BYU cruises to 24-point win over San Francisco

PROVO, Utah — BYU women’s basketball opened West Coast Conference play with a 70-46 win over San Francisco at the Marriott Center on Monday. Three different Cougars scored in double figures on the afternoon, including Lauren Gustin, who tallied her fourth double-double of the season.

BYU vs. San Francisco Final Box Score

“I was really proud of our defense tonight,” BYU head coach Jeff Judkins said. “I thought we played really physical. We busted through a lot of screens, especially their flares, and especially Maria (Albiero). I thought Maria did a great job on their leading scorer (Ioanna Krimili), she held her below her average, and I think that was the key to our game.”

Gustin finished with 15 points and tied her career high of 17 rebounds. Shaylee Gonzales had 16 points, six assists, six rebounds and four steals, while Paisley Johnson Harding added 15 points.

BYU (5-1, 1-0) outrebounded USF (4-3, 0-1) by 13 and also scored 36 points in the paint compared to the Dons’ 10.

The Dons took a 2-0 lead early before Gustin scored in the paint to tie it up at 2-2. The Cougars then went up 6-4 after back-to-back Sara Hamson layups. A Hamson free throw, Gustin layup and Shaylee Gonzales jumper capped a 9-0 run as BYU opened up an early 11-4 lead.

Coming out of a USF timeout, Gonzales finished a layup on a backdoor cut off a Hamson pass. After both teams hit one free throw each, the Dons scored five straight to cut the Cougars’ lead to four, but a Gustin layup and two Gonzales free throws made it an eight-point game again.

USF’s Ioanna Krimilli hit a jumper in the key with time running down in the first quarter to make it 18-12, BYU. Krimilli led the Dons with five first quarter points. Gustin had seven points and Hamson added five for the Cougars.

BYU took a 20-13 second quarter lead on a Hamson layup, but a USF jumper cut the Cougar lead back to five. A Gustin jumper and one Paisley Johnson-Harding free throw then gave BYU a 23-15 advantage. The Dons kept things close with a transition jumper and layup inside, making it 23-19, but layups by Harding and Gonzales had the Cougars ahead 27-19. Another Harding layup made it 29-21 but the Dons scored once more before a Gonzales layup right before the halftime buzzer gave BYU a 31-23 lead.

The Cougars shot 43% from the field but went 0-5 from three in the first 20 minutes. Gonzales led all scorers with 10 first half points. Gustin scored nine points, Hamson added seven points and Harding had five points at the half.Lucie Hoskova led USF with eight first half points. The Dons shot 36% from the field and 10% from beyond the arc in the half.

BYU opened the second half on a 4-0 run from layups by Harding and Hamson, stretching the Cougars’ lead to 12 points. Gustin scored down low and Gonzales added another layup, putting BYU up 39-28. A driving Harding layup then gave the Cougars a 13-point lead at 41-28.

Tegan Graham got on the board with a jumper and then Harding completed a three-point play to put the Cougars up 16. BYU led 48-32 after a Gonzales layup and took an 18-point lead on a Gustin layup.

Graham connected from long range to score the Cougars’ first 3-pointer and another Gustin layup made it 55-35. Harding then knocked down a triple and BYU took a 22-point lead into the fourth quarter. The Cougars ended the third quarter on a 7-0 run on 4 of 4 shooting. Gustin, who had 15 points and 14 rebounds after three, secured her fourth double-double of the year early in the quarter.

USF scored three-straight points in the fourth quarter before Gonzales broke the 2-3 zone with a layup, making it 60-39. Kaylee Smiler then hit a three in transition and a pair of free throws. One free throw by Tahlia White gave BYU a game-high 27-point lead.

Kyra Beckman scored down low and the Cougars went up 68-44. Beckman got another layup as Smiler broke the USF full-court press before BYU secured the win, 70-46.

The Cougars shot 46.8% from the field and 20% from beyond the arc. Hamson finished with nine points, four rebounds, two assists and one block. Graham and Smiler each added give points. BYU held USF to 26.7% from the field and 12.5% from deep. Hoskova and Krimili each finished with 10 points for the Dons.

The Cougars will be back at the Marriott Center on Wednesday, Dec. 30 at 2 p.m. MST to face Santa Clara. The game will be televised live on BYUtv and streamed on the BYUtv app.

Team Notes

• In the first half, the Cougars shot 43% from the floor while the Dons shot 36%. BYU finished the game with a 46.8 shooting percentage compared to San Francisco’s 26.7%
• BYU had 16 points in the paint through the first 20 compared to the Dons’ four. The Cougars ended the contest with 36 points in the paint while San Francisco had 10.
•  Three different players scored in double figures for BYU for the third time this season (Gonzales, Gustin and Harding)
• The Cougars outrebounded San Francisco 47-34
• In assists, BYU dished out 17 assists compared to the Dons’ 8
• The Cougars had 5 blocks while San Francisco had none

Player Notes

• Gustin had a near double-double at the break, racking up 9 points, 10 rebounds, two steals, an assist and a block in the first 20 minutes. She finished the game with 15 points, 17 rebounds, two steals, two assists and one block. The double-double was her fourth of the season
• Gonzales led all scorers at the break with 10 points to go along with three rebounds, two assists and two steals. She ended with a game-high 16 points, six assists, six rebounds and a game-high four steals
• Harding added 15 points, two assists, one rebound and a steal in 21 minutes of action
• Hamson shot a perfect 3 of 3 from the floor in the first half, tallying seven points, three rebounds, two steals and one assist. She ended the game with a season-high nine points, four rebounds, two assists and a block
• Smiler and Graham each recorded five points off the bench for BYU, while Kyra Beckman had four