Completed Event: Women's Basketball at Eastern Kentucky on March 19, 2026 , Loss , 58, to, 72
Final Score
Women's Basketball
58
at Eastern Kentucky
72
The University of Utah Athletics
Utes Finish Home Portion of WAC Schedule
6/21/1999 12:00 AM | Women's Basketball
February 17, 1999
Game #23
Utah Utes (18-4, 9-1 WAC) vs. San Jose State Spartans (2-21, 0-10 WAC)
Feb. 18 Jon M. Huntsman Center Salt Lake City 7:00 p.m.
Game #24
Utah Utes (18-4, 9-1 WAC) vs. Fresno State Bulldogs (8-15, 3-7 WAC)
Feb. 20 Jon M. Huntsman Center Salt Lake City 3:00 p.m.
UTAH PROBABLE LINE-UP:
Pos. No. Name Ht. Yr. Hometown Statistics F 21 Kristina Andersen 6-1 So. Eugene, Ore. 7.2 ppg, 5.2 rpg F 32 Lori Red 5-11 So. Provo, Utah 10.8 ppg, 4.6 rpg, 2.5 apg C 44 Kristi Rose 6-4 Jr. Palmdale, Calif. 7.9 ppg, 5.0 rpg, 1.4 bpg G 14 Erin Gibbons 5-9 Fr. Salmon Arm, B.C. 11.0 ppg, 2.1 rpg, 2.5 apg or 24 Amy Ewert 6-0 So. Vancouver, B.C. 2.8 ppg, 2.0 rpg G 22 Tiana Fuertes 5-3 Jr. Honolulu, Hawaii 6.9 ppg, 2.8 rpg, 5.0 apgOFF THE BENCH:
Pos. No. Name Ht. Yr. Hometown Statistics G 11 Karie Allen 5-7 Jr. Bountiful, Utah 0.4 ppg, 0.3 rpg F 13 Katherine McColl 6-0 Fr. Hamilton, Ontario 5.7 ppg, 4.0 rpg F 15 Lindsay Sodja 6-1 So. Taylorsville, Utah 3.4 ppg, 1.6 rpg F/G 25 Lindsay Herbert 5-11 Fr. Coeur d'Alene, Idaho 1.8 ppg, 1.4 rpg G 30 Janna Whitman 5-10 Jr. Magna, Utah 0.6 ppg, 0.3 rpg
GAME DATA: The Utah Utes (18-4, 9-1 WAC) play their final two home games of the season. Utah hosts the San Jose State Spartans (2-21, 0-10 WAC) on Thursday at 7:00 p.m. and the Fresno State Bulldogs (8-15, 3-7 WAC) on Saturday at 3:00 p.m. in the Jon M. Huntsman Center (15,000).
A QUICK LOOK AT UTAH: The Utes are 18-4 overall and in sole possession of first place in Western Athletic Conference Pacific Division with a 9-1 record. Utah swept its road trip to San Diego State and Hawaii last week, defeating the Aztecs, 64-42, on Thursday night in San Diego and the Rainbow Wahine, 46-44, on Saturday night in Honolulu. Those two wins extended Utah's season-best winning streak to nine games.
Three Utes are averaging double figures in scoring. Freshman 5-9 guard Erin Gibbons, who has played the last three games off the bench after starting 16 games this season, leads the team in scoring (11.0 ppg). Gibbons also ranks seventh in the conference in three-point field goal percentage (37.1) and third in three pointers per game (2.0). Sophomore 5-11 forward Lori Red is the team's second-leading scorer (10.8 ppg). Both Gibbons and Red are averaging 2.5 assists per game. Freshman 6-2 forward/center Lauren Beckman, despite playing off the bench, is third on the team in scoring (10.3 ppg). She also leads the WAC in blocked shots (1.9 bpg) and ranks 15th in rebounding (6.6 rpg), leading the Utes in both categories. Junior 6-4 center Kristi Rose, who is averaging 7.9 points and 5.0 boards per game, ranks fourth in the league in blocked shots (1.4 bpg). Junior 5-3 point guard Tiana Fuertes is third in the WAC in assists (5.0 apg). Sophomore 6-1 forward Kristina Andersen is second on the team in rebounding (5.0 rpg) and fifth in scoring (7.3 ppg).
