By KAREN DUFFIN
The women's basketball team had much to celebrate Wednesday night after beating long-time rival Utah, 70-64.
With Angela Burgess's muscle and key plays by Shelby Whiting, the Cougars left the Marriott Center with their first win against the Utes since March 4, 1994. Not only can the Cougars put this down as a victory against their biggest rival, it is also their first win in several years against a ranked team.
Recently, games between Utah and BYU have been close, but BYU usually lost steam and left defeated. This time, the Cougars' energy was unbeatable. They came out strong and stayed strong, remaining ahead most of the second half.
The Utes played poorly through the first 25 minutes of the game. But with a heavy full-court press the Utes nearly came back. A three-point basket with under 35 seconds left e cut the BYU lead to three. BYU held on with several key free throws from Kari Gallup down the stretch. Shelby Whiting had a key drive with under two minutes left to keep BYU ahead.
Whiting's drive came at a time the Cougars were struggling. BYU head coach Trent Shippen called the play for Whiting and she executed it flawlessly.
'I wasn't worried going in to the play,' Whiting said. 'I knew (Shippen) had confidence in me, so I had confidence in myself.'
Utah's All-American Julie Krommenhoek fouled out in the last minute of play. With that and a missed three-point shot by the Utes, the game was over.
A tearful Shippen attributed the win to strong passing, good inside play and powerful defense.
BYU rotated its players in and out consistently throughout the game. The players said this worked because each player has different strengths that come together to make the team work.
'When we get substituted, we don't worry because there are no glory hogs on this team,' sophomore Lori Henry said. 'We just want to win.'
Free throws were another important factor in the game. During the last several minutes, the Utes were forced to foul. Fortunately for the Cougars, their free throws were on the mark.
Utah went into the game having lost their last two games. Utah coach Elaine Elliot said her team has not been playing with its usual heart.
'I will take the team who played the last fifteen minutes of this game, win or lose,' Elliot said. 'But I won't take the team who started this game.'
Despite their underdog status before the game, BYU's players went in calm due to Shippen's composure.
'As soon as the game started, we were calm and confident,' Burgess said. 'We knew we were the underdogs. We had nothing to lose.'
BYU plays in Oklahoma Saturday night against the University of Tulsa.