PROVO, Utah – A tough first half doomed Santa Clara women's basketball in a 76-44 defeat at No. 16 BYU on Thursday.
The Broncos (9-7, 3-3 WCC) found themselves down 45-19 at the halftime break as the Cougars (17-1, 7-0 WCC) came out red hot on both offense and defense. They shot 56.7-percent for the floor in the opening 20 minutes while forcing 16 turnovers.
Santa Clara's defense picked up in the second half, allowing just 36.4-percent shooting for BYU to put the Cougars at 46.0-percent for the game. The Broncos also limited the turnovers in the final 20 minutes but couldn't find the offensive touch at any point in the game and finished at 32.