Utah has outscored its opposition this season by an average of 12.3 points a game, ranking fifth in the WAC in scoring (67.8 ppg) and first in scoring defense (55.5 ppg). Utah ranks first in the league in rebound margin with a 39.5 to 33.6 advantage per game. The Utes are shooting 45.3 percent from the field, 35.0 percent from behind the arc and 68.6 percent from the free throw line. Head coach Elaine Elliott has utilized a deep bench with 10 players averaging at least 8.8 minutes a game.
ON RADIO: AM-700 KWLW in Salt Lake City will carry the Fresno State game live, beginning with the pre-game show at 2:45 p.m. leading up to tip-off. Brad Stone or Mike Lageschulte (play-by-play) and Reggie Wright-Jewkes (analyst) call the action. The game will also be broadcast live on the internet. The address is http://www.broadcast.com/sports/ncaa/Utah/WomensBasketball. A link is also provided from Utah's internet home page at www.UtahUtes.com.
IN THE POLLS: Utah received nine votes to rank 31st in the USA Today/ESPN Poll released on Monday. The Utes did not garner any votes in the A.P. Poll.
NEXT WEEK: The Utes hit the road for their final games of the regular season. Utah faces UTEP on Thursday at 6:00 p.m. in El Paso, Texas, and New Mexico on Saturday at 7:00 p.m. in Albuquerque, N.M.
UTAH VS. SAN JOSE STATE PREVIEW
SCOUTING SAN JOSE STATE: The Spartans are 2-21 overall and in eighth place in the Western Athletic Conference Pacific Division with an 0-10 record. San Jose State has also lost all seven road games this season.
Senior 6-0 forward/center Ayana Smith leads the team in scoring with an average of 10.1 points per game. Junior 5-7 guard Megan Gluhan is second on the team in scoring (9.4 ppg), and ranks fifth in the WAC in three-point field goal percentage (38.6) and eighth in three-point field goals per game (1.7). Gluhan also leads the Spartans in assists (2.8 apg). Freshman 6-0 forward Dafina Dailey ranks seventh in the WAC in rebounding (7.5 rpg) and also averages 6.5 points per game. Freshman 5-7 guard Rachel Johnson ranks 19th in the conference in steals (2.2 spg) and is third on the team in scoring (7.8 ppg).
San Jose State ranks 16th in the WAC in scoring (47.2 ppg), 10th in scoring defense (71.9 ppg) and 13th in rebound margin with a disadvantage of 40.3 to 32.3 boards per game.
SAN JOSE STATE HEAD COACH KAREN SMITH... has a 49-137 career record in her seventh season with the Spartans. Smith played for four years at California and was a second-team All-American in 1984. Smith was an assistant coach at Cal for eight seasons before taking over the program at SJSU.
SERIES NOTES: Utah and San Jose State meet for the sixth time tonight. The Utes lead the series 3-2, winning three straight. Utah took the first meeting this season, the first between the two schools as conference foes, winning 74-50 on Jan. 21 in San Jose State. Utah won the only previous game played in Salt Lake City, 90-45, on Dec. 2, 1988. Elaine Elliott is 3-0 against San Jose State. Karen Smith is 0-1 against Utah.
LAST MEETING: Kristina Andersen scored a career-high 17 points and equaled a career-best mark with nine rebounds to lead Utah to a 74-50 win over San Jose State at The Events Center in San Jose, Calif., on Jan. 21. Andersen shot 5-for-11 from the field to lead three Utes in double figures. She also pulled down six offensive boards in 27 minutes. Erin Gibbons came off the bench to make 4-of-7 three-pointers and score 16 points. Lauren Beckman, also coming off the bench, made 4-of-6 field goals and got 10 points. Ayana Smith led San Jose State with 14 points and five boards.
The Utes shot nearly 50 percent from the field and 40 percent from three-point range in the second half until making just one field goal in the final 5:23. Utah shot 39.3 percent from the field for the game and made 10-of-27 three-pointers, including 6-of-13 in the first half. The Utes had a 12 to 21 advantage in turnovers and a 40 to 33 edge on the boards.
