LAS -- Cassie King’s career-high 19 points and 13 rebounds help the Cougars come from behind after trailing most of the second half to defeat UNLV 67-62 in Las Vegas, Wednesday. The double-double was King’s first of her career.
“This was a huge win for us,” said BYU head coach Jeff Judkins, “especially since it came on the road. Cassie had a great game, it was one of her best.”
The Rebels and the Cougars each led three times during the first half. UNLV went in to the break leading by six, 34-28. The Rebels shot 10 free throws in the first twenty minutes, compared to only two for the Cougars.
Mindy Nielson had 10 points, two rebounds, three assists and three steals before the break.
UNLV continued to lead throughout most of the second half, but the Cougars kept within four points, matching the Rebels almost basket-for-basket.
Nielson led all scorers with 21 points, and King led all rebounders. Nielson and King were the two Cougars in double-figures. The Rebels outrebounded BYU 44-39, and had 25 second-chance points to UNLV’s 10.
The homestanding Rebels led by eight, 58-50 with 5:02 remaining. King’s free-throw tied the contest at 60 with 2:08 left.
BYU’s tough defense held UNLV without a bucket for 3:39, from the 4:22 mark to the 0:42 mark. Nielson hit a three-point shot to put the Cougars up three, 63-60, with 1:24 left. The lead was BYU's first of the second half.
“The team played great defense tonight,” said Judkins. “It really helped us to close out strong.”
With the win, BYU improved to 13-3 (3-1, MWC) and the Rebels fell to 8-10 (1-4, MWC). The Cougars have not lost two games in a row this season.
The Cougars continue their Mountain West Conference road trip with a visit to San Diego State on Sat., Jan 24. The game against the Aztecs will tip off at 2:00 p.m., PT. Live audio and stat feeds can be accessed from the women’s basketball page at: www.byucougars.com/basketball_w/.
BYU will then host in-state rival Utah in the first women’s basketball Deseret Duel of the 2008-09 season. The Utes will visit the Marriott Center on Wednesday, Jan. 28, at 7:00 p.m. The game will be broadcast live on BYUTV.
Official Basketball Box ScoreBrigham Young vs UNLV
01/21/09 7:00 PM at Las Vegas,Nev. (Cox Pavilion)
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VISITORS: Brigham Young 13-3,3-1 MWC
TOT-FG 3-PT REBOUNDS
## Player Name FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA OF DE TOT PF TP A TO BLK S MIN
32 SLADE, Shawnee...... f 3-14 2-2 0-0 2 1 3 3 8 0 0 1 0 32
45 MOEAKI, Keilani..... f 3-4 0-0 0-0 0 2 2 3 6 0 3 1 0 15
54 KING, Cassie........ c 8-12 0-1 3-3 8 5 13 3 19 4 0 0 1 28
03 FOREMAN, Jazmine.... g 3-11 1-4 2-3 1 1 2 4 9 3 0 0 2 35
22 NIELSON, Mindy...... g 7-13 2-4 5-6 0 6 6 2 21 4 2 1 6 40
01 JACKSON, Jenteal.... 0-3 0-2 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 5
14 HOSTETTER, Sarah R.. 0-3 0-3 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 7
21 BUHLER, Stephanie... 0-2 0-2 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1
23 WOOD, Coriann....... 0-6 0-1 0-0 2 5 7 2 0 2 2 2 0 25
35 RILEY, Kristen...... 2-3 0-0 0-0 2 3 5 1 4 0 1 0 0 12
TEAM................ 1 1
Totals.............. 26-71 5-19 10-12 15 24 39 18 67 13 9 5 9 200
TOTAL FG% 1st Half: 12-30 40.0% 2nd Half: 14-41 34.1% Game: 36.6% DEADB
3-Pt. FG% 1st Half: 3-9 33.3% 2nd Half: 2-10 20.0% Game: 26.3% REBS
F Throw % 1st Half: 1-2 50.0% 2nd Half: 9-10 90.0% Game: 83.3% 0
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HOME TEAM: UNLV 8-10,1-4 MWC
TOT-FG 3-PT REBOUNDS
## Player Name FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA OF DE TOT PF TP A TO BLK S MIN
11 SMITH, Jamie........ f 6-12 2-3 3-4 4 11 15 1 17 0 0 1 0 36
24 HAMPTON, Shamela.... c 5-11 0-0 2-3 0 7 7 3 12 2 4 1 0 36
05 HALBERG, Brittany... g 5-11 1-3 1-2 0 3 3 1 12 3 5 0 0 33
15 HELMS, Erica........ g 2-7 0-2 1-2 1 0 1 2 5 4 6 0 0 24
32 CHANEY, India....... g 2-7 0-4 1-2 0 1 1 1 5 1 1 0 1 17
01 HARRIS, Dominique... 2-4 1-1 4-6 1 4 5 2 9 1 2 0 1 23
10 HOLIDAY, Allison.... 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 3
20 SCANLON, Kalie...... 1-1 0-0 0-0 1 3 4 2 2 0 0 0 0 15
25 JUPITER, Raquel..... 0-1 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 4
33 OBERG, Shannon...... 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 5
42 GERGELOVA, Karla.... 0-0 0-0 0-0 1 0 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 4
TEAM................ 4 3 7
Totals.............. 23-54 4-13 12-19 12 32 44 12 62 11 20 2 2 200
TOTAL FG% 1st Half: 13-29 44.8% 2nd Half: 10-25 40.0% Game: 42.6% DEADB
3-Pt. FG% 1st Half: 2-7 28.6% 2nd Half: 2-6 33.3% Game: 30.8% REBS
F Throw % 1st Half: 6-10 60.0% 2nd Half: 6-9 66.7% Game: 63.2% 2
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Officials: Chuck Gonzalez, Shelley Nakasone, Darla Foutz
Technical fouls: Brigham Young-None. UNLV-None.
Attendance: 638
Score by Periods 1st 2nd Total
Brigham Young................. 28 39 - 67
UNLV.......................... 34 28 - 62
Points in the paint-BY 32,UNLV 26. Points off turnovers-BY 27,UNLV 10.
2nd chance points-BY 25,UNLV 10. Fast break points-BY 4,UNLV 2.
Bench points-BY 4,UNLV 11. Score tied-3 times. Lead changed-6 times.
Last FG-BY 2nd-01:24, UNLV 2nd-00:42.
Largest lead-BY by 8 1st-10:00, UNLV by 8 2nd-05:02.