No. 18 Utah turned in a Lynne Roberts special Thursday afternoon at the Huntsman Center, an effort that had their head coach smiling after an 82-67 victory over Washington State.
The Utes didn’t waste any time putting the Cougars in a big hole early, sprinting out to a 14-2 lead while making their first five shots, including four 3-pointers.
That start, combined with another strong stretch during the third quarter, gave Utah more than enough momentum to roll in a victory that kicks off their final home stand of the regular season.
“Obviously, we set the tone,” Roberts said. “I thought we came out with the right energy and you know, Washington State’s a good team, they’re an NCAA tournament team in my opinion. And we knew they weren’t going to just roll over and die. I thought we did a great job moving the ball again.
“... All in all, a great game. It’s hard to win by double-digits in this league.”
Kennady McQueen was the headliner on a day when five Utes scored in double-figures. The junior guard tied her career high with 22 points, and her coach said “she would have blown her career high out of the water” if McQueen hadn’t been pulled early with the game well in hand.
McQueen made 9 of 13 shots and hit 4 of 6 3-pointers, while adding three rebounds and three assists.
“I thought our ball movement was awesome, which is why I had so many open shots. I felt like just when we move the ball like that, that’s Utah basketball when it’s just going to end up in the right person’s hand for the right shot.”
— Utah guard Kennady McQueen
Roberts praised McQueen’s efforts on both ends, including her defense on ball screens, a point of focus for Utah against Washington State.
“Kennedy again, 9 for 13 (shooting), no turnovers, played her tail off on defense, just a great game for her,” Roberts said.
One of her biggest stretches of the day came just before halftime, when McQueen went on a 5-0 run — including her third 3-pointer of the day and a driving layup — to extend Utah’s lead to 45-34 at halftime.
Washington State had managed to trim the Utes’ lead to six just before that.
Utah consistently was able to drive to the lane against the Cougars, and as a result, the Utes finished the game shooting 54.1% from the floor while recording assists on 25 of their 33 made field goals.
Utah made 11 of 25 3-pointers as well — in addition to McQueen’s four from long range, Alissa Pili added three and Ines Vieira made two.
Pili, who scored eight of Utah’s first 14 points in that early stretch, finished with 21 points while adding 12 rebounds, three assists and two steals as Washington State struggled to keep her contained.
Roberts lauded the team effort she saw from the Utes, as Vieira (13 points), Lani White (11) and Dasia Young (10) also finished in double-figures.
“When you have Alissa Pili owning the paint like that, it makes guards’ jobs easier. She did a great job of finding the open man,” McQueen said.
“I thought our ball movement was awesome, which is why I had so many open shots. I felt like just when we move the ball like that, that’s Utah basketball when it’s just going to end up in the right person’s hand for the right shot.”
The Cougars, after a lethargic first quarter that saw them fall behind 25-10, made it more interesting in the second period, outscoring the Utes 14-10 in the quarter while shooting 50% from the floor.
McQueen’s half-ending spurt, though, helped steer the momentum back in Utah’s favor.
Washington State started the second half making four of its first five shots, but Utah created some separation with an 11-0 run and held the Cougars to 1 of 8 shooting to end the quarter.
The Utes, as a result, took a 22-point lead into the final period.
Washington State (17-13, 6-11 Pac-12) entered the game squarely on the NCAA bubble, but Utah didn’t allow the visitors much chance to spring a resume-building upset.
The Cougars never led and trailed by as many as 26 points as the Utes (21-8, 11-6 Pac-12) kept themselves in contention for a top 4 seed at next week’s Pac-12 tournament, while ensuring Utah will be no worse than the No. 6 seed.
The win sets up an intriguing final day of the regular season, when Utah will host Washington on Saturday (noon, Pac-12 Washington) with hopes of, with some help, earning a first-round bye in the Pac-12 tournament.
Other games to watch Thursday include No. 4 Stanford hosting No. 11 Oregon State — a Cardinal victory would clinch the Pac-12 regular-season championship for the Cardinal.
No. 7 USC also visits Arizona, No. 13 Colorado hosts Washington and No. 8 UCLA plays at Arizona State in games that could have a major impact on the final league standings and the subsequent conference tournament.
“It’s crunch time and every game matters, especially these last two at home, just to get us in the best position for the future,” Pili said. “I think that’s the most important thing right now.”