SALT LAKE CITY – The BYU women’s basketball team (5-4)  earned three points in the Deseret First Duel by defeating the Utah Utes (7-1) 53-48 at the Jon M. Hunstman Center on Saturday.

“This was a good win for us, we really needed it,” BYU head coach Jeff Judkins said. “This was a great game, a defensive battle by both teams. I give a lot of credit to the defensive effort from our wings.”

Senior guard Haley Steed led all scorers and tied her season-high with 22 points on 7-for-15 shooting, including 3-for-6 from three and 5-for-6 from the line. She also tallied six rebounds and three assists. Junior Stephanie Vermunt Seaborn came off the bench adding 12 more points and four rebounds to help BYU secure the victory.

“I have to give Haley a lot of credit, she’s a special player,” Judkins said. “It’s also good to see Stephanie come out and have a good game.”

BYU led throughout most of the game but Utah fought back late in the second half to take the lead but couldn’t hold on to it.

The Cougar defense held Utah to just 25.5 percent shooting and 7.7 percent from behind the arc. The Cougars made eight 3-pointers compared to just one for the Utes.

Junior Kim Parker Beeston drained a 3-pointer to open the game. It took nearly three minutes for either team to score.

Four minutes later, Seaborn drove the lane and drew a foul on a left-handed layup attempt. She made both free throws to put the Cougars ahead 7-5.

Back-to-back 3-pointers from Xojian Harry and Seaborn with 9:30 remaining in the first half gave BYU an eight-point advantage, 13-5.

The Cougars responded to a 7-2 Utah run with a Beeston trey and a Seaborn layup with 4:50 remaining.

Utah scored a couple of layups before Seaborn threw a no-look pass to a wide-open Steed who hit another 3-pointer to put BYU up 26-19 with 1:53 left in the half.

The first half ended at 28-21 with two more Ute free throws and a driving Steed layup.

BYU shot 40.6 percent from the field and 55.6 percent from beyond the arc while holding Utah to just 24 percent, including 12.5 percent from three in the first 20 minutes of play.

Steed hit the first basket of the next period on a short floater in the paint. Then with 16:46 left to play, Steed hit another jumper to give her team the lead, 32-23. Her basket also put her in the 1,000-Point Club with 1,001 career points.

The Utes fought back to bring the game within two, 34-32, before Steed hit another 3-pointer and a free throw with 10:05 left in the game.

With the game tied at 40, Steed answered with a shot from 3-point land with six minutes remaining and then a jumper from the top of the key on the next possession to put BYU up, 45-40.

Utah saw its first lead of the game 48-46, on an 8-2 run with 1:46 left to play. The next time down the floor, Steed missed a trey but Hamson got the offensive rebound, which led to a Seaborn 3-pointer to give BYU the 49-48 lead.

On the next possession, Steed grabbed a Utah miss then she was intentionally fouled twice to put her on the line where she made 2-of-2. Those two points put BYU ahead, 51-48.

The Utes missed another shot and Steed hauled in the board then was quickly fouled again. She made both from the charity stripe, giving BYU a five-point lead with just 0:14 remaining. The game ended as Utah missed its last shot and BYU was able to run out the clock.

The Cougars take on Tulsa on Dec. 15 at 2:00 p.m. at the Marriott Center. The game will be broadcast on BYUtv.

Postgame Notes

Team

BYU shot 41 percent from the field and 83 percent from 3-point range in the first half. The team finished the game shooting 35 percent from the field and 81 percent from behind the arc. The Cougars made eight 3-pointers compared to just one for the Utes.

For the game, BYU outrebounded Utah 38 to 35 and scored 10 second chance points.

The Cougar bench outscored the Ute bench 19 to eight in the road win.

The Cougars improved their record to 4-2 when making five or more 3-pointers, 3-2 when outrebounding opponents and 5-3 when leading at the half.

Player

With 16:46 left in the game, Haley Steed made a jumper and became BYU’s 23^rd player to reach 1,000-points with 1,001. Her game high 22 give her a total of 1,014. The points marked the third double figure game in points on the season.

