Women's Basketball Cruises Past USC

SALT LAKE CITY – The Utah women's basketball team cruised to its fourth straight win on Wednesday afternoon as the Utes defeated USC, 91-69, at the Jon M. Huntsman Center. The 91 points are the most points the Utes have scored in a conference game in the Pac-12 era.
 
Kennady McQueen led all scorers in the game with a career-high 22 points. She hit 6-of-7 threes for the Utes (14-7, 5-4 Pac-12), setting a career-high. Jenna Johnson added 16 points and Gianna Kneepkens and Dasia Young had 10 points each. Kelsey Rees had a team-high seven rebounds, while Isabel Palmer dished out six assists in the contest against the Trojans (9-12, 2-9 Pac-12).
 
After the Trojans scored the first basketball of the game, the Utes answered back, and a layup by Jenna Johnson put the Utes ahead 10-4. The Trojans answered back and tied the game at 12-12 with 4:59 left in the first quarter before the Utes started pulling away. Utah closed out the first quarter on a 10-1 run, taking a nine-point lead, 22-13, after one-quarter of play.
 
Opening the second quarter, a layup by Peyton McFarland put the Utes ahead by 11, 24-13. After an old-fashion three-point play, the Trojans trimmed the lead down to seven before Utah stretched the lead back to 13, 32-19. The Trojans trimmed the Utes lead down to nine before Utah closed out the half 11-0 run to end the half, and Utah took a 48-28 lead into the break.
 
Over the first two minutes of the third quarter, the Utes increased its lead to 25 points, 55-30, after a Gianna Kneepkens layup. The Utes continued to add to the lead, and an Inês Vieira three-pointer put the Utes ahead by 28, 60-32. Utah continued to hold onto a 20 or more-point lead for the remainder of the quarter and, after three-quarters of play, led 74-47.
 
Kneepkens came out and hit a three before the Trojans started mounting a comeback and went on a 15-3 run and had the Utah lead down to 13, 80-67, with 4:11 left to play in the game. McQueen continued to dominate as she got the Utes scoring, as she hit two more three-pointers and helped the Utes get back to a 20-point lead. Utah came away with a 91-69 victory. 
 
GAME LEADERS
Kennady McQueen led all scorers in the game with a career-high 22 points. She hit 6-of-7 threes for the setting a career-high. Jenna Johnson added 16 points and Gianna Kneepkens and Dasia Young had 10 points each. Kelsey Rees had a team-high seven rebounds, while Isabel Palmer dished out six assists in the contest.
 
TALKING ABOUT THE GAME: HEAD COACH LYNNE ROBERTS
"This was a really good win. We scored 91 points and won by 22. We didn't play perfectly but certainly shared the ball well. We had 20 assists on 31 made baskets, and I thought our defense was pretty dang good. They just got the free-throw line a lot. We need to adjust and make those adjustments. They have some incredible athletes inside, and I thought we did a good job. Everyone contributed to the victory today. This is a great win. I'm really proud of our team."
 
STANDOUT STAT
- The Utes scored 91 points against the Trojans. This is the most points the Utes have scored in a conference game in the Pac-12 era and the most in any conference game since 2010.
- Kennady McQueen had a career day for the Utes. She sent a career-high in points with 22 and made a career-high six three-pointers in the win. Her six three-pointers are the fourth most threes made in a single game since the 2009-10 season.
 
UP NEXT
Utah travels to Stanford, Calif. to face No. 2 Stanford on Friday night at Maples Pavilion. The Utes and the Cardinal will tip-off at 8 p.m. MT. You can turn on ESPN700 and hear Tyson Ewing and Milee Enger on the call. The contest will also be streamed on the Pac-12 Networks.  
 
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