UTAH VS. FRESNO STATE PREVIEW
SCOUTING FRESNO STATE: The Bulldogs were 8-15 overall and in sixth place in the Western Athletic Conference Pacific Division with a 3-7 record entering Thursday night's game at Brigham Young. Last week, Fresno State suffered two losses at home, falling to UTEP, 71-63, on Thursday and New Mexico, 71-59, on Saturday. Entering the week, Fresno State had lost five of its last six and was 1-8 on the road this season.
Junior 6-0 forward Tiffany Lewis is the only player in the WAC averaging a double-double. Lewis ranks ninth in the WAC in scoring (13.9 ppg), first in rebounds (10.0 rpg) and third in field goal percentage (50.9). Senior 5-6 guard Jessie Farias is fourth in the conference in three-point field goal percentage (41.1), second in assists (6.2 apg) and fourth in steals (2.7 spg). Farias also is second on the team in scoring (10.8 ppg). Senior 5-10 guard Connie Krueger is eighth in the league in three-pointers per game (1.8) and 10th in three-point field goal percentage (31.1) while averaging 8.9 points per game. Sophomore 6-1 forward/center Angel Hines is 16th in the WAC in rebounds (6.3 rpg).
Fresno State is ninth in the WAC in scoring (64.7 ppg) and ninth in scoring defense (67.5 ppg). It is also fifth in rebounds (37.9 rpg) and seventh in rebound margin (-0.2). The Bulldogs are shooting 40.6 percent from the field, 39.7 percent from three-point range and 61.9 percent from the free throw line.
FRESNO STATE HEAD COACH BRITT KING... had an 8-15 record in her first season at Fresno State entering Thursday night's game at Brigham Young. King also had an 82-90 record in seven seasons as a head coach. She came to Fresno State from Coppin State, where she posted a 10-18 record in 1996-97. King was the head coach at District of Columbia for five seasons from 1992-96, posing a 64-67 record. She graduated from Providence in 1986.
SERIES NOTES: Utah and Fresno State meet for the 11th time today. The Utes lead the all-time series 8-2 and have won seven in a row over the Bulldogs. Utah has also won all four previous home games against Fresno State, taking the last meeting in the Huntsman Center, 69-47, on Feb. 24, 1996. Elaine Elliott is 8-1 against Fresno State. Britt King is 0-1 against Utah.
LAST MEETING: Utah shot 40 percent from three-point range and five players scored in double figures as the Utes ran away from Fresno State, 76-50, on Jan. 24 at North Gym in Fresno, Calif.
Utah made 6-of-11 trifectas in the first half and shot 8-for-20 from three-point range for the game. The Utes also shot 46.9 percent from the field. Fresno State managed to shoot just 33.8 percent from the floor and made just 2-of-19 three-pointers.
Freshman Erin Gibbons led the Utes with 15 points, making 4-of-10 three-point field goals. She also handed out four assists. Lauren Beckman had 13 points and two blocked shots. Kristina Andersen and Lori Red each scored 11 points. Andersen also led the U. with three blocked shots and eight rebounds. Tiana Fuertes had 10 points, making 2-of-3 three-pointers and had a game-high seven assists in 31 minutes. Kristi Rose added eight points.
The Utes outboarded Fresno State 41 to 39 and made just 15 turnovers, as compared to 21 for the Bulldogs, who pressed most of the game. Fresno State was led by Tiffany Lewis' double-double of 15 points and 11 rebounds.
