Harding, Gustin and freshmen shine in exhibition win over Westminster

PROVO, Utah – Paisley Harding scored 15 points and Lauren Gustin posted a double-double as BYU women’s basketball’s veterans and freshmen combined to beat Westminster 73-52 on Thursday afternoon in an exhibition game at the Marriott Center.

The Griffins gave the Cougars a fight throughout the game, providing BYU head coach Jeff Judkins and his players with valuable experience ahead of the regular season.

“That’s why you play these games,” said Judkins. “So, you feel comfortable and learn how to play as a team. We may have missed a lot of easy baskets, but we came back and defended. It shows our potential.”

Gustin also saw the team’s potential versus Westminster.

“We have so much potential,” said Gustin. “We have all the pieces to make it far. We just have to keep working hard.”

After a tight first quarter, the Cougars spread their advantage to 45-28 at half and fended off a comeback from the Griffins in the third quarter to pull away for the win.

BOX SCORE

Harding poured in nine of her 15 points in the third quarter as BYU held-off a 17-4 Westminster run. The Griffins had just cut the Cougar lead to nine at 51-42, when Harding responded with a 3-pointer from the left wing.

Freshman forward Emma Calvert followed Harding’s sharpshooting with some of her own, as she drilled a 3-pointer to push BYU’s lead back to 13 at 57-44 to close the third quarter.

The freshman from Farr West, Utah was one of four BYU freshmen who flashed their potential in the exhibition victory. Calvert put up five points, three rebounds and two blocks in her 14 minutes of action.

Nani Falatea, a freshman from Salt Lake City, Utah, scored seven points in 18 minutes while facing her sister, Rae, a guard for the Griffins.

Freshman Arielle Mackey-Williams and Rose Bubukar made the most of their fourth quarter playing time and helped push the Cougars to the 21-point win. Mackey-Williams scored all four points in the final quarter, while Bubukar made an immediate impact on the both sides of the floor with two points, two rebounds, a block and a steal.

Despite a cold shooting spell in the second half, sophomore forward Lauren Gustin gave a glimpse of her front-court prowess as she recorded 12 points and 18 rebounds on the afternoon. Gustin’s dominance down-low helped the Cougars outscore the Griffins 36-20 in the paint. The Salem, Utah native was named to the Katrina McClain Award Watch List, on Oct. 28. The award honors the top power forward in NCAA Division I women’s basketball.

While four personal fouls hampered BYU’s star guard Shaylee Gonzales, the sophomore still scored 12 points to go along with three rebounds and six assists.

Westminster was led by guard Ashley Greenwood’s 17 points and nine rebounds. Griffin forward Hunter Krebs pitched in 14 points while shooting four-of-five from distance.

BYU tips-off the regular season as they host Lipscomb at the Marriott Center on Tuesday, Nov. 9 at 4 p.m. MST. Tune-in to the Cougars matchup versus the Bison live on BYUtv.org and the BYUtv app.

Postgame quotes

Head coach Jeff Judkins (Video)
On today’s game
You have to give Westminster a lot of credit. They played really well and they did a good job at spreading us out. Our defense is not what it needs to be. We play together every day. Our offense is more movement. Theirs is more stagnant. We didn’t do a good job at guarding that. 

I didn't think we were ready to play tonight. You're playing a team that you're supposed to win. You're playing a team that doesn't count. All those things go into effect. I told my girls that you’ve got to mentally be ready for every game. You need to do what you need to do. I thought we dribbled too much tonight. We're better at passing and moving. That’s my job. We need to look at film and show them what we need to be better. They’re very coachable and they’ll do it.

On Westminster and what he likes from them
I think what they did, which we need to be better at, is taking advantage on who they've got the mis-match on. We've got maybe two of our five that are good shooters. Their bigs can all shoot it. They spread you out and make you have to guard them.

That's why you play these games. So you feel comfortable and learn how to play as a team. We may have missed a lot of easy baskets, but we came back and defended. It shows our potential.

On pushing the team
The team needs to be mentally and physically ready every day. We need to be the most aggressive offensively and defensively. This will be a good learning tool. I’m excited for tomorrow’s practice. It’s a good opportunity to watch film.

Guard Paisley Harding (Video)
On today’s game and what you get from it
You get the jitters out, for sure. I think a lot of us were super excited to play, but also a little nervous to start the season. These are games that we are supposed to win. There's no reason for us not to win games like this. It gives us the opportunity to see how we play as a team. Games are always different from practices. We got a chance to shake off the old bones.

On things to improve
We came in with a game plan and Westminster didn't necessarily follow that game plan. It's the principles that we have been practicing since June that we need to remember. Our communication needs to level up, especially on the defensive side. If we can be one defensively, the offense will carry well. Our defense needs to be worked on. Especially in games when our energy isn't up. We need to come out every game as though we are playing Stanford or any ranked team. 

On the team’s potential
Our potential is extraordinary. We have so much we can accomplish. It’s the little things that we need to turn on and be ready to play. That’s really going to further us from last year. I think it’s the little things that we have to do every single day. Work on our dribbling, be a good team, practice our shooting, everything.

Forward Lauren Gustin (Video)
On playing a team like that
We have to come out with the same mentality as playing any team. We have to come out with the same aggression and not under look them in any way. We were a little rusty. It’s the first game out. We have to be prepared for every game and not give them any edge.

On the team’s potential
We have so much potential. We have all the pieces to make it far. We just have to keep working hard. We can’t get caught up in the big picture. Everyday we have to take practice seriously. Day by day, game by game. We need to work on our communication. We have another game coming up that we need to get prepared for.