Gianna Kneepkens scored 17 points and No. 12 Utah used a hot second half to race past Southern Utah 90-56 on Thursday night as the Utes matched the best start in school history.
The 2018-19 team also started 12-0. The chance to set the record comes when the Utes resume Pac-12 Conference play at Washington State on Dec. 30.
“To start 12-0 and to be doing as well as we are is fantastic and I think we’re ready for Pac-12 play,” Utes coach Lynne Roberts said. These last three games after we played Colorado, trying to stay sharp and keep pushing was a little challenging, but I’m proud of our team for where we’re sitting right now and what we’ve achieved. We have a lot in front of us, and a lot of work to do, and a lot of things to continue to improve upon, but I’m really proud of our team and where we sit right now.”
Teya Sidberry added a career-high 16 points and eight rebounds for Utah. Jenna Johnson had 15 points and Alissa Pili 14.
Cherita Daugherty scored 19 points and Megan Jensen had 16 for the Thunderbirds (4-7).
Sidberry had back-to-back layups in a 12-0 run for a 16-8 lead midway through the first quarter that was enough to take the lead for good.
The Utes, who are the top-shooting team in the country at 53% and second in scoring at 93.2 points a game, shot 49% in the first half to lead 41-28.
Then came the third quarter, which included 11-0 and 12-0 runs as Utah shot 12 of 19 with four 3-pointers for a 73-42 lead.
The Utes shot 59% in the second half, finishing at 54% for the game.
“Great win, just a really, really impressive third quarter there by us to score 32,” Roberts said. “I thought Southern Utah did a nice job, they played hard, they didn’t have a lot of depth and their kids just played their tails off, so a lot of respect for them. It was a great game, and just big-picture, pre-conference is over.”