Stephanie Vermont Seaborne came off the bench to lead all scorers in the first half with nine points. She finished the game with 12 marking her first game scoring in double digits on the season.

Morgan Bailey grabbed a team-best eight rebounds in the game.

After an 81-77 home win over in-state rival Utah State, the Cougar women’s basketball team (4-4)  prepares for its next rivalry game. BYU travels to Salt Lake City to battle Utah (7-0) on Saturday, Dec. 8 at 3 p.m., in the Deseret First Duel matchup between the two schools.

Fans can follow the action on BYU Radio (Satellite Sirius XM 143)

BYU Capsule
The game at the Huntsman Center will be BYU’s sixth road contest of the year. Its record when playing away from home is 2-3 to date. A win at Utah would not only give BYU three points in the Desert First Duel, but would also give the Cougars a sweep playing in-state schools this year.  They defeated Weber State 80-55 and Utah State 81-77.

• Head coach: Jeff Judkins (Utah, ’78), enters his 12th season
• Team’s leading scorer: #5 Jennifer Hamson, 23.0 ppg*
• Team’s leading rebounder: #5 Hamson, 14.0 rpg*
• Team’s assist leader: #33 Haley Steed, 8.0 apg
• Team’s steals leader: #33 Steed, 2.4 spg
*Not available until volleyball season is over

BYU’S PROJECTED STARTING LINEUP
33 Haley Steed – (5-4 guard, GS) 7.5 ppg; 3.6 rpg; 8.0 apg
#4 Kim Parker Beeston – (5-11 guard, Jr) 11.0 ppg; 4.8 rpg; 2.1 apg
#11 Xojian Harry – (5-10 guard, So) 3.6 ppg; 1.0 rpg; 0.5 apg
#41 Morgan Bailey – (6-2 forward, So) 9.0 ppg; 5.9 rpg; 0.8 apg
#45 Keilani Unga – (6-2 forward, Sr) 6.6 ppg; 4.6 rpg; 0.8 apg

Injury Report
• Sophomore guard Lexi Eaton suffered a season-ending ACL injury to her right knee during the home game vs. Utah State. She will not return to play this year. Eaton has scored in double figures in the first eight games of the season.

• Sophomore guard Stephanie Rovetti suffered a cartilage injury to her left knee in a team practice. She will not be able to play this season.

UTAH Capsule
The University of Utah enters the week with a perfect 7-0 record with its latest win, a one-point, 62-61 victory at Hawai’i. The Utes return four starters from last year’s team that compiled a 16-16, 8-10 record finishing tied for seventh place in the Pac-12.

• Head coach: Anthony Levrets is in his third year at Utah
• Team’s leading scorer: #15 Michelle Plouffe, 17.4 ppg
• Team’s leading rebounder: #11 Taryn Wicijowski, 17.1 rpg
• Team’s assist leader: #3 Iwalani Rodrigues, 3.3 apg
• Team’s steals leader: #15 Plouffe, 2,4 spg

Series History
Utah leads the series 61-39
When playing in Salt Lake City the Cougars are 10-30
Head coach Jeff Judkins is 11-15 against the Utes

Last Meeting
In last year’s Deseret First Duel played in Provo on Dec. 10, 2011, the Cougars picked up the 63-58 home win led by Stephanie Vermunt who came off the bench to score a team-best 14 points, all from 3-point range. Haley Steed and Dani Peterson also recorded double figures in points with 12 and 10 respectively. Steed also topped the team in rebounds and in assists grabbing nine boards and eight assists. BYU shot 42 percent from the field, 40 percent from behind the arc and 73 percent at the free throw line.

For Utah, Michelle Plouffe led all scorers with 21 points and grabbed a team-high nine rebounds. Senior Janita Badon contributed 10 points and five assists. The Utes shot 39 percent from the field, 50 percent from 3-point range and 67 percent from the charity stripe.

Up Next
After Saturday’s game at Utah, the Cougar women return home for the next five games. They begin the homestand hosting Tulsa on Saturday, Dec. 15 at 2 p.m., followed by a visit from UC Santa Barbara on Tuesday, Dec. 18 at 2 p.m. Both games are scheduled to air live on BYUtv.