No. 18 Utah women run away with 82-67 win over Washington State

From staff reports

SALT LAKE CITY – No. 18 Utah went up big early and preserved a double-digit lead throughout the second half of a runaway win over Washington State.

The Utes breezed past the Cougars 82-67 on Thursday afternoon in a Pac-12 women’s basketball game at the Huntsman Center, dealing WSU its seventh loss this month.

WSU (17-13, 6-11 Pac-12) looked like an NCAA Tournament contender last month, but the team lost its star player on Jan. 28 and faded during a grueling February.

The Cougars went 2-7 in February – five losses came against ranked opponents. WSU hasn’t been the same team since star guard Charlisse Leger-Walker sustained a season-ending knee injury during an 85-82 win at No. 2 UCLA.

The Utes (21-8, 11-6) completed a season sweep of WSU. Utah beat the Cougars 73-61 on Feb. 4 in Pullman.

In the rematch, Utah jumped out to a 14-2 lead after less than 3 minutes. WSU guard Tara Wallack hit back-to-back 3s late in the second quarter to cut the deficit to eight points, but the Utes rallied quickly and stayed comfortably ahead the rest of the way, leading by as many as 26 points midway through the fourth period.

The Cougars shot 43.5% from the field and 5 of 18 (27.8%) from 3-point range. Utah hit 54.1% of its field-goal attempts and went 11 for 25 (44%) on 3-pointers.

Center Bella Murekatete led WSU with 14 points. Sophomore guard Kyra Gardner had a season-high 13 points, and Wallack added 11 points.

Utah guard Kennady McQueen scored 22 points on 9-of-13 shooting from the floor, and All-American forward Alissa Pili had 21 points (9-of-15 shooting from the floor) and 12 rebounds.

WSU concludes its regular season Saturday on the road against No. 13 Colorado. Tipoff is scheduled for noon from the CU Events Center.