SALT LAKE CITY – Utah (15-12, 4-12) hits the road for its final weekend of regular-season action. The Utes travel to Pullman, Wash. to take on Washington State Thursday at 7 p.m. MT then head to Seattle to take on No. 11 Washington Saturday at 3 p.m. MT.
Game Coverage: Thursday's and Saturday's contests will be aired on the
Pac-12 Network. Live stats will be available at
utahutes.com for both games. You can listen to the game on 100.7 FM with Tyson Ewing for both games as well.
Follow the Utes: Receive in-game updates as well as a behind the scenes look at the Utah women's basketball program throughout the season by keeping up with each of the Utes' social media accounts. 'Like' the Utes on Facebook (UtahWomensHoops) and 'Follow' on Twitter (@UtahWBB) and Instagram (@UtahWBB).
Scouting the Cougars: Washington State is 5-ll in Pac-12 action (10-17 overall) and tied for seventh place in the conference standings. The team has four players averaging in double figures with Borislava Hristova (14.7), Chanelle Molina (12.8), Louise Brown (10.4) and Alexys Swedlund (10.0). The Cougars crash the offensive boards pulling down 15 O-boards per game allowing extra opportunities to score.
Scouting the Huskies: Washington is in third place in the Pac-12 and No. 11 in the NCAA heading into this weekend. The team features the league's leading scoring in Kelsey Plum who is putting up 30.9 points per game. Chantel Osahor is also an offensive threat averaging 15.7 points per game. The Huskies lead the conference in free-throw percentage shooting 76.3 percent from the foul line.
Boarding: Utah ranks third in the Pac-12 Conference with 29 defensive rebounds per game while averaging 41.3 boards per game.
Mixing it Up: Head coach
Lynne Roberts has featured three new starting lineups this season for the Utes.
Daneesha Provo,
Kiana Moore and
Megan Jacobs have been mixed into the starting five while
Paige Crozon and
Emily Potter are the only Utes to start all 27 games this season.
Potter in the Paint: Junior forward
Emily Potter is ranked fourth in the Pac-12 in field-goal percentage as the 6-6 Winnipeg, Manitoba native is shooting 53.0 percent from the floor. Potter leads the Pac-12 in blocked shots with 82, good for seventh in the NCAA. Potter knocked down her 1,000th career point on a free-throw in the first quarter against Northern Arizona to emerge as one of just 26 Utes to reach the milestone.
Cruzin' Crozon: Senior wing
Paige Crozon is averaging 9.7 points and 4.5 rebounds per game. The team's lone senior has tallied 952 career points with time to reach the 1,000 points club. Crozon scored a season-high 25 points including five 3-pointers against Washington State (02/05) and has two double-doubles this season.
Boasting Boclair: Junior wing
Tanaeya Boclair missed one game with an ankle sprain but is averaging 9.9 points and 4.0 rebounds for Utah. She knocked down a career-high 19 points against Oregon (02/17).
Buckets by Bean: Sophomore
Erika Bean dishes out 5.7 assists per game, good for fourth in the Pac-12. Despite being the shortest starter, the 5-8 guard also has 16 blocks on the season while pulling down 4.6 rebounds per game. Bean earned her first double-double of her career with 10 points and 10 assists at No. 10 UCLA.
Magnificent Malia: Junior wing
Malia Nawahine is the Utes second leading scorer with 10.4 points per game. Nawahine grabbed a career-high five steals in a 30-point win over Nevada. She is also second on the team with 53 assists on the season.
Seeing Double: Junior forward
Emily Potter has tallied eight double-doubles in 23 games while also averaging in double figures with 14.6 points per game. Senior wing
Paige Crozon has tallied two double-doubles on the season (Fresno State, Stanford). Sophomore guard
Erika Bean earned her first double-double of her career with 10 points and 10 assists at No. 10 UCLA.
Record Watch: Junior forward
Emily Potter is moving up the career blocks list in Utah's record book with 208 blocks as her 3-block performance against Nevada moved her into second. The 6-6 forward has swatted 82 shots this season including a season-high six blocks against USC and Stanford. Potter has made her way into the 1,000 points club in a 22-point performance against Northern Arizona. Senior wing
Paige Crozon is on the hunt for her 1,000th career point as she's tallied 952 points.
Previous Action: Tanaeya Boclair and
Malia Nawahine each scored a career-high in a 73-61 loss to Oregon Friday night at the Jon M. Huntsman Center. Nawahine scored 23 points including 5-of-7 from 3-point range and 4-of-4 from the foul line as the junior wing led both teams in scoring. Boclair knocked down a career-high 19 points including 6-of-8 from the foul line after an explosive first half of 15 points. Junior forward
Emily Potter also finished in double figures with 10 points on 5-of-8 shooting from the floor. She grabbed five rebounds, three blocks and two assist on the night. Utah women's basketball held on through three quarters, but fell in the final ten minutes of action against No. 11 Oregon State Sunday afternoon 63-49 in the Jon M. Huntsman Center. Free-throws and defense kept the Utes (15-12, 4-12) in the game against the No. 1 team in the Pac-12 Conference. Utah made 20-of-25 foul shots and forced 18 turnover while scoring 19 points off those miscues from Oregon State (25-3, 14-2).