Latest news with #Kneepkens
NBC Sports
21-03-2025
- Sport
- NBC Sports
Garzon scores 17, Ciezki adds 16 to lead No. 9 seed Indiana to opening NCAA win over No. 8 seed Utah
COLUMBIA, S.C. — Yarden Garzon scored 17 points and Shay Ciezki added 16 as No. 9 seed Indiana won its opener for a sixth straight NCAA Tournament with a 76-68 victory over eighth-seeded Utah on Friday. The Hoosiers (20-12) reached 20 wins and their reward is a likely matchup with the Birmingham 2 Regional's top seed in South Carolina, who will play later Friday against No. 16 seed Tennessee Tech. 'We're familiar with South Carolina,' Indiana coach Teri Moren said. The Hoosiers lost to the Gamecocks in last year's Sweet 16. Indiana was also the only team to beat coach Dawn Staley's program during the 2019-20 season when COVID-19 canceled the tournament. Moren and her Hoosiers had been among the top 16 tournament hosts the last four years and acknowledged this week she didn't like packing her bags to travel for NCAA play. But the road challenges gave players a sense of urgency about what they hoped to accomplish. 'We understand if we don't come in and play well, this could be the last game,' she said. Ciezki had 11 of her 16 points in the final two quarters as Indiana used a 15-4 run in the third period to take control. The Utes (22-9) got within 72-68 on Gianna Kneepkens' 3-pointer with 1:05 left, but could get no closer. Ciezki said her team's late second-quarter run to go from 31-26 down to a tie was essential for them gaining a foothold on the Utes. 'We got together in the huddle and said we need to bring it back,' Ciezki said. 'We need to tie this game going into halftime so we have momentum to come out. And that's what we did.' Kneepkens led Utah with 24 points, including a four-point play in the fourth quarter. Takeaways Indiana: The Hoosiers had been hosts the previous four times they made the NCAAs. They showed a different venue wouldn't change their focus. Utah: The Utes went cold at the wrong time, missing all six shots and committing two turnovers during a third quarter stretch where they went from up 35-33 to trailing by nine. Holding together Utah coach Gavin Petersen said he was proud of his team for holding things together after the surprise of coach Lynne Roberts leaving to coach the WNBA's Los Angeles Sparks just four games into the season. He said it could've been easy for his players to splinter or sulk. None of that happened on the way to an NCAA Tournament berth. Petersen expects this to springboard into next season. 'We now have to live up to the new standard that we set,' he said. Key moment Garzon hit the tying basket early in the third quarter and Ciezki followed with a 3 that put Indiana ahead for good in starting a 15-4 run. Kneepkens' moment Kneepkens, Utah's leading scorer, was in tears after being asked about her final time playing for the Utes. She got a follow up about her four-point play, something not very common in NCAA play. 'I guess that's kind of positive,' Kneepkens said. 'I wish it could've gotten us going.'
Yahoo
21-03-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Utah takes on Indiana in first round of NCAA Tournament
Indiana Hoosiers (19-12, 11-9 Big Ten) vs. Utah Utes (22-8, 13-6 Big 12) Columbia, South Carolina; Friday, 1:30 p.m. EDT BETMGM SPORTSBOOK LINE: Hoosiers -1.5; over/under is 138.5 BOTTOM LINE: Utah and Indiana square off in the NCAA Tournament opening round. The Utes are 13-6 against Big 12 opponents and 9-2 in non-conference play. Utah ranks 13th in college basketball averaging 10.0 made 3-pointers per game while shooting 37.1% from deep. Gianna Kneepkens leads the team averaging 3.0 makes while shooting 45.0% from 3-point range. The Hoosiers are 11-9 against Big Ten teams. Indiana averages 70.3 points and has outscored opponents by 6.2 points per game. Utah averages 10.0 made 3-pointers per game, 4.6 more made shots than the 5.4 per game Indiana allows. Indiana has shot at a 45.2% rate from the field this season, 4.1 percentage points greater than the 41.1% shooting opponents of Utah have averaged. TOP PERFORMERS: Kneepkens is averaging 19.2 points, 5.1 rebounds and 3.1 assists for the Utes. Maye Toure is averaging 12.0 points over the last 10 games. Yarden Garzon is scoring 14.5 points per game with 5.3 rebounds and 3.2 assists for the Hoosiers. Shay Ciezki is averaging 14 points over the last 10 games. LAST 10 GAMES: Utes: 7-3, averaging 74.9 points, 32.3 rebounds, 18.2 assists, 7.6 steals and 3.1 blocks per game while shooting 46.0% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 65.1 points per game. Hoosiers: 5-5, averaging 71.2 points, 27.8 rebounds, 17.1 assists, 6.1 steals and 2.7 blocks per game while shooting 46.5% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 66.3 points. ___ The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.
