Two Boise State seniors among national leaders. Both climb higher against Utah Valley.
Even when she picked up her fourth foul at the start of the fourth quarter, Gordy Presnell was reluctant to take Riley Lupfer off the court.
He was reminded precisely why he hesitated when the Boise State senior guard checked back in 2 minutes and 43 seconds later.
Lupfer sank three of her career-high seven 3-pointers in the final 4:20 to help the Broncos fend off pesky Utah Valley 77-69 on Tuesday night at ExtraMile Arena. It was the sixth time in her career Lupfer has made seven triples in a single game. The program record of eight is shared by Brooke Pahukoa and Nadia Begay.
Lupfer totaled a season-high 23 points in the win.
“If we pass her the ball, I want her to shoot,” said Boise State senior point guard Jayde Christopher, who assisted on three of Lupfer’s 3-pointers. “Whether it’s open or it’s not open — launch it. If she has a hot hand, I’m going to continue to give it to her, and I’m sure the rest of my teammates will, too. I love when she shoots those threes.”
Lupfer broke Boise State’s career 3-point record earlier this season and is now up to 273. Going into Tuesday’s game, Lupfer had 21 triples, a mark that was tied for seventh in the country. She is nine threes away from tying the No. 3 mark (282) in Mountain West history with Wyoming’s Kaitlyn Mileto (2011-15).
And Lupfer isn’t the only Bronco vying for time in the national spotlight. On the heels of tying Boise State’s single-game record with 14 assists against No. 8 Louisville, Christopher had 10 more assists against Utah Valley. The Federal Way, Washington, native was No. 2 in the nation with 44 assists through Monday’s action.
“That part’s been kind of fun,” Presnell said. “I just want them to reach their potential. Whatever that ceiling is, I want them to get there.”
With 8:38 to play in the fourth quarter and the Broncos (4-3) leading 64-58, Lupfer and Braydey Hodgins had to carry Christopher off the court when she went down with a cramp in a calf. Lupfer followed Christopher to the bench with 8:04 left when she picked up her fourth foul.
Utah Valley (0-5) capitalized on the opportunity, getting as close as 64-62 until a Hodgins three-point play with 5:21 remaining in the game. Lupfer and Christopher returned after Hodgins’ made free throw, and Lupfer’s final three 3-pointers down the stretch solidified the win.
“They played all four quarters pretty hard. I like competitive games anyway, but I feel like they just came out tough,” Christopher said of Utah Valley. “We have a big target on our backs, and they played us pretty well. We fought to the finish, and clearly we won.”
Christopher came within striking distance of a triple-double, contributing 10 assists, eight points and a career-best eight rebounds. Senior forward A’Shanti Coleman went 6-for-8 from the floor for 14 points, Hodgins added 13 points, and sophomore Rachel Bowers grabbed a career-high nine rebounds to go with seven points.
Up next for Boise State is a trip to Fort Worth, Texas, for the Maggie Dixon Classic. The Broncos face host TCU (5-0) at 4 p.m. MT on Sunday in the first game of a doubleheader. No. 6 Texas A&M and No. 12 Florida State follow at 6:30 p.m. The Broncos’ game will be broadcast on the radio at 1350 AM and available on television in some areas on Fox Sports Southwest Plus.
Note: Redshirt senior guard Ellie Woerner returned to the court Tuesday after missing Boise State’s previous two games with a knee injury.
BOISE ST. 77, UTAH VALLEY 69
UTAH VALLEY (0-5)
Eve Braslis 7-13 2-3 16; Josie Williams 6-8 3-3 15; Alexis Cortez 5-12 0-0 13; Jordan Holland 4-12 3-4 13; Maria Carvalho 2-9 3-4 7; Nehaa Sohail 2-2 0-0 5; Madison Grange 0-0 0-0 0; Megan Jensen 0-1 0-0 0; Keana Delos Santos 0-0 0-0 0; Sydney Wright 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 26-58 11-14 69.
BOISE ST. (4-3)
Riley Lupfer 8-13 0-0 23; A’Shanti Coleman 6-8 2-2 14; Braydey Hodgins 5-13 2-3 13; Jayde Christopher 2-5 3-4 8; Jade Loville 3-6 1-2 7; Rachel Bowers 2-8 3-3 7; Mallory McGwire 2-7 1-2 5; Ellie Woerner 0-2 0-0 0; Maggie Freeman 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 28-63 12-16 77.
Utah Valley................... 18 19 21 11 — 69
Boise St...................... 20 19 25 13 — 77
3-point goals — Utah Valley 6-19 (Cortez 3-6; Holland 2-7; Sohail 1-1; Wright 0-1; Carvalho 0-1; Williams 0-1; Braslis 0-2), Boise St. 9-21 (Lupfer 7-12; Hodgins 1-3; Christopher 1-4; McGwire 0-1; Loville 0-1). Fouled out — Utah Valley-Holland, Boise St.-None. Rebounds — Utah Valley 34 (Williams 8), Boise St. 35 (Bowers 9). Assists — Utah Valley 14 (Cortez 6), Boise St. 18 (Christopher 10). Total fouls — Utah Valley 18, Boise St. 14. Technical fouls — None. A — 836.
This story was originally published November 26, 2019 at 10:56 PM.
