MISSOULA, MT — Utah Valley University used a fourth quarter run to pull away and secure a big road win, 63-50, at Montana on Thursday night at Dahlberg Arena. A 13-2 spurt to begin the fourth turned a two-point lead into a 55-42 advantage. The win moved the Wolverines to 5-3 on the season and also ended a six-game winning streak for the Lady Griz (7-2).
Josie Williams scored a season-high 19 points and pulled down 13 rebounds for her sixth double-double in eight games. She also surpassed the 500 rebound threshold with her first rebound of the game, becoming the seventh player in the program's NCAA Division I era to do so.
Maria Carvalho added 12 points and
Madison Grange finished with nine points, four assists and two blocks.
Megan Jensen had eight points and eight rebounds, leading a UVU bench that outscored their counterparts, 19-6.
"The bench scoring was something we haven't had and that was a big difference in the game. Everyone that came in had some big minutes. This was the definition of a team win," said UVU head coach
Dan Nielson. "I'm really proud of this team. Our energy was so positive and it's great to get a win in a place that's hard to win and against a good Montana team."
With UVU carrying a 42-40 lead into the fourth,
Tahlia White started the decisive run with five straight — on a putback and a 3-pointer — to make it 47-40. After Abby Anderson scored for the Lady Griz,
Ally Blackham and Carvalho hit back-to-back 3-pointers and
Shay Fano capped the run with an offensive rebound and bucket with 5:56 to go to give UVU a 55-42 lead.
The Wolverines shot 43.3% from the field and limited Montana to 30.2% and overcame a 45-37 Lady Griz edge on the glass that included 17 offensive rebounds and 18 second chance points.
Williams got going early on, scoring eight points in the opening quarter and giving the Wolverines a 10-6 lead with her third bucket of the game at the 3:55 mark. It was a 10-9 game before Carvalho and Williams hit consecutive jumpers. UVU led 16-13 after one, with 12 points coming inside the paint.
Utah Valley battled foul trouble in the second quarter. Both Carvalho and Williams picked up their second fouls less than two minutes in and were forced to the bench the rest of the half. The Wolverines were able to maintain the lead for much of the quarter though, as neither team shot well from the field. The Lady Griz did much of their damage on the offensive glass, collecting six in the quarter and nine in the half, leading to 12 second chance points.
Babalu Stewart hit a three to give UVU a 25-21 lead late in the second before Montana scored seven straight to take a 28-25 lead after a Haley Huard three. Grange scored on a driving layup to get the Wolverines within a point by halftime.
The Lady Griz scored the first five points out of the break to take a 33-27 lead but Grange went on her own 5-0 run to get UVU back within a point. She scored and was fouled and hit the free throw — UVU's first attempt of the game — with 6:19 left in the third. She followed that up with two more foul shots and started a 15-4 run that gave the Wolverines a 42-37 lead. It was tied at 37-37 when Carvalho hit a three late in the shot clock and Williams scored down low to give Utah Valley a 42-37 lead with 2:06 to go in the third. The Wolverines led 42-40 after three with Williams scoring seven in the quarter.
The win is Utah Valley's first over Montana, after losing the first three in the series all-time. The Wolverines will now head to Bozeman to take on Montana State on Saturday at 2 p.m. MT. The game can be seen on ESPN+.
