BYU women’s hoops crosses century mark for 3rd time this season in drubbing of Santa Clara

No. 19 BYU women’s basketball made sure there was no letdown after a dominant win over Gonzaga last week, beating Santa Clara 103-66 on the road Thursday.

It took some time for BYU to get going, leading just 24-19 after one quarter.

Paisley Harding took matters into her own hands from there. The senior poured in 15 points in the second quarter alone, going a perfect 6-of-6 from the field and 2-of-2 from three.

The Cougars took a 53-30 lead into the break behind Harding’s 21 points.

“We came out a little flat but we changed a few things we were doing and the team really responded well,” head coach Jeff Judkins said of the Cougars’ second-quarter turnaround.

BYU continued its dominance into the second half, with Shaylee Gonzales scoring nine points in the third quarter and 17 points on the night. She added nine rebounds and five assists to an all-around stat line.

BYU rested its starters for most of the fourth quarter, as Emma Calvert and the bench helped BYU reach 100 points for the third time this season.

Calvert had 10 points in the fourth quarter, finishing with a career-high 13 on the night.

Harding led all scorers with 28 points, shooting an efficient 11-of-14 from the field and 3-of-5 from three. Lauren Gustin added 13 points and five rebounds.

“This team is a special one because there are so many ways we can win,” Judkins said.

The night didn’t end without some bad news, however. With just 3:39 left in the game and a 37-point lead, freshman Nani Falatea had to be helped off the floor with an apparent injury to her lower leg/foot area.

Falatea has been an important piece to BYU’s bench, appearing in all 26 games this season. She averages 3.4 points in 11.3 minutes of action. Her status going forward is unknown.

BYU has one remaining game before postseason play with a trip to Pacific on Saturday.