ST. GEORGE — Utah Tech made the most of its Division I postseason debut Monday as the No. 5-seeded Trailblazers defeated No. 12 Utah Valley 72-68 in the first round of the Hercules Tires Western Athletic Conference Women’s Basketball Tournament at the Michelob ULTRA Arena.
Thanks to their first-ever D-I postseason victory, the Trailblazers (19-11) will now advance to face No. 4 California Baptist in the WAC quarterfinal round on Wednesday afternoon at the Orleans Arena at 3 p.m. (MT). Click here for up-to-the-minute tournament updates.
According to a news release, Utah Tech jumped out to an 11-0 lead, forcing the Wolverines to call a timeout 2 minutes into the game.
Maggie McCord got the run started with a 3-pointer, which was followed by a Breaunna Gillen trey, an Averi Papa jumper and an Emily Isaacson corner three as Utah Tech hit its first four shots.
UVU, however, responded with a 17-5 run to go up 17-16 before Gillen halted the streak with a leaner in the lane to put UT back on top, and the Trailblazers would hold a 23-19 advantage after a Brooke Vance 3-pointer just seconds before the first quarter horn sounded.
Utah Valley (6-24) would flip the script to start the second quarter, beginning the frame with eight-unanswered points in outscoring the Trailblazers 16-5 to open up a 35-28 lead midway through the period.
Vance snapped the run with her second 3-pointer, which was followed by an Isaacson putback and a McCord long-range jumper as Utah Tech pulled ahead by one at 36-35 with 2:27 to go in the half.
But again, the Wolverines would not be denied, scoring the final six points to take a 41-36 lead at the intermission.
UVU would up its lead to seven to begin the second half, but Utah Tech came back with a 14-2 run to go back in front 50-45 with 5:14 left in the third.
Isaacson kickstarted the run with a three, while the Trailblazers did most of their damage in the low block, scoring eight straight from point-blank range before a McCord trey gave Utah Tech its biggest lead since the first-quarter run.
Clinging to a 58-57 advantage entering the fourth quarter, Blazer forward Averi Papa got UT off on the right foot with a bucket down low. But that basket would be the last Utah Tech would hit over the next 4 minutes as UVU rattled off a 9-0 spurt to jump back on top at 66-60 with 5:28 remaining.
McCord ended the Blazer drought with her fifth 3-pointer of the game, which was followed 1 minute later by an Amber Kartchner perimeter jumper that tied the game at 66 all with 4:15 to go.
UVU forward Shay Fano gave the Wolverines the lead on the ensuing possession, albeit briefly as the Trailblazers kept their in-state rivals off the scoreboard over the final 3:54 of the game.
McCord, who led all scorers with 19 points, tied the game on a back-door feed from Isaacson, while Gillen put Utah Tech up for good with a spinning baseline drive and bucket with 2:04 to go.
Both teams traded multiple empty possessions, and Isaacson iced the game with two free throws with 3.4 seconds left to send Utah Tech on to the next round.
McCord’s 19 points tied her season high, and her five 3-pointers (5-of-9) also matched a season-high set in UT’s home win over Utah State. She finished the game 7-of-11 from the floor and collected four rebounds, one assist and one steal.
Gillen filled the stat sheet with 16 points, seven assists and six boards, while Isaacson chipped in 12 points and pulled down a team-high eight rebounds.
Utah Tech shot 45.8 percent (25-of-55) from the floor, which included a 12-of-33 effort (.364) from 3-point country. The 12 made threes marked the 18th time this season that the Trailblazers had hit at least 10 3-pointers in a game.