Box Score BOX SCORE
SALT LAKE CITY – Behind five players in double figures, the Westminster women's basketball team defeated Great Falls 84-54 on Saturday night in the Behnken Field House. The win is the ninth straight for the 19th-ranked Griffins (13-2, 2-0) and the 16th consecutive Frontier Conference regular season victory.
Great Falls (3-11, 0-2) led 7-3 early in the first half, putting Westminster behind for the first time in four games. The two teams played fairly even before the Griffins used a 25-4 run late in the second half and eventually carried a 48-27 lead into the intermission.
Great Falls wouldn't get closer than 14 in the second half and they struggled all night against the pressure defense of Westminster. Great Falls shot just 31.3% from the floor and 3-of-15 from beyond the arc. Westminster forced 23 Great Falls turnovers and turned them into 32 points.
“We are getting better defensively,” head coach JD Gustin said. “We have young guards that don't understand conference play, but it is a process and what we did tonight is encouraging.”
Offensively the Griffins were solid. Westminster shot 49.2% in the game and made 11 triples. This was the 10th time this season that Westminster has reached double figures in 3-pointers. Westminster controlled the glass to the tune of a 40-35 advantage and turned 13 offensive rebounds into 14 second chance points. They dominated the interior, outscoring Great Falls 34-16 in the paint.
“When we put all of this together we have a chance to be pretty good,” Gustin said of having five players in double figures.
Keshia Catten led all scorers with her 17 points. She scored 8-of-10 Westminster points during a first half run that gave the team control, including back-to-back threes. Catten also finished with five assists and three steals.
McKenzie Jessop posted her second straight double-double with 15 points and 10 rebounds.
Nicole Yazzie and
Dani Evans each scored 13 while
Allie Eastman chipped in 10.
“There is no question about it, Jessop is an All-American candidate,” Gustin commented about his senior forward. “She does everything we ask and when she is aggressive she is hard to stop.”
Kirilynn Winkler led Great Falls with 14 points and grabbed five rebounds. KcKenzie Gentry finished with eight points and a team-high six rebounds. Great Falls scored 11 points from 14 offensive rebounds.
Westminster returns to action on Friday, January 15 when they visit Montana Tech in Butte, Montana. That game is slated for a 5:30 p.m. tipoff.
