By Jay Zwahlen
After three consecutive home victories, the BYU women”s basketball team hits the road in Mountain West Conference play against San Diego State on Thursday, Jan. 25, 2007, and against Utah on Saturday, Jan. 27, 2007.
The Cougars have found success because of their balance between powerful post play and solid outside shooting from the guards. Center Dani Wright and guard Mallary Gillespie are leading the team with 12.4 and 12.3 points, respectively.
The Aztecs have had an up and down season so far this year. They are coming off four losses in the past six games. BYU dominated the conference series last year against the Aztecs by beating them by scores of 64-39 and 67-49.
But as usual, BYU coach Jeff Judkins said his team would not look past a struggling San Diego State team.
“San Diego State is very athletic and quick,” Judkins said. “We have to do a really good job of taking care of the ball and getting in our offense where we can attack them.”
The Aztecs are leading the conference in blocked shots and steals. Point guard Quenese Davis tops the conference in assists with 5.8 per game.
The Cougars will then travel to Salt Lake City where a rested Utah team will be awaiting their arrival for a showdown between the conference”s two best teams.
The Utes are led by guard/forward Morgan Warburton, who averages 15.1 points per game.
“Warburton is probably one of the most complete players in the league,” Judkins said. “She can shoot the three, she can put the ball on the ground, and she can post up.”
BYU will be looking for redemption this season, considering last year”s results against the Utes. In a season where the Cougars were 26-6 last year, two of the losses came at the hands of the Utes. In those two games, BYU lost by a total of 42 points.
Judkins said that the BYU-Utah rivalry means a lot to him because he has not had much success against the Utes.
“Utah is a big game. [Utah coach] Elaine [Elliott] has got the better of me over the last few years so it would be nice to turn the table.”
The game against the Aztecs will begin at 8 p.m., and the game against Utah will tip-off at 1 p.m. at the Jon M. Huntsman Center.
Live statistics and audio will be available from the schedule portion of the team”s page on byucougars.com.
The Utah game will also be televised live on the mtn.
