SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Alissa Pili scored 22 points and collected six rebounds to lead No. 10 Utah to a 98-34 victory over Merrimack on Friday night.
Kennady McQueen added a season-high 18 points on six 3-pointers for the Utes. Utah (5-1) finished with a 50-28 advantage in rebounds and outscored Merrimack 30-12 in the paint.
Cadence Johnson led the Warriors with eight points. Thalia Shepard added seven. Merrimack (1-5) made only 14 baskets while totaling the fewest points for a Utah opponent this season. The Utes scored 32 points off 25 turnovers.
Utah raced out to a double-digit lead after making seven 3-pointers in the first quarter while shooting 58% from the perimeter. Seven different players contributed an outside basket during the onslaught.
Their hot shooting allowed the Utes to quickly blow the game wide open. Utah built a 55-15 halftime lead after Pili and Young both made back-to-back baskets to fuel a 17-3 run to close the second quarter.
Turnovers complicated Merrimack’s efforts to stay in the game. The Warriors committed 16 turnovers before halftime, which led to 21 points for the Utes.
Utah held Merrimack to a single basket in the third quarter, allowing the Warriors to shoot just 1-of-13 from the field. The Utes led by as many as 69 points in the second half.
BIG PICTURE
Merrimack: The Warriors struggled to keep up with Utah from the opening tip. They had no answer for the Utes on either end of the court.
Utah: The Utes clamped down on defense and kept Merrimack from getting easy looks at the basket. Utah did not allow any offensive rebounds, points in the paint, second chance points or fastbreak points during the first half.
UP NEXT
Merrimack is at Siena on Tuesday.
Utah hosts Carroll College on Tuesday.
___
AP women’s college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-womens-college-basketball-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/womens-college-basketball
News Related-
Hidalgo scores 25, adds 8 steals, No. 17 Notre Dame women roll to 90-59 win over Ball State
-
Fontleroy, Edwards lead No. 14 Baylor women to 124-44 win over McNeese State
-
Hayes leads No. 10 North Carolina State to 79-45 rout of Cincinnati
-
Deja Kelly scores 10 points in 4th quarter, No. 18 North Carolina women rally past Vermont 54-51
-
South Carolina basketball sets program record in 101-19 rout of Mississippi Valley State
-
Parker, Nye help lead undefeated Alabama to 78-73 win over No. 20 Louisville women
-
No. 7 LSU routs Niagara in Cayman Islands Classic with Angel Reese still out
-
Villa has 15 points to lead balanced No. 23 Washington State women past UMass 90-48 in Cancun
-
No. 16 Kansas State women beat Western Kentucky 77-61 in Gulf Coast Showcase
-
No. 3 Colorado uses strong second half to rout Kentucky 96-53
-
Without Reese, No. 7 LSU cruises past Niagara in Cayman Classic
-
Harmon leads No. 12 Texas women over Arizona State 84-42 at Paradise Jam
-
Garzon hits 5 3s, scores 23 as No. 21 Indiana beats No. 19 Lady Vols 71-57 at Fort Myers Tip-Off
-
No. 23 Washington State women beat Maryland behind Charlisse Leger-Walker's triple-double