Box Score BOX SCORE
SALT LAKE CITY – The Westminster women's basketball team took advantage of playing at home for the first time in three weeks by running past Northern New Mexico 112-38 on Thursday night in the Behnken Field House. The 112 points scored by Westminster (7-4) is the most in school history and was anchored by a 58-6 advantage in points in the paint and a 64-9 advantage in bench points. The Griffins had eight players score in double figures and all but one of the 13 players scored.
The game started with a 15-3 run by Westminster and turned into a 24-8 run thanks to a perfect 10-for-10 shooting. The lead would be 54-21 heading into the halftime intermission. The second half began with the Griffins scoring the first 27 points over the opening eight minutes. The Griffins shot 71% in the second half and finished the night shooting a school record 67.2% from the field.
“We are trying to get better defensively and we believe that will lead to good offense,” head coach JD Gustin said.
Westminster corralled 42 rebounds and went 12-of-24 from beyond the arc. They dished out 38 assists in the game, setting another school record, and only committed eight turnovers. Eight players recorded at least three assists. Defensively they held Northern New Mexico (0-9) to 23.9% shooting and forced them into 25 turnovers. Westminster scored 40 points off those turnovers and had 28 fast break points.
“While the percentages are impressive, what jumps out to me is the 38 assists,” Gustin mentioned. “We are trying to be better defensively and share the basketball and we did that tonight.”
Olivia Pierce-Eiselein and
Candace Smith each had 15 points off the bench to lead all Griffins. Pierce-Eiselein also grabbed a game-high nine rebounds and blocked three shots.
Keshia Catten and
Dani Evans scored 14 points apiece.
Nicole Yazzie came through with 13 points, seven assists, four rebounds, and two steals. She went 5-of-5 from the floor including 3-of-3 from deep in only 13 minutes.
“Everyone made the most of their opportunity tonight,” Gustin said of the bench players. “It's a hard to sit on the bench and be supportive and then all of a sudden your number gets called and you have to go contribute. I am extremely proud of their play tonight.”
Megan Martinez led all players with 18 points for Northern New Mexico. She was 6-of-9 shooting and made five triples. Amberly Trujillo finished with six points, six rebounds, and two assists.
Westminster is back in action on Friday, December 3 at 6 p.m. when they face San Diego Christian in the Behnken Field House. The Griffins will play Northern New Mexico again on Saturday, December 5 at 4 p.m.
