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Utah WBB Surrenders Late Lead In 60-59 Loss To USC

In a tale of two halves, the Utah women's basketball team struggled down the stretch en route to a heartbreaking one-point loss. Brynna Maxwell and Dru Gylten accounted for 60% of Utah's total points
Ryan Kostecka|
Utah WBB Surrenders Late Lead In 60-59 Loss To USC
Utah WBB Surrenders Late Lead In 60-59 Loss To USC

It was the opportune time for Utah women's basketball to make a statement.

Coming off a 23-point victory over Washington last weekend, Utah held a five-point lead midway through the fourth quarter against host USC on Friday night. A win would give the Utes a two-game conference winning streak and some huge momentum heading into Sundays showdown with No. 9 UCLA.

Alas, it wasn't meant to be.

Utah forgot how to play on both sides of the court during a brutal four-minute stretch that saw the Trojans take a five-point lead following a 10-0 run, which proved too much to overcome. The end result was a heartbreaking 60-59 loss.

It wasn't all bad news as sophomore Brynna Maxwell and junior Dru Gylten showed why they're one of the more dynamic backcourts in the conference. They combined to score 60% of Utah's 59 total points, using an array of midrange jumpers, attacks to the hoops and knockdown three-pointers.

Gylten was everywhere on the court with one of her best games of the season. She finished with 15 points, seven assists, six rebounds and four steals, all while knocking down 2-of-3 from deep and committing just one turnover.

Maxwell finished with a game-high 20 points and four steals, going 3-for-7 from beyond the arc. 

While Gylten and Maxwell shined, they got very little support from the rest of the team. Only Kemery Martin (9 points) scored more than four points as Utah shot 16-of-52 (30.8%) from the field and 8-of-23 (34.8%) from beyond the arc. 

The game was a back and forth affair with the Utes jumping out to a 4-point lead in the opening quarter before the trojans cut that deficit to one at the break. Led by Maxwell in the third quarter, Utah stretched the advantage to three points before that brutal fourth quarter.

The final two minutes of the game proved to be the most exciting and thrilling, although no points were scored. Utah had multiple possessions to retake the lead but couldn't get the ball through the hoop despite having good looks. The Utes had one last opportunity with 3.2 seconds remaining on the clock when Maxwell launched a wide-open three-pointer, but couldn't get it to drop.

Utah (3-6, 2-6 Pac-12) will now turn its attention to the No. 9 Bruins, who they'll face at 2 p.m. MT on Sunday at Pauley Pavilion. 

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Ryan Kostecka
RYAN KOSTECKA

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