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Utah Downs Arizona State 102-82 for First Big 12 Win
12/21/2024 7:44 PM | Women's Basketball
SALT LAKE CITY – The Utah women's basketball team picked up its first victory in the Big 12 era as the Utes downed Arizona State 102-82.
Utah's 10-0 run to start the second quarter sparked a big momentum shift in favor of the Utes as they went on to capture a 20-point victory. Utah was led by Gianna Kneepkens' 24 points. Kneepkens posted another perfect night on the free throw line going 8-of-8. She also pulled down six rebounds and recorded six assists. Mayé Touré had a big night on the boards recording nine for the game high.
GAME SUMMARY
The two teams went back-and-forth in the first quarter with neither team capturing any major momentum swings. Reese Ross had a strong first quarter putting up six points in just four minutes of play. Arizona State drilled a three with just three seconds left in the initial quarter of play to take a 25-23 lead over the Utes.
Utah started out the second quarter on a 10-0 run and held Arizona State scoreless for four minutes. The Utes then went on to control the remainder of the first half pulling out for a 48-38 lead over Arizona State going into the break.
The Utes came out of halftime on a 10-2 run holding ASU to just a pair of free throws. Utah pushed out for a 20-point lead with five minutes to go in the third quarter for Utah's largest lead of the game. ASU hit a hot streak sinking three consecutive threes to chip away at its score deficit, but Utah was able to maintain for a 76-63 lead going into the final quarter of play.
After going on a two minute scoring drought late in the fourth quarter, Utah kicked into gear for a 7-0 run. The Utes then pushed out to a 19-point lead with a 98-79 score. Grace Foster swished one from deep with one minute remaining to push Utah over the century mark.
As the final buzzer sounded, Utah captured its first Big 12 win with a 102-82 win over Arizona State.
LEADERS
Utah had four players score in double figures and were led by Gianna Kneepkens' 24 points. Kneepkens went a perfect 8-of-8 from the freethrow line for her second consecutive gamed. She also added six rebounds and six assists for the Utes.
Reese Ross posted a season high of 19 points with 13 coming in the first half.
Mayé Touré had 14 points for Utah and was just shy of a double-double with nine rebounds. Kennady McQueen was the final Ute to post double figures with 11 points including three made from deep.
Inês Vieira tied her season high with eight assists to help the Utes' offensive efforts.
COMPARISON
Utah shot 54.5 percent from the field while Arizona State shot 48.4 percent from the field. Utah went 39.1 percent from deep making 9-of-23 while ASU went 38.9 percent shooting 7-of-18. The Utes went 21-of-29 from the free throw line for 72.4 percent while the Sun Devils went 13-of-22 for 59.1 percent.
Utah had 25 assists on 36 made field goals while Arizona State had 15 assists on 31 made field goals. Utah dominated the boards with 43 rebounds while ASU had 28.
Utah had 38 points off the bench while ASU's bench had 20. The Utes were a force around the rim with 52 points coming from within the pain while the Sun Devils had 32 points in the paint.
NOTABLES
Utah is now 10-2 overall on the season and 1-0 in Big 12 play. The Utes have picked up six consecutive wins over Arizona State.
Gianna Kneepkens' 24 points tied her season high and marked her third 20-point game this season. She has also recorded double digit scoring in every game so far.
This is the third game this season the Utes have hit the century mark. Utah is now 28-0 all-time when scoring 100 or more points in a game. The last time Utah scored 100 points in a conference game was during the 2022-23 season when the Utes scored 101 against Cal (2/23/23).
Utah is now 8-0 in the Huntsman Center and have won 36 of its last 39 games at home.
HEAR FROM THE UTES
Head Coach Gavin Petersen
Opening Statement . . .
"I thought our effort tonight was excellent. We've been working and building on things this week and it really showed how much we've grown. I'm proud of our effort. There were some defensive lapses tonight that will hone in on after break. Overall, I'm proud of the effort. Having a conference game before the holiday break is a challenge for our players to stay focus but they did a great job staying locked in."