UTAH TEAM NOTES
INSIDE THE NUMBERS: Two of the Utes' four losses have been by one point ... 13 of Utah's 18 wins have been by more than 10 points ... Utah has won its last nine games by an average of 16.9 points. The only two wins by less than 11 points were a 53-51 win over Brigham Young on Feb. 6 and a 46-44 win at Hawaii on Feb. 13 ... In its last two losses to SMU (Jan. 5) and BYU (Jan. 9), Utah shot 34.7 percent from the field. Since then in nine wins, Utah has shot 45.5 percent ... The Utes have outshot their opponents from the field in 18 of 22 games. The exceptions were a loss at Brigham Young (a season-low 30.4 percent), a loss to SMU, (37.5 percent), a win at San Jose State (39.3 percent) and a win over Brigham Young (34.7 percent) ... Utah has shot a better percentage than its opponents from three-point range in 16 of 22 games. It has also made more three-pointers in all but five games: a loss at Bradley (a 5-4 disadvantage), a loss to Colorado State (both teams made 8), a loss to SMU (a 7-6 disadvantage), a loss at Brigham Young (both teams made 5) and a win over Brigham Young (a 6-2 disadvantage) ... Utah has been outrebounded six times in 22 games: a win at Weber State, a win over San Francisco, a loss to SMU, a loss at BYU (Jan. 9), a win at San Diego State (Jan. 14) and a win over New Mexico (Jan. 28) ... Utah has had at as many blocked shots than its opponents in all but three games: a loss to SMU (a 3-1 disadvantage), a loss at BYU (a 2-0 disadvantage) and a win at Hawaii (a 3-2 disadvantage).
GAME #21 RECAP: The Utes overcame a wealth of turnovers in the first half and shot 57 percent from the floor in the second half to post a 64-42 win over the San Diego State Aztecs last Thursday night at Cox Arena.
Lindsay Sodja led all scorers with a season-high 14 points, getting all but two in a big second half for the Utes. Sodja made 6-of-8 field goals, including 2-of-3 from behind the arc, and also had four rebounds in 15 minutes off the bench.
Kristi Rose had 13 pointsnine of which came in the second halfand eight rebounds. Lauren Beckman had eight points, seven boards and two blocked shots in 27 minutes off the bench. Kristina Andersen led the Utes with a career-high tying nine rebounds. She also joined Katherine McColl and Erin Gibbons in scoring seven points.
The Utes made 15-of-26 field goals in the second half and shot 54.3 percent for the game. The Utes also had a commanding 45 to 30 edge on the boards and limited San Diego State to 29.8 percent shooting from the floor. Utah shot 4-for-7 from three-point range (57.1%) in the second half.
Claire Swinbank led SDSU with 10 points and got four of her teams' 15 steals against the Utes. Mary Apiafi had a game-high 11 rebounds and seven points for the Aztecs.
Utah scored the only two points in the first three and a half minutes of the game. Once both teams got the offenses cranking, the Utes surged out to a 13-point lead (22-9) on a bank shot by Beckman with 8:20 remaining in the half. Utah, averaging 16.4 turnovers a game on the season, had 16 in the first 20 minutes of play.
The Utes led 35-26 with 16:48 to play before scoring just one basket over the next 5:43 to allow the Aztecs back within two points. Anita Bundage made one of two free throws to close the gap to 37-36 with 11:03 remaining. Utah then rattled off a 21-2 run over the next 8:35 keyed by two three-pointers and another jumper by Sodja, to take a 58-38 lead with 2:28 remaining.
GAME #22 RECAP: Hawaii could not convert on its last possession in the final seconds as Utah posted a 46-44 on the road last Saturday in front of 4,561 fans at the Stan Sheriff Center in Honolulu.
After the Rainbow Wahine missed two close in shots in the final 30 seconds, Utah's Lauren Beckman got the rebound but was called for traveling as time seemingly expired. Five-tenths of a second were put back on the clock and Hawaii got one more chance. Ki'i Spencer-Vasconcellos attempted a 15-foot jumper from the right corner off the ensuing inbounds play that caught the iron but rolled off as the buzzer sounded. The win was Utah's ninth straight, allowing the Utes to sweep the season series from Hawaii.
Erin Gibbons came off the bench to score 14 points to lead the Utes. Gibbons made 5-of-9 field goals and 4-of-6 from three-point range in 26 minutes. Honolulu native Tiana Fuertes, playing in front of a large cheering section, had eight points. Lauren Beckman also scored eight points and led the Utes with six rebounds.
Raylene Howard, the WAC's third-leading scorer, had a game-high 17 points. Crystal Lee added nine in the losing effort for Hawaii. Utah controlled the boards with a 33 to 26 advantage and outshot UH 47.5 to 34.5 percent. Hawai'i did manage to force Utah into 25 turnovers and got 15 steals.
