MORAGA, Calif. - The Saint Mary's Women's Basketball Team gave the No. 20 BYU Cougars all they could handle on Saturday afternoon at UCU Pavilion, keeping the Cougars from gaining any separation until the final three minutes of the game. BYU (21-2, 11-1) would eventually secure an 84-69 victory over the Gaels who are now 12-12 overall and 6-7 in WCC play.
 
NO FEAR OF GOLIATH
Saint Mary's led 23-16 at the end of the first quarter and 42-40 at the half. They trailed by just three going into the fourth quarter, and it wasn't until the final few minutes that BYU gained a double-digit lead taking advantage of 10 Gaels turnovers in the fourth quarter.
 
The Gaels got out to a nine-point lead after an Ali Bamberger layup with 37 seconds left in the first quarter for the team's largest lead of the night. They shot 61.5% in the first quarter and kept BYU to just 36.8% from the field.
 
The Cougars cut the Gaels lead to one midway through the second quarter, but a Taycee Wedin three pointer put the lead right back to four for Saint Mary's. However, a momentum-turning call hit the Gaels on the next possession that left the SMC faithful, coaches, players, and students up in arms when a surprising offensive foul was called on Wedin.
 
That led to the Cougars taking their first lead of the game on their next possession. But Tayla Dalton put the Gaels back on top and Hannah Rapp and Ellie Croco each hit a pair of free throws to make sure Saint Mary's went into the locker room with a two-point lead.
 
BYU got their offense going in the second quarter by shooting 55.6%, and though the Gaels shot 77.8% in the period, the volume of shots that was quite different, as the Cougars were 10 of 18 to the Gaels 7 of 9. SMC was 3 of 5 from deep, but BYU scored 11 points off turnovers compared to just four off takeaways for the Gaels.
 
BACK-AND-FORTH SECOND HALF
Nonetheless the Gaels were still up by two and extended their lead back to six points after another Wedin three pointer just a minute and a half into the third. But from their BYU went on a 7-0 run to take a one-point lead. That's were a back-and-forth game broke out with five more lead changes and two ties for the most exciting, evenly-matched stretch of action on the day.
 
BYU lead by three going into the fourth and began to assert themselves as soon as the fourth started. But the Gaels did not roll over as Madeline Holland scored two straight buckets to cut eight-point deficit back to four. But after a BYU timeout they went on an 11-0 run to finish the game and win 84-69.
 
The Gaels hot shooting cooled off in the fourth as they couldn't get some good looks to go down and were bitten by committing seven more turnovers than the Cougars. Saint Mary's shot just 30.8% in the fourth, after shooting no lower than 50% in the previous three periods. It was the flip of the Cougars shooting as they shot no lower than their 53% in the fourth after their cold first quarter.
 
TOP PERFORMERS
Bamberger narrowly missed her eighth double-double with 17 points and nine rebounds. Holland and Dalton each had 13 points, with Holland adding seven rebounds. Wedin hit two more three pointers, giving her 283 in her career as she extends the Saint Mary's career record and closes in on the WCC record of 298.
 
The Gaels shot 53.1% overall and 39% from three-point range to the Cougars 50.7% and just 25% from three. But BYU had 71 shots to SMC's 39 spurred on by the Cougars winning the turnover battle 28-10, even though the Gaels had a 34-26 rebounding advantage.
 
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