Utah Falls In Battle Against The Bruins, 81-74

Friday, January 12

Salt Lake City, Utah

8:00 PM

University of Utah

12-4, 3-2

UCLA

12-4, 3-2

UCLA

UTAH

Photo by: Steve C. Wilson

1/12/2018 11:31 PM | Women's Basketball

Box Score Box Score (PDF)

SALT LAKE CITY – It was a hard-fought battle in the Jon M. Huntsman Center on Friday night as the Utah women's basketball team took on #14 UCLA, but the Bruins were able to come out on top, defeating the Utes 81-74. Utah is 12-4 overall this season and 3-2 in Pac-12 play.

It may have been a nine-point game at the final buzzer, but Utah kept within four to five points the entire game, including holding a one-point lead early in the fourth quarter. The Utes battled till the end, but with UCLA shooting 85-percent from the free throw line and picking up 20 offensive rebounds, Utah was unable to pick up the win.

"I have a ton of confidence in my team and I think we are pretty dang good, but UCLA was picked to win the Pac-12 Conference for a reason," head coach Lynne Roberts. "They are full of talent. I certainly thought we had a shot. Midway through the first quarter I knew we could hang with these guys, and we did."

"I hate losing, I am bummed we lost, but you have to give UCLA the credit. You can tell they have a roster full of seniors and they just made plays and we didn't. I think both teams played really hard. It was a great crowd and a great atmosphere and we appreciate everyone that came out. We feel like we are so close to breaking through the ceiling of being in the top half of this amazing conference."

The Utes finished the game against the Bruins with four players in double digits, led by redshirt junior Megan Huff who scored 17 points along with 10 rebounds. Emily Potter was 7-for-9 from the floor for 16 points, also adding four blocks.

Daneesha Provo finished the game perfect in shooting going 6-for-6 from the floor, 2-for-2 from the arc and 2-for-2 from the free throw line for 16 points. Tori Williams rounded out Utah's double figure scorers with 10 points.

Utah had a strong first quarter, shooting 61-percent from the floor and holding UCLA without a field goal until the 6:50 mark. The Utes were able to jump out to a 17-13 lead with 2:40 left to play in the first after making five shots in a row, but UCLA answered with an 12-3 run to take a 25-20 lead heading into halftime.

Provo hit a key three right off the bat to start the second quarter, cutting the UCLA lead to two, but the Bruins answered right back, making it a five-point game again with a three of their own with 7:17 on the clock. The Utes continued to hit clutch shots down the line, with Huff scoring nine of her 17 points in the second quarter, including four straight to make it a one-point game with just 1:30 left to play.

The Utes came into the third quarter down four, but Provo scored seven unanswered points to tie the score 47-47 with 6:01 remaining in the quarter. It was a back-and-forth scoring affair for the remainder of the quarter with Tilar Clark tying the game 49-49 with 4:20 on the clock and then giving Utah a 53-51 lead at the 3:06 mark.

UCLA hit a three-pointer with 2:47 left in the third quarter to regain the lead but Utah was able to head into the fourth quarter only down two thanks to strong defending. The Utes held UCLA to just 21-percent shooting in the third quarter and just 25-percent from the arc, trailing the Bruins 56-54.

Utah started the fourth quarter with a huge play as Williams drilled a three as the shot clock expired to give Utah a 57-56 lead with 9:25 on the clock. Seven of Williams' 10 points were scored in the fourth quarter with the true freshman coming up big for the Utes down the stretch.

The Bruins were able to jump out to a six-point lead with 7:55 remaining in the game, but strong paint presence from Tanaeya BoClair at the 6:11 mark made it a three-point game. It was Utah's paint game that continued to prove successful as Potter made it 64-63 with 5:40 on the clock, cutting the UCLA advantage to just one.

Unfortunately for the Utes, UCLA answered with a critical three-pointer with 5:14 to put them back up by four points. Williams made it a two-point game again with another huge three-pointer, but the Bruins' late free throw shooting made it hard for Utah to make up the difference with the Utes eventually falling.

Utah returns to action on Sunday, Jan. 14 when they host the USC Trojans in the Jon M. Huntsman Center. The game is set for a 12 p.m. MT tip on the Pac-12 Networks.