BYU women’s basketball picks up first win against Nevada

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BYU held off a late surge from Nevada to notch its first win of the season, defeating the Wolfpack 65-60 Saturday night.

After losing to Cal State Northridge in the home opener, the Cougars looked to finish the week strong as they head into a three-game set in Hawaii next week. The team got its much-needed first win, with hopes of many more victories to come.

Samantha Williams
Ashley Garfield plays tricky offense at Saturday’s game. (Samantha Williams/Universe Photo)

“I think (the win) really helps us,” BYU head coach Jeff Judkins said after the game. “I think sometimes when you lose, you start kind of doubting everything; you doubt yourself probably the most. So winning, I think, helps make you feel a lot better. It makes you feel like what you’re doing, the hard work you’re doing is paying off.”

A quick 19 points from Lexi Eaton helped the Cougars jump out to a 41-33 halftime lead. Eaton went 5-for-7 from behind the arc in the first half, with the entire team shooting more than 50 percent from deep.

Nevada outscored BYU in the last 10 minutes of the first period, with Wolfpack shooter Emily Burns knocking down an open corner-three to cap things off at the end of the half. The Wolfpack continued that trend in the second half, with a deep bench making big plays and keeping its team in the game.

Going into the last two minutes, Nevada etched the BYU lead down to two points with a chance to tie the game after an offensive rebound. A huge three seconds in the key call swung the momentum and turned the ball back over to the Cougars, who wrapped things up after Morgan Bailey converted on shot and the foul.

Both Eaton and Bailey had career nights, with Eaton hitting her career high in 3-pointers with six, and Morgan Bailey totaling 17 rebounds on the game.

“Its fun when you play like yourself,” Eaton said. “I mean, tonight I had the goal to come out and be decisive no matter what. No matter what the results were I was going to play hard, and I think that’s what the rest of the team did, and that’s when it’s fun, when we are all playing hard and not worried about the results.”

BYU looks to keep things rolling as it travels to Hawaii next week to play three games. The Cougars take on Butler on Wednesday, BYU—Hawaii on Thursday and Oregon State on Saturday.

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