PROVO -- The Cougars earned a big victory Thursday night, dominating Wyoming 67-50 in the Marriott Center to pick up their second straight MWC win.
In a balanced BYU attack, three Cougars finished in double digits and 11 players contributed points. Nancy Seljaas came off the bench to lead the Cougars with 11 points, along with Julie Sullivan, who also had 11. Ashleigh Chamberlain contributed 10 points and 10 rebounds to record her first double-double of the season. Wyoming's Brenda Pickup led all scorers with 13 points.
"This team played very well tonight," said BYU Head Coach Jeff Judkins. "Our subs came in and did a really nice job."
The Cougar defense was also stifling. BYU held Wyoming scoreless in the first five minutes of play and continued to dominate. The Cowgirls managed just 16 points in the first half, the least amount of points allowed by the Cougars in the first half this season. Wyoming shot just 20 percent (5-for-25) from the floor in the half while the Cougars shot 44.8 percent (13-for-29) and put together two 11-point runs.
BYU came out strong in the second half, picking up 10 quick points and maintaining a sizeable advantage the rest of the way. BYU's lead stretched to 28 points with just 13 minutes left in the game and never dropped below 15 in the second half.
While the last meeting between these two teams in Laramie ended with a 57-50 Cowgirl victory, the Cougars took control of this game in almost every aspect. BYU out-rebounded the Cowgirls 40-29 including a six board advantage on the offensive glass. The Cougars, who average 34 percent shooting from beyond the arc, improved that number to 46.7 percent (7-for-15) while holding Wyoming to just 25.9 percent three-point shooting. Turnovers were even with 12 a piece. BYU dominated in the assist category, 18-12, again pointing to the Cougar team effort.
"These guys have really come together," said Judkins. "It's nice to see improvement, and we're getting better every day."
With the win, the Cougars improve to 13-9 overall and 3-5 in the Mountain West Conference while Wyoming drops to 8-13 overall and 4-4 in Conference. The Cougars will next be in action Saturday afternoon as they take on the Colorado State Rams at home in the Marriott Center. Tip-off is set for 4 p.m. and will be broadcast live on BYUTV.
Official Basketball Box Score -- GAME TOTALS -- FINAL STATISTICS
Univ. of Wyoming vs Brigham Young University
02/12/04 7:00 pm at Brigham Young University
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VISITORS: Univ. of Wyoming 8-13; 4-4
TOT-FG 3-PT REBOUNDS
## Player Name FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA OF DE TOT PF TP A TO BLK S MIN
03 LAPAR, Tarah........ 2-7 2-7 0-0 2 2 4 2 6 2 1 0 0 24
13 PICKUP, Brenda...... 4-8 2-4 3-4 1 3 4 2 13 7 5 0 3 38
14 SCHMIDT, Lindsy..... 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 3
21 HARRIS, Angiah...... 2-2 2-2 2-2 0 0 0 1 8 0 0 0 0 3
22 GORENSTEIN, Annie... 0-4 0-0 0-0 1 0 1 1 0 1 1 0 0 7
24 ELLIOTT, Ashley..... 2-12 0-6 2-2 0 4 4 2 6 1 3 0 0 37
31 LENHARDT, Kristen... 0-4 0-3 0-0 0 2 2 2 0 0 1 0 1 23
33 LIEBER, Michelle.... 2-4 0-0 1-2 3 4 7 3 5 0 0 0 0 30
42 EWING, Lorissa...... 1-1 0-0 3-4 0 0 0 1 5 0 0 0 0 6
50 CAMP, Ali........... 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 3
53 HIPPEN, Sara........ 2-6 1-5 2-2 0 3 3 2 7 0 0 0 0 26
TEAM................ 2 2 4
Totals.............. 15-48 7-27 13-16 9 20 29 16 50 12 12 0 5 200
TOTAL FG% 1st Half: 5-25 .200 2nd Half: 10-23 .435 Game: .312 DEADBALL
3-Pt. FG% 1st Half: 2-15 .133 2nd Half: 5-12 .417 Game: .259 REBOUNDS
F Throw % 1st Half: 4-4 1.000 2nd Half: 9-12 .750 Game: .812 2
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HOME TEAM: Brigham Young University 13-9; 3-5
TOT-FG 3-PT REBOUNDS
## Player Name FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA OF DE TOT PF TP A TO BLK S MIN
35 JOHNSEN, Melinda.... f 0-3 0-2 1-2 3 1 4 2 1 3 1 0 0 14
51 CHEESMAN, Danielle.. f 2-5 0-0 1-2 1 4 5 2 5 1 1 0 0 16
40 CHAMBERLAIN, A...... c 3-7 0-0 4-4 3 7 10 2 10 0 1 0 1 23
14 SULLIVAN, Julie..... g 5-9 1-2 0-0 1 2 3 3 11 8 1 0 2 25
15 OVERDIEK, Jennie.... g 3-4 2-2 1-2 0 3 3 0 9 0 0 1 0 21
01 SELJAAS, Nancy...... 3-5 2-3 3-5 2 1 3 1 11 0 2 0 0 16
04 DOOLEY, Kestlee..... 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 2 0 0 2 0 0 13
10 STRATTON, Laura..... 0-1 0-1 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2
12 GATTEN, Angie....... 1-1 1-1 4-4 0 1 1 0 7 1 0 0 0 8
13 GOOLD, Tiari........ 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 7
23 HANSEN, Heather..... 0-1 0-1 0-0 0 0 0 1 0 2 0 0 0 5
24 HANSEN, Hollie...... 0-2 0-0 0-0 1 0 1 2 0 1 0 0 0 10
25 TAYLOR, Kali........ 3-5 0-1 0-0 1 1 2 1 6 1 2 0 2 13
30 BROWN, Melissa...... 1-1 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 2
32 KOZLOWSKI, Kristen.. 1-2 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 1 2 0 0 1 0 11
33 ANDERSON, Ambrosia.. 1-8 1-2 0-0 1 4 5 0 3 1 1 0 0 14
TEAM................ 2 1 3
Totals.............. 23-54 7-15 14-19 15 25 40 17 67 18 12 2 5 200
TOTAL FG% 1st Half: 13-29 .448 2nd Half: 10-25 .400 Game: .426 DEADBALL
3-Pt. FG% 1st Half: 5-11 .455 2nd Half: 2-4 .500 Game: .467 REBOUNDS
F Throw % 1st Half: 3-5 .600 2nd Half: 11-14 .786 Game: .737 1
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Officials: CONNIE PARDUE, KENT JOHNSON, ROY GULBEYAN
Technical fouls: Univ. of Wyoming-None. Brigham Young
University-BENCH.
Attendance: 776
Score by Periods 1st 2nd Total
Univ. of Wyoming.............. 16 34 - 50
Brigham Young University...... 34 33 - 67
OFFICIAL FINAL