The Utes broke out to a 29-18 halftime lead, shooting 60 percent in the first 20 minutes and making 5-of-7 three-pointers. The Utes shot 58.3 percent (7-of-12) from behind the arc for the game. The Rainbow Wahine got back in the game when Utah went scoreless for a five and a half minute stretch early in the second half, narrowing what was once a 12-point margin to 34-31 with 12:56 to play. Lee made a layup and Hedy Liu hit a jumper to tie the game at 44 with 2:01 left. The game-deciding basket was a putback by Lori Red with 1:28 remaining.
ELLIOTT ELABORATES: On the win over San Diego State - We finally settled down late in the second half and [Lindsay] Sodja hit some big shots for us. We needed a perimeter shooter to step up, and Lindsay did that for us. I also thought that Gibby (Erin Gibbons) and Tiana [Fuertes] settled down the last 10 minutes. I thought another key was that we played both of our bigs (Beckman and Rose) in the last 10 minutes and we controlled the boards during that time. They also had a tough time scoring over us.
On the win over Hawaii - We did not make the plays inside and they rebounded so much better this time around. But, our perimeter people played well and shot a good percentage from three-point range to protect our inside players. We didn't get many offensive rebounds (only six); but to our kids' credit, Lori got one when we needed one the most and was able to make what may well have been the biggest play of the game.
NCAA TEAM STATISTICAL RANKINGS (Released Feb. 15)
Winning Percentage 17th (.818) Scoring Defense 3rd (55.5) Field Goal Pct. Defense 11th (.366) Rebound Margin 21st (6.0) 3-Point FG Per Game 24th (6.0)WAC TEAM STATISTICAL RANKINGS (Released Feb. 15):
Scoring 5th (67.8) Scoring Defense 1st (55.5) Scoring Margin 2nd (+12.3) Opponents' Rebounds 2nd (34.2) Rebounds 4th (39.5) Rebound Margin 1st (+6.0) Field Goal Percentage 2nd (.453) Field Goal Pct. Defense 1st (.366) 3-Point FG Percentage 3rd (.350) 3-Point FG Per Game 4th (6.0) Free Throw Percentage 9th (.686) Blocks 1st (4.5) Steals 16th (6.9) Turnover Margin 6th (-0.5)
WAC INDIVIDUAL STATISTICAL RANKINGS (Released Feb. 15):
3-Point Percentage Erin Gibbons 7th (.371)
Rebounds Lauren Beckman 15th (6.6)
Assists Tiana Fuertes 3rd (5.0)
Blocked Shots Lauren Beckman 1st (1.9)
Kristi Rose 4th (1.4)
3-Point Field Goals Erin Gibbons 3rd (2.0)
UTE HEAD COACH ELAINE ELLIOTT... is the winningest coach in Utah women's basketball history. Now in her 16th season as Utah's head coach after spending four years as an assistant coach at the U., Elliott has a 320-137 (.700) career record and a 158-42 mark in conference games. The Dean of the Western Athletic Conference coaches, Elliott has the longest tenure at her current institution and the most career wins among the league's coaches. Elliott recorded her 300th career victory on Feb. 14, 1998 with a 67-53 win over Colorado State.
Elliott has had ten 20-win seasons and three 19-win campaigns, averaging 20 wins in 15 years at the U. Last season, she was honored as the WBCA District VII Coach of the Year and the WAC Mountain Division Co-Coach of the Year, leading Utah to its second-consecutive conference divisional title. Elliott was also named the WAC Mountain Division Coach of the Year in 1996-97, and recently led Utah to the WAC regular-season championship in 1996 and the WAC Tournament championship in 1995.
Elliott has coached teams to a total of four regular-season conference crowns (1986, 87, 89, 96), two divisional titles (1997, 98) and four league tournament championships (1989, 90, 91, 94). Eight of her teams have advanced to the NCAA Tournament (1986, 89, 90, 91, 95, 96, 97, 98).
ROSE SENDS EM BACK: Three-fourths of the way through her junior season, 6-4 center Kristi Rose has already moved into second place in career blocked shots at Utah with 119. She had one blocked shot against San Diego State on Feb. 11 to pass Miki Kane-Barton and needs five more to tie Sandy Kovach for first place (124).
