Feb. 3, 2011
Box Score
EDINBURG, Texas -- Sammie Jensen had 21 points and 16 rebounds and Abbie Beutler dished out a career-high 10 assists as Utah Valley scored a breakthrough win on the road in the Great West Conference, 71-62 at Texas-Pan American on Thursday.
Jenna Johnson added 19 points and Kim Bell chipped in 14 in a collective effort for the Wolverines (3-18, 1-5), who captured their first win of the conference season and their first road victory of the year.
"This is big for us," said head coach Cathy Nixon. "It was a great collective effort. We haven't had a lot of success here in this gym and I'm just proud of these kids. It hasn't been easy. For them to stick together and work hard every day in practice, it's great to have a night like this."
The Wolverines led for most of a close first half, twice holding a six-point advantage. Tied at 11-11, Jensen and Beutler nailed back-to-back treys to put UVU up 17-11 at the 12:52 mark.
It was 23-17 when the Broncs used an 8-2 run to tie it at 25. The score was level at 30 in the closing seconds of the half when Beutler found Johnson in the corner for a 3-pointer to put UVU up 33-30 at the break. Beutler had four of her 10 assists in the first half while Jensen had 13 points and seven boards.
After UTPA scored the first four points out of the half to take a 34-33 lead, the Wolverines went on a 19-4 run to take a 52-38 lead and control of the game. The run was capped by consecutive 3-pointers from Bell and Kaycee Mansfield, who scored five of her seven points during the run.
Texas-Pan American chipped away at the lead, getting as close as five, 56-51, with 7:32 to go when CeMonay Newell hit one of her eight 3-pointers. Newell finished with a game-high 28 points for the Broncs.
Johnson answered Newell's trey with one of her own and UTPA got no closer than five the rest of the way.
Newell hit her final 3-pointer with under a minute to go, again bringing the Broncs within five, but Jensen made four free throws to close out the game.
In addition to her 10 assists, Beutler limited Bianca Torre, the Great West's second-leading scorer at 17.3 per game, to just six points, all in the second half.
"Abbie orchestrated a great game on both ends of the floor. Not just statistically but her presence," Nixon said. "She quarterbacked the team and really was the leveling force out there."
Utah Valley had a 44-40 edge on the glass and turned 14 offensive rebounds into 20 second-chance points. Four of Jensen's rebounds were on the offensive side as she collected her ninth double-double of the year.
The Wolverines shot 39.7 percent overall and were 9-for-20 from the 3-point line while Texas-Pan American hit 36.9 percent overall. All eight treys for the Broncs came from Newell.
The Wolverines now head to Houston Baptist for a Saturday matchup scheduled for 4:15 p.m. MT/5:15 p.m. CT before hosting a rematch with UTPA next Saturday, Feb. 12 in a game that will take place in the Activity Center.
