BYU gamers rejoice the Cougars’ 66-56 win over San Francisco within the West Coast Convention event quarterfinals at Orleans Area in Las Vegas on Saturday, March 4, 2023. Nate Edwards, BYU Photograph
LAS VEGAS — It’s becoming that the BYU ladies’s basketball staff faces Gonzaga one closing time within the West Coast Convention event.
The No. 5 seed Cougars and the top-seeded Zags meet Monday (1 p.m., MST, BYUtv) within the semifinals at Orleans Area.
BYU (16-15) and Gonzaga (27-3) have met 5 occasions within the WCC event championship sport, together with prior to now two seasons.
In 2021, the Cougars led the top-seeded Zags for a lot of the sport at Orleans Area, and BYU was forward by one level with lower than one second remaining. However Jill Townsend’s jumper on the buzzer over the Cougars’ 6-foot-7 middle Sara Hamson received the title for the Bulldogs, 43-42.
Final March, BYU, the common season champs and ranked No. 15 within the nation, fell to Gonzaga 71-59.
This 12 months, Gonzaga is ranked No. 15 nationally.
The Zags boast the WCC’s Participant of the Yr, Kaylynne Truong; Coach of the Yr, Lisa Fortier; and three All-WCC First-Crew alternatives — Truong, Yvonne Ejim and Brynna Maxwell.
Gonzaga swept the season collection towards BYU. The Zags beat the Cougars 67-58 in Spokane on Dec. 17.
On Feb. 25, BYU held Gonzaga to 58 factors, a season low, and was in a one-point sport with 2:13 remaining earlier than falling 58-51 on the Marriott Middle on Senior Day.
The Cougars restricted the No. 1 3-point capturing staff within the nation to 2 of 15 from deep.
Emma Calvert scored a career-high 17 factors towards the Zags. She tied that mark Saturday within the Cougars’ 66-56 quarterfinal victory over San Francisco and hit 5 of seven 3-pointers. As a staff, BYU made a season-high 12 3-pointers.
Monday, the Cougars and Zags meet for the third time this season.
“It is going to be good to sit down down as a employees and to see what do we have to get higher at, and what do we have to change for that subsequent sport,” stated BYU coach Amber Whiting. “Simply give the ladies lots of restoration and gasoline their our bodies and ensure they’re able to go for Monday.”
Within the different semifinal sport, No. 6 Portland faces No. 2 Portland.
In BYU’s win over San Francisco on Saturday, ahead Lauren Gustin broke the WCC document for rebounds in a sport with 27. She struggled from the ground, making simply 2 of 14 shot makes an attempt.
However different Cougars stepped up, together with Calvert, Nani Falatea (15 factors) and Arielle Mackey-Williams (14 factors).
In the meantime, defensive stopper Kaylee Smiler held USF star Ioanna Krimili to 5 factors on 2 of 11 capturing.
Gustin, the nation’s prime rebounder and the WCC’s Co-Defensive Participant of the Yr, is the primary participant in faculty basketball to succeed in 500 rebounds and 500 factors this season.
Actually, BYU can have a giant problem towards Gonzaga.
Truong is averaging 16.1 factors and 4.9 assists. She poured in a career-high 27 factors towards San Francisco. Ejim averages 16.4 factors and eight.2 rebounds per sport and Maxwell averages 13.9 factors and three.9 rebounds.
What do the Cougars have to do to conquer Gonzaga?
“We’ve acquired to go guard,” Whiting stated. “Protection wins championships. I inform (the gamers) that on a regular basis. We’ve acquired to begin on the defensive finish first, the best way to cease them.”
West Coast Convention Event
No. 5 BYU (16-15) vs. No. 1 Gonzaga (27-3)
Monday, March 6, 1 p.m. MST
Orleans Area in Las Vegas
TV: BYUtv
Radio: BYU Radio/1160 AM