Rose also moved into fourth place in the Western Athletic Conference in career blocked shots with two rejections against UTEP on Jan. 30. Teresa James, who played at Colorado State from 1992-96, is well ahead of Rose in third place with 164 career blocks.
With Rose recording 54 rejections last season, the second-most in a season in school history, she is likely to become Utah's all-time blocked shots leader later this season. She already has 30 blocked shots in 98-99, recording a season-best seven rejections (two off her school record) against San Diego State on Jan. 14.
TWIN TOWERS: Junior 6-4 center Kristi Rose, the Utes only returning starter, has had plenty of help in the paint this season with the emergence of freshman 6-2 forward/center Lauren Beckman, who is a candidate for WAC Pacific Division Freshman of the Year honors. Rose continues her climb the Utah career blocked shots chart, averaging 1.4 blocks per game. She is also averaging 7.9 pointsshooting a team-best 56.7 percent from the fieldand 5.0 rebounds in 17.5 minutes per game. Rose has led the Utes in scoring four times and four times in rebounding.
Despite the fact that she does not start, Beckman plays an average of 21.5 minutes per game. She is third on the team in scoring (10.3 ppg), first in rebounding (6.6 rpg) and first in blocked shots (1.9 bpg). Beckman is also shooting 55.4 percent from the field. She posted a career-high 19 points against UTEP on Jan. 30 and No. 12 Colorado State on Dec. 3. She also had a career-best 14 rebounds against UTEP on Jan. 30. Beckman has led the Utes in scoring three times and rebounding nine times. She has reached double figures in points 13 times and rebounds four times.
Combined, Rose and Beckman are averaging 18.2 points, 11.6 rebounds and 3.3 blocked shots per game. As of Feb. 15, Beckman ranks 14th in the Western Athletic Conference in rebounds (6.6 rpg). Utah leads the league with 4.5 blocks per game, with Beckman ranking first (1.9 bpg) and Rose second (1.4 bpg) in the league, individually.
SEEING RED: Sophomore 5-11 forward Lori Red, coming off of a redshirt year, has been one of the most consistent players in the Utah line-up this season. The Provo, Utah, native is second on the team in scoring (10.8 ppg). The two-time WAC Pacific Division Player of the Week is also fourth on the team in rebounding (4.6 rpg) while playing 29.9 minutes per game. She is shooting 41.9 percent from the field, 34.2 percent from three-point range (25-for-73) and a team-best 80.5 percent from the free throw line (33-for-41) among players with more than 10 attempts. Red has led the Utes in scoring in six games, posting double-figures 13 times. She had a career-high 21 points against Kansas State on Nov. 28. Red has led the Utes in rebounding three times, posting five or more boards nine times. In the game at BYU on Jan. 9, she tied a career high with eight rebounds. Red had a career-high eight assists against Hawai'i on Jan. 17.
GIBBONS FIRES AWAY: Sharpshooting 5-9 freshman guard Erin Gibbons joins teammate Lauren Beckman as a contender for WAC Pacific Division Freshman of the Year honors. Utah's leading scorer this season, Gibbons is averaging 11.0 points per game. She is also averaging 2.0 three-pointers per game and shooting 41.1 percent from the field and 37.1 percent from three-point range.
As of Feb. 15, Gibbons ranked ninth in the WAC in three-point field goal percentage (37.1) and third in three-point field goals per game (2.0). She has scored over 20 points twice, burning Washington State for 22 on Dec. 10 and getting a career-best 23 points against Idaho on Dec. 12, making 9-of-14 field goals. She has scored in double figures in 13 games and led the Utes in scoring seven times.
