven't faced anyone like her," Anderson said of Zavecz. "She can hit shots from the outside and down low, and she can beat people off the dribble."
Zavecz's career night led three Cowgirls in double-figure scoring in the MWC opener for both teams. Also scoring in double figures for Wyoming were Erin Hicks and Ashley Elliott.
The Cowgirls held the Cougars to a paltry 32.3-percent shooting in the first half while building a 32-26 lead, but BYU opened the second half on a hot streak.
Behind the shooting of Danielle Cheesman and Julie Sullivan, the Cougars pulled within one-point at 39-38 with just over 17 minutes left in the game. But Wyoming was just toying with the Cougars.
Sullivan led a trio of Cougars in double figures, scoring a team-high 16 points, followed by Anderson with 14 and Cheesman with 12.
Following the loss, BYU falls to 9-5 on the season (0-1 in the MWC). Next up for the Cougars is a game Saturday at 4 p.m. against Colorado State.
UTAH STATE 67, PACIFIC 48: At Logan, Brittany Tressler scored a career-high 22 points to lead Utah State to a 67-48 victory against Pacific. The 19-point victory was its largest since beating New Mexico State 82-62 in 1985. With the win, USU improved to 7-6 overall and 2-2 in Big West Conference play. Pacific fell to 4-8 and 2-3. USU has now won three of its last four games and its seven wins are two more than the Aggies had all of last season. Utah State will host Cal State Northridge on Saturday at 7 p.m.
WEBER ST. 76, N. ARIZONA 68: At Ogden, Weber State held off the Northern Arizona Lumberjacks and pulled out a 76-68 win Thursday night in Ogden in the Big Sky Conference women's basketball opener for both teams.
The Wildcats jumped out to a 8-0 lead early on but the Lumberjacks did not quit. The Wildcats took a 29-26 lead at halftime. The second half was a battle of the boards and the foul line. There were 33 fouls called on both teams in the second half. The win is the fourth straight for Weber State who improves to 10-4 overall and 1-0 in Big Sky action. The Wildcats will stay home Saturday for another Big Sky Conference game, hosting Sacramento State at 7 p.m.