PROVO, Utah — Kailey Woolston led the Cougars with 18 points as BYU women’s basketball pulled away in the second half for a 74-58 win over LMU on Saturday afternoon at the Marriott Center.
With the win, BYU moved to 6-0 and notched its fifth double-digit victory of the season.
“I feel like we settled in after the first quarter and did some really good things as we took care of the ball and got good play from our women across the board,” said BYU head coach Amber Whiting.
Woolston’s 18 points came on 7-of-9 shooting from the field, including 4-of-5 from 3-point range. The freshman guard also recorded six rebounds, three assists and had her hands in the cookie jar with two steals.
Lauren Gustin recorded her 61st-career double-double with 15 points and 15 rebounds. Junior guard Nani Falatea saw her first action of the season and wasted no time making her presence felt with 11 points in the game. Kaylee Smiler filled up the stat sheet with eight points, two rebounds, a season-high seven assists and three blocks.
The Cougars led for over 29 minutes of game time as they outshot LMU 57-40 percent from the field though both teams shot 41 percent from distance. BYU recorded 15 assists to 12 turnovers and outrebounded the Lions 33-26.
First Quarter
Six early turnovers stymied BYU in the early going and helped LMU breakout to a 7-2 lead. The Cougars needed a spark and it came from Smiler. The senior guard scored a driving lay-in for BYU’s first points of the game and then contributed on both ends of the floor as she helped the Cougars to an 8-0 run to end the quarter.
Smiler drew a charge on defense, returning the ball to BYU and leading to a corner triple from Woolston. Two defensive possessions later, Smiler was at it again, this time plucking the ball away from the Lions and bringing it downcourt before finding Gustin for two in the paint. The Cougars ended the quarter with a 17-13 lead after consecutive 3-pointers from Amari Whiting and Smiler.
Second Quarter
LMU responded to BYU’s run late in the first and retook a lead at 23-22 early in the second. Woolston and Gustin were the difference-makers for the Cougars in the quarter with Woolston knocking down 3-pointers on back-to-back possessions and Gustin doing the same both in and out of the paint.
Woolston’s third 3-pointer of the quarter gave BYU its high lead of the game to that point with a 33-26 advantage at the 2:30 mark. The Cougars’ final score of the half came as Falatea shook a defender and drove for a score with a kiss off the glass. While the Lions scored in the waning seconds of the half, BYU held them to 1-of-7 shooting down the stretch while scoring on four of its last five attempts from the field.
BYU led 35-30 at the break.
Six 3-pointers and seven points off eight BYU turnovers made the difference for LMU in the first half. The Cougars outshot the Lions 64-39 percent and made six of their own 3-pointers. Woolston scored all 12 of her first-half points from beyond the arc, going 4-for-4 along with three rebounds. Gustin had eight first-half points for BYU on 4-of-4 shooting from the field as well as nine rebounds. Smiler showed up throughout the stat sheet for BYU with five points, six assists, two blocks and a steal.
Third Quarter
LMU kept it tight with BYU to start the half as the Cougars clung to a 44-40 lead with 5:22 to play in the quarter. Emma Calvert then took center stage and helped BYU close the period on a 12-2 run.
The junior forward powered her way through the paint to score twice for the Cougars. She then recorded two blocks in a matter of seconds on the Lions’ final possession of the quarter. Rose Bubakar came off the bench and extended a key BYU possession as she followed her own shot and snagged the rebound, leading to two points at the free throw line from Falatea.
Woolston came up big on defense for the Cougars with a steal and outlet to Falatea for three to put BYU up 51-42 late in the quarter. A free-throw make from Gustin and a score down low from Lauren Davenport carried the Cougars to a 54-42 lead heading into the fourth.
Calvert’s blocks coupled with one from Gustin and a Smiler steal helped BYU hold LMU scoreless over the final 3:52 of the period.
Fourth Quarter
BYU maintained its momentum to start the fourth with Woolston snatching the ball away from LMU and scoring on the fastbreak lay-in. Two free throws from Falatea and a 3-point play from Whiting put the Cougars up 61-48. Woolston struck again moments later with an offensive rebound leading to a Gustin score and then a jumper to put BYU up 68-49. A 3-pointer from Smiler and a lay-in from Ali’a Matavo helped BYU finish off the Lions with a 74-58 win.
BYU hits the road next week for a matchup with old Mountain West rival Wyoming at the Arena-Auditorium in Laramie, Wyoming. The Cougars and Cowgirls will tip off at 6:30 p.m. MT on Nov. 28 with a live stream available on the Mountain West Network. Fans can also tune in for live play-by-play with Jason Shepherd on BYU Radio 107.9 FM or BYU Radio.org/BYU Radio app.