Upcoming Event: Women's Basketball versus Western Colorado (EXHIBITION) on October 27, 2025 at TBD
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Women's Basketball
vs Western Colorado (EXHIBITION)
Tuesday, March 8
Las Vegas, Nev.
5:30 PM
University of Utah
55
at
44
UNLV
Utes Open MWC Tournament With 55-44 Win Over UNLV
3/8/2011 12:00 AM | Women's Basketball
March 8, 2011
Box Score | Quotes | Notes | Photo Gallery 
LAS VEGAS - In a hard-fought defensive battle, the Utah women's basketball team opened the Mountain West Conference Tournament with a 55-44 win over UNLV on Tuesday afternoon.
The Utes move on to play Air Force in the second round at 4:30 p.m. PT on Wednesday, March 9. The ninth-seeded Falcons upset fourth-seeded Colorado State, 66-63.
In a tight second half that saw four ties, two lead changes, 27 fouls and 41 free-throw attempts between the two teams, Utah made a late run to pull away by double digits in the win. With two minutes remaining and the game tied, 42-42, Iwalani Rodrigues' hit a three-pointer to give Utah the lead for good in the game and set the tone down the stretch for Utah.
Utah took advantage of multiple UNLV misses in the final minute and a half, along with hitting their free throws and keeping UNLV off the line. Diana Rolniak was 3-for-4 from the line in the final minute while Janita Badon went 4-for-6. Michelle Harrison completed a three-point play after making an open layup. Utah only fouled UNLV once in the same stanza, and while Erica Helms made both free throws, it was the only points the Rebels would have as the clock ticked down. Utah was 16-for-22 from the line in the second half.
UNLV was held to 17-percent shooting during the game but stayed in the contest with free throws, going 16-for-19 in the second half and 19-for-23 in the game.
The Utes out-rebounded UNLV, 46-45.
Badon had a career-high 17 rebounds, along with 13 points for her sixth double-double of the year. Michelle Plouffe had 10 points and 12 rebounds for her eighth double-double of the season. Rodrigues led all scorers with 16 points.
UNLV came out strong to start the game, taking a 6-0 lead off a pair of three-pointers. The Utes quickly came back, and although it took them a few minutes to catch up, the score was tied 9-9 with 12 minutes left in the half. Both teams had stretches where they struggled to make shots.
With the score tied, 14-14 with five minutes remaining, Utah scored eight-straight points, including a pair of three's from Rodrigues, to take a 22-14 lead with three minutes left. UNLV's Ta'Nitra Byrd made a pair of free throws in the final minutes for the final scoring of the half. Utah took a 22-16 lead into the locker room. Rodrigues had 11 first-half points.
UNLV worked to cut into Utah's lead early in the second half. Although the Utes pushed the lead as high as eight to start the half, the Rebels matched their baskets to keep the score within five. Utah held a five-point lead, 28-23, with 14:30 remaining, before UNLV went on a 5-0 run, led by a pair of layups from Erica Helms, to tie the game at 28 with 13 minutes left. The score remained within four points until Utah's late-game run.
Players Mentioned
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