Why Utah’s women’s basketball has a puncher’s chance against No. 2 Stanford in Pac-12 title game

byDuc Manh •
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Utah Utes girls’s basketball coach Lynne Roberts talks to her group because the Utes are within the lead within the ultimate minutes of the semifinal spherical of the 2022 Pac-12 girls’s basketball event towards the Oregon Geese on the Michelob ULTRA Area in Las Vegas on Friday, March 4, 2022. Utah received 80-73.

Kristin Murphy, Deseret Information

LAS VEGAS — These are halcyon days for the College of Utah’s girls’s basketball program.

Seventh-year coach Lynne Roberts’ Utes have knocked off Cal, Washington State and Oregon because the No. 6 seed within the Pac-12 girls’s basketball event at Michelob Extremely Area in Las Vegas.

The latter two wins might be categorized as official upsets, seeing as how WSU was a No. 3 seed and Oregon a No. 2 seed and nationally ranked at occasions this season.

“At each flip they’ve been fearless,” Roberts mentioned late Friday night time after the Utes surprised the Geese 80-73 behind 24 factors from blossoming celebrity freshman Gianna Kneepkens.

“This group performs fairly nicely once they’re unfastened and assured. The locker room has by no means been that severe of a spot.”

“At each flip they’ve been fearless. This group performs fairly nicely once they’re unfastened and assured. The locker room has by no means been that severe of a spot.” — Utah girls’s basketball coach Lynne Roberts.

As has been well-documented, Utah (20-10) has moved into uncharted territory having by no means earlier than superior to the semifinals, not to mention the championship, within the Pac-12 event.

Now the duty will get even taller.

The Utes face No. 2 Stanford, the defending Pac-12 and nationwide champions, on Sunday within the title sport. Tipoff is at 4 p.m. MST and the sport might be televised by ESPN2. It's simply the largest non-NCAA event sport in program historical past.

The Cardinal (27-3) blasted Colorado 71-45 in Friday’s different semifinal and have received 19 straight video games.

Stanford defeated Utah 83-73 on the Huntsman Heart on Jan. 16 and 91-64 at Stanford on Feb. 11.

Roberts jokingly requested for recommendation on beating the Cardinal throughout Friday’s postgame information convention, and admitted that the Utes had “no concept” what they have been going to do with their “time without work” on Saturday.

“We'll relaxation, get wholesome, eat, get well, eat some extra,” she mentioned. “… We'll (get remedy) like loopy, get off our toes and sport plan.”

Consensus amongst reporters who cowl Pac-12 girls’s basketball each day is that the Utes have a shot if they'll keep scorching from 3-point vary as one of many prime 3-point taking pictures groups within the nation.

Utah has a puncher’s probability, the idea goes.

Roberts mentioned sustaining that fearless perspective might be a key towards the Cardinal on Sunday.

“That’s been a key to our success all yr,” she mentioned, “and nothing adjustments. We’ve performed Stanford twice.

“That sport at our place went right down to the wire, after which they kicked us fairly good at their place, so these have been two studying experiences that we'll pull from.”

In opposition to Oregon Friday, the Utes received regardless of not taking pictures all that nicely from past the arc. They completed 9 of 31 from deep, as Jenna Johnson was 1 of two earlier than fouling out, Kneepkens was 3 of seven, Kennady McQueen was 2 of 9 and Brynna Maxwell was 2 of seven.

On Sunday, Utah might be with out ahead Peyton McFarland, who injured her knee within the 70-59 win over Wazzu on Thursday.

Kelsey Rees stepped up in McFarland’s absence towards Oregon, scoring a career-high 14 factors, together with 6 of 8 from the free-throw line.

“Our group and workers respects the heck out of Stanford,” Roberts mentioned. “We all know how proficient they're. They’re the reigning nationwide champions, however I’m not terrified of the sport. I’m not intimidated, oh no.”

No matter occurs Sunday, it'll full a outstanding turnaround for a program that went 5-16 final yr when COVID-19 wreaked havoc on their schedule. The Utes have been picked to complete tenth in preseason Pac-12 polls.

McQueen mentioned the turnaround began final summer time.

“How we ran our practices and ability issues, you can simply inform there was a distinct feeling,” she mentioned. “Like, we weren’t going to have one other yr like final yr, and that was very clear.

“So simply bringing in our superior freshmen and us returners, we have been decided to not let that occur once more.”

With a NET rating of 25, Utah has been a lock for the NCAA Match for a pair weeks now, however a win over a Stanford group with a NET rating of three may simply get the Utes off the dreaded 8-9 seeding vary.

As an illustration, in Charlie Creme’s bracketology projections for ESPN, up to date Saturday, Utah is a No. 8 seed assembly No. 9 seed South Florida in Columbia, South Carolina, within the first spherical.

The unhealthy information is the Utes would face No. 1 general seed South Carolina within the second spherical on the Gamecocks’ dwelling flooring if Creme’s projections are correct.

“I feel by way of NCAA Match seeding, this can actually assist,” Roberts mentioned. “We wish to be as excessive a seed as we may be.”

Roberts added that the publicity Sunday’s nationally televised sport may give Utah’s program is priceless.

“These are nice moments for our program, placing us on the nationwide map, which has been my aim since I took the job right here,” she mentioned.

“And we’ve been knocking on the door of that. I feel it's simply validity, sort of validation, that we’re a legit program.”

Halcyon days, certainly.

Pac-12 Girls’s Basketball Championship

No. 6 Utah (20-10) vs. No. 1 Stanford (27-3)

Sunday, 4 p.m. MST

At Michelob Extremely Area, Mandalay Bay Occasions Heart, Las Vegas

TV: ESPN2

Radio: ESPN AM 700

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