On the depth of his bench . . .
"I have the utmost confidence in our bench. Reese [Ross], Sam [Crispe] and Brooke Walker will all come in and fill in where we need. Brooke as a freshman has performed incredibly well for us so far this season and she's attacked every challenge we've given her. It's been a lot to take in but she's stayed the course and has improved every game she's been in. Grace [Foster] got action today for the first time this season and was out there diving on balls and knocking down threes. I'm incredibly lucky to have a bench that comes into the game and doesn't drop off the momentum."
Reese Ross, sophomore, forward
On the team's rebounding performance . . .
"All week we've been harping on rebounding. We've done a lot of extra rebounding drills. Gavin [Petersen] always says that being an elite rebounder is something that's so important to our team. Mayé [Touré] needs some credit because she was slow to start but picked it up to just dominate the boards."
Gianna Kneepkens, junior, guard
On being undefeated at home . . .
"We love playing at home. We have a great crowd. No matter how many people are here it's always super loud. Sometimes it's so loud we miss play calls. We love that fans come out. We just want to keep protecting our court and not lose at home."
UP NEXT
Utah will continue Big 12 play by hitting the road to take on Arizona Dec. 31 with a high noon tip. Utah will stay on the road to take on Iowa State Jan. 5. The Utes will return home to Salt Lake City Jan. 8 to take on Kansas State.
OFFICIAL MOBILE APP OF UTAH ATHLETICS – UTAH 360
The official mobile app of Utah Athletics is Utah 360. Download it today to unlock exclusive video content, news and information, schedules, rosters, stats, and access to buy and manage tickets. The app is available in both the Apple Store (download) and Google Play (download). Add it today, access your game tickets and download them to your smartphone's wallet to make yourself game-day ready.
FOLLOW THE UTES!
Fans can follow along during the 2024-25 season on social media (Twitter: @UtahWBB | Instagram: @UtahWBB | Facebook: Facebook.com/UtahWBB).
Utah's 10-0 run to start the second quarter sparked a big momentum shift in favor of the Utes as they went on to capture a 20-point victory. Utah was led by Gianna Kneepkens' 24 points. Kneepkens posted another perfect night on the free throw line going 8-of-8. She also pulled down six rebounds and recorded six assists. Mayé Touré had a big night on the boards recording nine for the game high.
GAME SUMMARY
The two teams went back-and-forth in the first quarter with neither team capturing any major momentum swings. Reese Ross had a strong first quarter putting up six points in just four minutes of play. Arizona State drilled a three with just three seconds left in the initial quarter of play to take a 25-23 lead over the Utes.
Utah started out the second quarter on a 10-0 run and held Arizona State scoreless for four minutes. The Utes then went on to control the remainder of the first half pulling out for a 48-38 lead over Arizona State going into the break.
The Utes came out of halftime on a 10-2 run holding ASU to just a pair of free throws. Utah pushed out for a 20-point lead with five minutes to go in the third quarter for Utah's largest lead of the game. ASU hit a hot streak sinking three consecutive threes to chip away at its score deficit, but Utah was able to maintain for a 76-63 lead going into the final quarter of play.
After going on a two minute scoring drought late in the fourth quarter, Utah kicked into gear for a 7-0 run. The Utes then pushed out to a 19-point lead with a 98-79 score. Grace Foster swished one from deep with one minute remaining to push Utah over the century mark.
As the final buzzer sounded, Utah captured its first Big 12 win with a 102-82 win over Arizona State.
LEADERS
Utah had four players score in double figures and were led by Gianna Kneepkens' 24 points. Kneepkens went a perfect 8-of-8 from the freethrow line for her second consecutive gamed. She also added six rebounds and six assists for the Utes.
Reese Ross posted a season high of 19 points with 13 coming in the first half.