THEY DON'T PLAY LIKE FRESHMAN: Elaine Elliott is getting solid production from her freshman class. Of the five newcomers, four are averaging at least 10.9 minutes per game and three are averaging at least 17.6 minutes per contest. Erin Gibbons, Lauren Beckman and Katherine McColl are among the top seven on the team in scoring with Gibbons ranking first (11.0 ppg), Beckman third (10.3 ppg) and McColl seventh (5.7 ppg). Beckman leads the team in rebounding (6.6 rpg) and McColl is fifth (4.0 rpg). OH, CANADA: Utah has raided the pool of talent to the north, featuring three Canadians on its roster this season. Sophomore 6-0 forward/guard Amy Ewert, a native of Vancouver, British Columbia, became the first-ever Canadian to play for the Utes last season. Ewert is joined by two freshmen this season. Erin Gibbons, a 5-9 guard from Salmon Arm, British Columbia; and Katherine McColl, a 6-0 freshman from Hamilton, Ontario, have also made the trek south. All three are averaging at least 13.2 minutes per game and rank among the Utes' top nine scorers and top eight rebounders. Ewert had one of her best all-around games as a Ute against Brigham Young on Feb. 6. Getting her second career start, Ewert had a career-best eight rebounds, eight points (3-for-9 FG) and two steals in 28 minutes.
HOME SWEET DOME: After Utah's home win over Brigham Young on Feb. 6, the Utes have won five in a row and 50 of their last 53 games in the Jon M. Huntsman Center following a loss to Western Athletic Conference rival San Diego State on Jan. 12, 1995. The Utes won all 11 of their home games last season and have taken nine of their first 11 this season. This season will be the first since 1994-95 that Utah has lost at least two home games in a single season. Utah has an all-time record of 252-30 (.893) under the silver dome.
With Utah's 70-69 loss to 12th-ranked Colorado State on Dec. 3, the Utes' 16-game homecourt winning streak was terminated. It was the 11th-longest active streak in the nation before it ended. The Utes' previous loss at the Jon M. Huntsman Center was also to Colorado State, 79-68, in triple overtime on Feb. 8, 1997.
SILVER ANNIVERSARY SEASON FOR WAC'S TOP PROGRAM: This is the 25th season for the University of Utah women's basketball program, which has an all-time record of 506-201 (.716). Utah is the winningest women's basketball program in Western Athletic Conference history and also has the best record against other league teams with an 96-26 (.787) mark. The Utes have also made the most NCAA Tournament appearances (9) among WAC programs and are tied for the most WAC regular-season titles (3) with San Diego State.
BRING ON THE COMPETITION: Utah has seven games on its schedule against five teams that played in the 1998 NCAA Tournament, including three non-conference games. Out of the league, Utah's schedule was highlighted by games against Montana, Colorado State and SMU, all at home. Although Colorado State and SMU are members of the Western Athletic Conference, they are aligned in the Mountain Division this year, while Utah is in the Pacific Division. Therefore, those two games do not count as league contests. Montana was the No. 14 seed in the West Region of the 1998 NCAA Tournament, while Colorado State was the No. 12 seed in the Midwest and SMU the No. 11 seed in the East. The Utes defeated Montana, 71-64, on Nov. 21; lost to Colorado State, 70-69, on Dec. 3 and lost to SMU, 80-69, on Jan. 5 at the Huntsman Center.
During the conference season, Utah is placed in the WAC's Pacific Division with Brigham Young, Fresno State, Hawaii, New Mexico, San Jose State, San Diego State and UTEP. Hawaii was the No. 8 seed in the NCAA West Region and New Mexico was the No. 8 seed in the East. The first time through the WAC schedule, the Utes defeated Hawaii, 82-51, on Jan. 17 and upended New Mexico, 61-50, on Jan. 28 at the Jon M. Huntsman Center. Utah won the rematch with Hawai'i, 46-44, on Feb. 13 in Honolulu to sweep the season series.
UTES PICKED THIRD IN WAC PRESEASON POLL: Utah was picked to finish third in the Western Athletic Conference Pacific Division in 1998-99 according to the WAC women's basketball coaches' preseason poll.
Despite returning just one starter and six letterwinners, the Utes garnered 93 points and one first-place vote. The U. was picked behind Hawaii, which collected 115 points and 10 of the 16 first-place votes. New Mexico received 103 points and the remaining five first-place votes.
The remainder of the Pacific Division was predicted as follows: Brigham Young (77), Fresno State (62), UTEP (48), San Diego State (40) and San Jose State (30).
In the Mountain Division, Colorado State garnered 15 first-place votes and 120 points. The Rams were also picked to win the overall 1999 W
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