A Bittersweet End to Alissa Pili's Utah Career as the Utes Fall to Gonzaga
The Second Round of the 2024 NCAA Women's March Madness Tournament is in the books, and for Utah's star Alissa Pili, it was the end of a chapter in her career as the 5th seed Utes lost to the 4th seed Bulldogs 77-66.
For Utah, Pili was the top scorer, going 12/20 from the field and a perfect 7/7 from the line for a massive 35 point performance while also leading the team in rebounds, grabbing 7 boards, 4 of them off the offensive glass. Meanwhile, Ines Vieira led the Utes in assists, dishing out 7 dimes in 40 minutes of play.
For Gonzaga, Kayleigh Truong had a team high 21 points, shooting 5/9 from the field and 8/9 from the line, and she accompanied that by leading the team in assists, distributing 5 in 35 minutes of play. Yvonne Ejim led the Bulldogs in boards, coming down with a whopping 13 rebounds, 12 on the defensive half of the court.
Shooting efficiency was the Lady Utes downfall, as they won the turnover battle and kept pace with Gonzaga on the glass. As a team, Utah shot a measly 38.1% from the field and an even more grim 26.5% from beyond the arc, compared to the Bulldogs going 48% from the field and 54.5% from deep.
Despite the bittersweet ending, the program and fans have been blessed to have one of the best in the college game grace the court in Utah colors for the past two years and solidify herself as a legend within that time. Without Pili, the program would not be in the place it currently is in and wherever the Alaskan native lands in the WNBA, the Utah faithful will never forget her greatness and will unabashedly support her at the next level.
ELIJAH GRAYSON MURRAY