Box Score

SPOKANE, Wash. — Despite 18 points from junior guard Cassie Broadhead, BYU fell to Gonzaga 87-52 at the McCarthey Athletic Center on Thursday.

"Gonzaga played a great game tonight," BYU head coach Jeff Judkins said. "They shot the 3 as good as any team has against us all year. I thought we competed, but we just didn’t execute on offense or defense. We played a little better in the second half."

Broadhead had a game-high 18 points, while Kalani Purcell tallied a game-high 10 rebounds.

On the first possession of play, Broadhead put the Cougars (13-9, 7-4 West Coast Conference) on the board as she came off a Purcell screen and nailed the jumper. Gonzaga (18-4, 9-2,WCC) then scored 12 consecutive points to take the 10-point 12-2 lead.

With 3:57 to go in the first quarter, Broadhead scored again for the Cougars. Her layup made the score 12-4, giving BYU its first two points since the opening possession. The Cougars trailed the Bulldogs by 11, 17-6, going into the second quarter.

Liz Eaton entered the game in the second quarter providing instant offense for BYU. Eaton made her first three attempt of the game to make the score 20-9.

The Bulldogs then went on a 9-1 run, backed by six points from Emma Stach to make the score 29-10.  Broadhead and Makenzi Pulsipher then cut into the Bulldog lead, hitting five free throws between the two of them.

The Cougars went into halftime trailing by 23, 39-16. Broadhead scored eight of BYU’s 16 first half points.

After three Gonzaga points to open the half, Broadhead pushed the ball up court and finished a fast break layup. At the 6:20 mark, Micaelee Orton finished the 3-point play to cut into the Bulldog advantage, making the score 45-24. BYU then continued its 10-0 run as Nielson and Broadhead both made baskets.

Gonzaga went on an 8-2 run increasing the lead back to 23, 53-30. BYU went into the fourth quarter down by 25, 57-32.

Broadhead scored the Cougars’ first four points of the quarter. Gonzaga extended its lead to 30, 67-37, with 6:05 to go. Jessica Chatman came off the bench for the Cougars and hit two three throws for BYU.

BYU women's basketball will travel to Portland Saturday to take on the Pilots for the first time this season. Teams will tip off at 3 p.m. MT. The game can be streamed on theW.tv and can be listened to on BYU Radio - Sirius XM 143. Links to live stats can also be found on the BYU women's basketball schedule page.

Postgame Notes

Team

With the 87-52 loss at Gonzaga, BYU is now 13-9, 7-4 on the season.

For the game, BYU had 20 points in the paint to Gonzaga’s 16.

The Bulldogs scored 21 points off of Cougar miscues while BYU put in 14 points from Bulldog turnovers.

BYU finished the game shooting 72.0 (18-25) percent from the free-throw line. Gonzaga shot 72.7 (16-22) percent from the charity stripe.

Player

Cassie Broadhead led the Cougars in the first half of play with eight points. She picked up her 21st game scoring in double figures with a game-high 18 points. Broadhead went 4 of 4 from the charity stripe, grabbed three rebounds, had two assists and one block in the game.

Kalani Purcell had the most rebounds by any player through the first 20 minutes of action with six.  She also had two assists for team bests in that category in the first half of play.  She finished the game with a game-high 10 rebounds along with six points and a team-best four assists.

Makenzi Pulsipher was perfect from the free-throw line in the first half going 4 of 4. She finished the game with seven points, two rebounds and a team-high three steals.

Micaelee Orton came off the bench scoring five points while going 3 of 3 from the free-throw line. She also had one block.

Jasmine Moody and Liz Eaton both came off the bench for the Cougars, contributing four points each. Eaton grabbed three rebounds while Moody pulled down two boards.

PROVO, Utah—BYU women’s basketball (13-8, 7-3 WCC) is back on the road this week in West Coast Conference action. The Cougar women, who are tied with Saint Mary’s for second place in the latest league standings, are at Gonzaga (17-4, 8-2 WCC) on Thursday, Feb. 2, at 6 p.m. PST. The game against the Bulldogs can be heard live on BYU Radio and will be streamed live on TheW.tv

BYU at Portland Game Notes

BYU at Gonzaga Game Notes

On Saturday, Feb. 4, BYU continues league play on the road. The team is at Portland to take on the Pilots (4-17, 2-8 WCC) in a 2 p.m. PST., tilt. Fans can follow the action live on BYU Radio and on the Internet at TheW.tv

BYU AT A GLANCE
Three players provide the majority of BYU’s offensive threat, led by 19.1 points from junior guard Cassie Broadhead. She also leads the WCC in scoring. Senior guard Makenzi Pulsipher follows with 13.4 points and 3.7 boards. Senior All-American Kalani Purcell rounds out the scoring output for BYU by averaging a double-double with 12.1 points and a team-and league-high 10.7 boards per game.

