BYU women's basketball team beats Auburn in NCAA Tournament, 73-64

PALO ALTO, Calif. (ABC4 Sports) – Thanks to a stifling defensive effort, the BYU women’s basketball team is moving on in the NCAA Tournament.

Brenna Chase scored 19 points, while Shaylee Gonzalez added 17, as the Cougars held Auburn to just 32 percent shooting in a 73-64 victory.

BYU will take on the host school, Stanford in the second round on Monday.

“I was getting a little nervous but I thought we handled the pressure until right at the end there,” BYU head coach Jeff Judkins said. “Part of it was we lost Paisley and she was a good outlet. I don’t have the inside presence [like our 2014 tournament team], but we have three guards that are more capable of scoring in different ways as well as a deep bench.”

Chase led the team with 19 points, seven assists, four rebounds, three blocks and one steal. Gonzalez had 17 points, nine rebounds, three assists and two steals, while Caitlyn Aldridge added 14 points, three rebounds, three assists and one steal.

“This was a great win for our team and am happy for our players,” added Judkins. “Auburn is a very good team and they were a lot quicker than we saw on film.”

In the first quarter, the Tigers took control early as they scored a trey for the first basket of the game and went on to take a 9-4 lead with 4:28 on the clock. Chase and Shalee Salmon combined for an 8-0 run to end the first period as the Cougars took a 15-13 lead.

Maria Albiero drained three free throws while Alldredge and Chase each added a bucket from behind the arc to give BYU a 24-18 advantage half way through the second period. Auburn rallied to cut into the deficit and a last second jumper sent the teams into the locker room with the Cougars on top 28-26.

BYU started out the second half strong as five-straight points from Alldredge gave the Cougars a double-digit lead, 41-31, with 5:40 remaining on the clock in the third quarter.

A layup by Chase gave BYU a 13-point advantage, its largest lead of the game. A 3-pointer by the Tigers cut into the deficit but Alldredge answered with a layup on a fast break to keep the Cougars on top 51-39 going into the final quarter.

In the fourth quarter, a trey from Paisley Johnson extended the BYU lead to 56-41 with 8:24 left to play.

Auburn responded with an 11-1 run to bring the score to 65-61 with two minutes remaining in the game. A pair of points from the charity stripe by Chase and a layup by Gonzales kept the Cougars in control, 69-61. BYU hit four free throws in the remaining seconds to secure its win.

On the game, the Cougars shot 47.5 percent from the field, 26.3 percent from 3 and 60.0 percent from the free throw line. The Tigers recorded 32.0 percent from the field, 14.8 percent from beyond the arc and 66.7 percent from the charity stripe.

BYU advances to the second round and will take on the winner of Stanford and UC Davis on Monday, Mar. 25.