Associated Press
21-03-2025
- Sport
- Associated Press
Utah takes on Indiana in first round of NCAA Tournament
Columbia, South Carolina; Friday, 1:30 p.m. EDT BETMGM SPORTSBOOK LINE: Hoosiers -1.5; over/under is 138.5 BOTTOM LINE: Utah and Indiana square off in the NCAA Tournament opening round. The Utes are 13-6 against Big 12 opponents and 9-2 in non-conference play. Utah ranks 13th in college basketball averaging 10.0 made 3-pointers per game while shooting 37.1% from deep. Gianna Kneepkens leads the team averaging 3.0 makes while shooting 45.0% from 3-point range. The Hoosiers are 11-9 against Big Ten teams. Indiana averages 70.3 points and has outscored opponents by 6.2 points per game. Utah averages 10.0 made 3-pointers per game, 4.6 more made shots than the 5.4 per game Indiana allows. Indiana has shot at a 45.2% rate from the field this season, 4.1 percentage points greater than the 41.1% shooting opponents of Utah have averaged. TOP PERFORMERS: Kneepkens is averaging 19.2 points, 5.1 rebounds and 3.1 assists for the Utes. Maye Toure is averaging 12.0 points over the last 10 games. Yarden Garzon is scoring 14.5 points per game with 5.3 rebounds and 3.2 assists for the Hoosiers. Shay Ciezki is averaging 14 points over the last 10 games. LAST 10 GAMES: Utes: 7-3, averaging 74.9 points, 32.3 rebounds, 18.2 assists, 7.6 steals and 3.1 blocks per game while shooting 46.0% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 65.1 points per game. Hoosiers: 5-5, averaging 71.2 points, 27.8 rebounds, 17.1 assists, 6.1 steals and 2.7 blocks per game while shooting 46.5% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 66.3 points. ___
Yahoo
23-02-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Utah relies on its strengths to roll past Cincinnati
The Utah women's basketball team will head into the final week of the regular season with some momentum after picking up a 92-65 road victory at Cincinnati on Sunday. The Utes built a 16-point lead through one quarter at Fifth Third Arena and led by as many as 30 points to roll to their seventh win in their past eight games, while bouncing back from a four-point loss at home against No. 24 Oklahoma State. Utah coach Gavin Petersen said his team responded well after the rare loss in the back half of the Big 12 schedule. 'Good road win. Like I've always said, winning on the road is hard, so you've got to enjoy it,' he told reporters after the game. Utah attacking the paint opened up 3-point possibilities. The Utes got Maye Toure going early, as she made 4 of 5 field goals and had eight points in the first quarter to lead Utah to a 16-0 edge in points in the paint through one period. The Utes ended up owning a 36-16 advantage in the paint by game's end. They also outrebounded the Bearcats 34-28 and had an 18-11 edge in second-chance points. That, in turn, helped open up 3-point range, and Utah went 16 of 32 from beyond the arc. Utah had three players make four or more 3-pointers — Gianna Kneepkens made 6 of 10, Kennady McQueen hit 5 of 8 and Maty Wilke was 4 of 7, including 3 of 3 in the second quarter. The Utes finished strong from 3-point range, making 6 of 9 in the fourth. That was paced by good ball movement, a hallmark of the Utah offense. The Utes ended up with 26 assists on 34 made buckets. 'The ball was moving exceptionally well, and when that happens, we get open shots,' Petersen said. It was a strong start again for Utah, but did they finish strong? Utah has had several games in Big 12 play wherein it got out to solid starts, particularly against teams it was the favorite over. That happened again against Cincinnati, as Utah shot 64.7% from the field and led 26-10 after one quarter. The Utes have also been prone to take their foot off the gas at times and let teams battle back. Cincinnati had a solid spurt in the third quarter and was able to cut the Utah lead to 12, but the Utes responded. Utah, which had a double-digit lead over the last three-plus quarters, shot 62.5% in the fourth quarter and 50.7% for the game in rolling to their sixth road win during league play. Utah's star power delivered again. The veteran Utes had several standout efforts across the board. They were paced by Kneepkens, who had a game-high 25 points to go along with four rebounds and three assists while shooting 9 of 14 from the floor. 'I think it has to do a lot with how well we were moving the ball,' Kneepkens said of her solid offensive day. 'When you move the ball, it's hard because the defense has to communicate on screens and the extra pass, so that probably helped a little bit.' McQueen added 17 points, four assists and two rebounds, while Wilke splashed in 13 points, four rebounds and three assists. Utah also had a pair of front court players toss in double-figure efforts. Toure had 14 points and a team-high six rebounds along with two blocks, while Reese Ross came off the bench and added 12 points, five rebounds, three assists and two steals. McQueen set the Utah program record by playing in her 139th career game Sunday. 'I've loved playing with Kenn, and it's sad it's coming to an end here, but she's someone I look up to and the fact she is very, very tough. People say that a lot about her, but I get to see it every day,' Kneepkens said. Tineya Hilton scored 16 points and added three rebounds and two steals to lead the Bearcats. Utah (21-6, 12-4 Big 12) kicks off the final week of the regular season with a game at No. 17 West Virginia on Wednesday (5 p.m. MST, ESPN+). The Mountaineers (21-6, 11-5 Big 12) lost 71-50 at No. 10 TCU on Sunday. Following the road trip to West Virginia, the Utes will host BYU in the regular-season finale on Saturday (1:30 p.m. MST, ESPN+).