Now in the sixth week of league action, the Cougars are scoring 67.2 points per game while shooting 42.5 percent from the field, 34.5 percent from behind the arc and 70.3 percent from the free-throw line. The team also grabs 36.4 rebounds a contest.

In conference only stats, BYU leads in field goal percentage, field goal percentage defense, assists, defensive rebounds, 3-point field goals made and is tied with Gonzaga in steals.

• Head coach: Jeff Judkins (Utah, ‘78), 16th season
• Team’s leading scorer: #20 C. Broadhead, 19.1 ppg
• Team’s leading rebounder: #32 K. Purcell, 10.7 rpg
• Team’s assists leader: #32 K. Purcell, 5.1 apg
• Team’s steals leader: #32 Purcell, 2.2 spg
• Team’s blocks leader: #20 C. Broadhead/#32 K. Purcell, .95

GONZAGA AT A GLANCE
Gonzaga is in first place in the latest WCC standings with a 17-4, 8-2 conference record. The team’s two league losses were against Pepperdine and Pacific. The Bulldogs are 10-1 overall at home and 4-1 in league play.

Jill Barta is the lone player for Gonzaga that is putting up double digits in points with a team-best 17.8 ppg and 6.4 rebounds a contest. Kiara Kudron tops the list in the rebounds category with a 7.7 average.

The Bulldogs are shooting 43.1 percent from the field and 75.6 percent from the free-throw line while scoring 72.3 points and pulling down 40.2 boards a game.

• Head coach: Lisa Fortier (Cal-State Monterey Bay, ‘04), Third season
• Team’s leading scorer: #13 J. Barta, 17.8 ppg
• Team’s leading rebounder: #23 K. Kudron, 7.7 rpg
• Team’s assists leader: #11 L. Stockton, 4.7 apg
• Team’s steals leader: #31 E. Tinkle, 2.0 spg
• Team’s blocks leader: #13 J. Barta, 1.1 bpg

THE SERIES
Gonzaga leads the series 12-8. When playing in Spokane, BYU has a 2-7 mark. Head coach Jeff Judkins is 6-11 vs. the Bulldogs. The last time that the Cougars won in Spokane was on Dec. 2, 2000, a 74-57 BYU victory.

PORTLAND AT A GLANCE
The Portland Pilots enter this week’s WCC race with a 4-17, 2-8 record. They are at Santa Clara on Thursday night before hosting the Cougar women on Saturday afternoon.

Portland swept the series with Pepperdine for its two league victories.

The Pilots have 10 letterwinners returning, including all five starters. They currently have two players scoring in double figures. Darian Slaga tops the list averaging 11.0 points per game while teammate Kaylie Van Loo contributes 10.1 points a contest. Julie Spencer is the team’s leading rebounder, pulling down 7.4 boards a game.  Portland is averaging 57.5 points, grabs 34.6 rebounds while shooting 35.7 percent from the field, 29.6 percent from 3-point land and 70.0 percent from the charity stripe.

• Head coach: Cheryl Sorenson (Washington, ‘03), Second season
• Team’s leading scorer: #32 D. Slaga, 11.0 ppg
• Team’s leading rebounder: #23 J. Spencer, 7.4 rpg
• Team’s assists leader: #03 K. Van Loo, 5.2 apg
• Team’s steals leader: #03 K. Van Loo, 2.0 spg
• Team’s blocks leader: #23 J. Spencer, .62 bpg

THE SERIES
BYU leads the series 18-4. When playing in Portland, the Cougar women have a 9-2 mark. BYU has not lost at the Chiles Center since 1997, when it fell to the Pilots, 87-63, on November 15. Head coach Jeff Judkins is 14-0 all-time against Portland.

COMING UP
After Saturday’s game at Portland, BYU returns home to host two WCC teams. On Thursday, Feb. 9, the Cougar women host Pepperdine in a 7 p.m. MST tip. Then Saturday, Feb. 11, BYU is at home hosting San Francisco. That game begins at 2 p.m. MST. Both home contests will air live on BYUtv and simulcast on BYU Radio.