Mayé Touré had 14 points for Utah and was just shy of a double-double with nine rebounds. Kennady McQueen was the final Ute to post double figures with 11 points including three made from deep.
Inês Vieira tied her season high with eight assists to help the Utes' offensive efforts.
COMPARISON
Utah shot 54.5 percent from the field while Arizona State shot 48.4 percent from the field. Utah went 39.1 percent from deep making 9-of-23 while ASU went 38.9 percent shooting 7-of-18. The Utes went 21-of-29 from the free throw line for 72.4 percent while the Sun Devils went 13-of-22 for 59.1 percent.
Utah had 25 assists on 36 made field goals while Arizona State had 15 assists on 31 made field goals. Utah dominated the boards with 43 rebounds while ASU had 28.
Utah had 38 points off the bench while ASU's bench had 20. The Utes were a force around the rim with 52 points coming from within the pain while the Sun Devils had 32 points in the paint.
NOTABLES
Utah is now 10-2 overall on the season and 1-0 in Big 12 play. The Utes have picked up six consecutive wins over Arizona State.
Gianna Kneepkens' 24 points tied her season high and marked her third 20-point game this season. She has also recorded double digit scoring in every game so far.
This is the third game this season the Utes have hit the century mark. Utah is now 28-0 all-time when scoring 100 or more points in a game. The last time Utah scored 100 points in a conference game was during the 2022-23 season when the Utes scored 101 against Cal (2/23/23).
Utah is now 8-0 in the Huntsman Center and have won 36 of its last 39 games at home.
HEAR FROM THE UTES
Head Coach Gavin Petersen
Opening Statement . . .
"I thought our effort tonight was excellent. We've been working and building on things this week and it really showed how much we've grown. I'm proud of our effort. There were some defensive lapses tonight that will hone in on after break. Overall, I'm proud of the effort. Having a conference game before the holiday break is a challenge for our players to stay focus but they did a great job staying locked in."
On the depth of his bench . . .
"I have the utmost confidence in our bench. Reese [Ross], Sam [Crispe] and Brooke Walker will all come in and fill in where we need. Brooke as a freshman has performed incredibly well for us so far this season and she's attacked every challenge we've given her. It's been a lot to take in but she's stayed the course and has improved every game she's been in. Grace [Foster] got action today for the first time this season and was out there diving on balls and knocking down threes. I'm incredibly lucky to have a bench that comes into the game and doesn't drop off the momentum."
Reese Ross, sophomore, forward
On the team's rebounding performance . . .
"All week we've been harping on rebounding. We've done a lot of extra rebounding drills. Gavin [Petersen] always says that being an elite rebounder is something that's so important to our team. Mayé [Touré] needs some credit because she was slow to start but picked it up to just dominate the boards."
Gianna Kneepkens, junior, guard
On being undefeated at home . . .
"We love playing at home. We have a great crowd. No matter how many people are here it's always super loud. Sometimes it's so loud we miss play calls. We love that fans come out. We just want to keep protecting our court and not lose at home."
UP NEXT
Utah will continue Big 12 play by hitting the road to take on Arizona Dec. 31 with a high noon tip. Utah will stay on the road to take on Iowa State Jan. 5. The Utes will return home to Salt Lake City Jan. 8 to take on Kansas State.
OFFICIAL MOBILE APP OF UTAH ATHLETICS – UTAH 360
The official mobile app of Utah Athletics is Utah 360. Download it today to unlock exclusive video content, news and information, schedules, rosters, stats, and access to buy and manage tickets. The app is available in both the Apple Store (download) and Google Play (download). Add it today, access your game tickets and download them to your smartphone's wallet to make yourself game-day ready.
FOLLOW THE UTES!
Fans can follow along during the 2024-25 season on social media (Twitter: @UtahWBB | Instagram: @UtahWBB | Facebook: Facebook.com/UtahWBB).
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