The Weber State University women’s basketball team tipped off their season on Nov. 10 against the Wolverines of Utah Valley University on the first official day of the 2017–18 college basketball season.
The Wildcats got off to a slow start, falling behind 20–9 before senior guard Larryn Brooks hit a 3-pointer to cut the deficit down to single digits. The opening quarter was filled with missed shot attempts and bad decisions, which resulted in them trailing to the Wolverines.
However, the ’Cats picked it up, scoring 27 points in the second quarter, while only allowing 12, giving them a 39–32 lead heading into halftime.
The Wildcats’ first half scoring was led by Brooks, who paced the team with 13 points and 50 percent shooting. Every point scored in the first half by the Wildcats was by a Weber State starter.
The third quarter opened up with tight defense. Unlike the previous two quarters, neither team was able to take advantage of the opposing team’s slow start. The third quarter ended with the scoreboard reading 49–43. Both teams were victims of shooting slumps, leading to a tightly contested quarter.
When the final quarter came around, the Wildcats found their groove. The Wildcats went from Wolverines’ prey to their predator as they opened up an 18-point lead with under four minutes left in the game.
The Wildcats were able to find easy buckets and lock up on defense, which helped them build a lead and maintain it for the rest of the game. WSU closed out the game on 55 percent shooting in the final quarter while only allowing 31 percent.
The Wildcats were able to hold a lead in the game for a total of 23 minutes, and their largest lead was when they went up 22 points with under three minutes left on the clock. When the final buzzer sounded off, the scoreboard read 75–57 in favor of the ’Cats, making Weber State undefeated on the season.