Weber State University Athletics
Weber State University
Brigham Young
Wildcats Take Down BYU in Double OT
12/10/2009 3:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
OGDEN, Utah -- The Weber State women's basketball team (5-4) used a great defensive effort and a couple extra periods to defeat Brigham Young (5-3) 62-61 in double overtime on Wednesday night at the Dee Events Center.
"I couldn't be more proud of our players and the way they bought into the gameplan tonight," said WSU head coach Carla Taylor. "We felt like we had to pressure and be aggressive against BYU because of their motion offense."
The Wildcats prevailed in a game that saw 13 lead changes and 17 ties. Ali Thorderson's free throw with 26 seconds left in the second overtime provided the winning margin after the Wildcats survived three Cougar misses over the final 16 seconds.
The Wildcats led by seven points with 6:21 left in the first half after Ali Thorderson hit the Wildcats' lone three-point field goal of the night. The seven-point margin was the largest lead for either team on the night. The Wildcats led by six at the half with a 23-17 margin.
Weber State also led by six with 4:19 left to play in the second half, but the Cougars closed regulation play with a 10-4 run, capped by Kristen Riley's trey with 30 seconds left to send the game into overtime.
In the first overtime, BYU took a 55-53 lead on Jazmine Foreman's layup with 31 seconds left, but Sarah Conner hit a driving layup down the right side of the paint to give WSU another life.
WSU scored the first four points of the second overtime, but a pair of baskets by Foreman again tied the score, this time at 59-59. Tonya Schnibbe hit a pair of free throws with 59 seconds left to put the 'Cats ahead 61-59, but BYU's Mindy Neilson scored on a layup ten seconds later to knot the game one final time.
After the Wildcats lost possession of the ball on a Jazmine Foreman steal, Ali Thorderson stole the ball back for WSU and was fouled, leading to her go ahead shot from the line.
The Wildcats forced 28 turnovers on the night, out-doing a strong defensive effort by the Cougars, who forced 22 turnovers of their own. Weber State scored 25 points off turnovers, compared to 17 by BYU.
The Cougars dominated the boards, out-rebounding the Wildcats 47-31 overall, and 22 to 7 in offensive rebounds.
"We definitely have some things to work on," said Taylor. "They absolutely kicked our tail on the boards, especially on the offensive end. But give credit to BYU there. They're physical, they're aggressive, and they're athletic."
Caitlin Anderson and Schnibbe each scored 16 points to lead the Wildcats, while Mikell Woodfield added 10 points off the bench. Anderson and Joey O'Neill each grabbed a team-high five rebounds for WSU, while Conner and Schnibbe dished out six and five assists, respectively.
Neilson led all players with 18 points, while Keilani Moeaki and Foreman each added 11 for BYU. Riley gave the Cougars four players in double figures with 10 points. Coriann Wood grabbed a game-high 11 rebounds off the bench for the Cougars. Haley Hall led all players with seven assists for the Cougars before fouling out late in the second half.
The Wildcats now head out on the road to face Oregon State and Western Oregon, which will kick off a six-game road swing. The stretch will begin against the Beavers on Saturday, Dec. 12 in Corvallis, Ore.
