PROVO -- Led by the hot hand of freshman Erin Thorn, the BYU women's basketball team easily disposed of Idaho State Wednesday night, 68-47.
Thorn, who assumed point guard duties much of the game for injured Stacy Jensen, torched the Bengal defense for 25 points, 21 of which came from three-point territory. Thorn went seven of nine from the three-point line to narrowly miss tying the BYU all-time record for three-pointers in a game set by Kari Gallup, who sank eight against Air Force in 1998. Thorn also grabbed five rebounds and dished out four assists in the win.
"She's one of the best three point shooters in this freshman class," BYU head coach Trent Shippen said. "She plays with a lot of confidence, which you don't always have as a freshman just coming in."
Senior forward Cady Williams also had a solid night for the Cougars, netting 14 for BYU. Forward Jill Adams also scored in double figures, contributing 11 points. BYU just barely outshot the Bengals, 38 to 37 percent, but scored 33 points from outside with 11 threes total.
"We shot well tonight," Shippen said. "This was a big, big win for us."
Idaho State's Mandi Carver was the only Bengal to score in double figures and led the team with 14 ponts. With the loss, the Bengals fell to 2-3.
The Cougars (4-0) hope to carry their momentum into their 10-day road trip beginning Friday against 15th-ranked UC-Santa Barbara in the Jayhawk Classic. Tipoff is at 5 p.m.