Upcoming Event: Women's Basketball versus Western Colorado (EXHIBITION) on October 27, 2025 at TBD
TBD
Women's Basketball
vs Western Colorado (EXHIBITION)
Saturday, February 8
Salt Lake City, Utah
1:30 PM
University of Utah
18-5,9-3Big 12
95
vs
51
UCF
8-14,1-11Big 12
1
2
3
4
F
UCF
15
13
11
12
51
Utah
27
16
25
27
95
Utah's Selfless Play Leads Utes to 95-51 Win over UCF
2/8/2025 5:30 PM | Women's Basketball
SALT LAKE CITY – The Utah women's basketball team's balanced attack drove the Utes to a 95-51 victory over UCF Saturday afternoon.
Utah posted a new season high of 28 assists on its 32 made field goals. Gianna Kneepkens tied her career-high 32 points and six made three pointers. Kneepkens missed just one shot all game going 10-of-11 from the field including her 6-of-7 from the three. She also posted a perfect 6-of-6 from the line. Utah is now 18-5 overall on the season and sits at 9-3 in BIg 12 play.
GAME SUMMARY
Utah wasted no time getting an early 17-8 jump on UCF in the first quarter. The Utes pushed out and closed the first quarter with a 27-15 lead over the Golden Knights.
Matyson Wilke started the second quarter off with a made three ball for the Utes. Utah continued to charge in the remainder of the first half and pulled out for a 43-28 lead going into halftime.
Utah ended the third quarter on a 13-1 run over UCF that included eight unanswered points from Utah. The Utes held the Golden Knights to a three-minute scoring drought to end the third quarter and Utah pulled out for a 68-39 lead.
UCF started the fourth quarter on a 6-0 run but Utah didn't let that stand long as the Utes answered with a 15-0 run. With the momentum in Utah's favor, the Utes closed out the game with a 95-51 victory.
LEADERS
Utah had four players score in double figures and were led by Gianna Kneepkens' 32 points including six made from deep. Kneepkens went 10-of-11 from the field with her lone miss coming from three-point range. She also posted her 15th perfect game from the free throw line going 6-of-6.
Kennady McQueen posted 17 points for the Utes including three made from beyond the arc. Matyson Wilke knocked down four from deep for 12 points. Reese Ross balanced out Utah's scoring with 10 points. Jenna Johnson and Mayé Touré each added eight points for the Utes.
Touré also led the Utes on the boards with 11. Inês Vieira had seven assists to help the Utes' offensive efforts while Johnson posted six.
COMPARISON
Utah shot 54.2% from the field while UCF shot 30.6% from the field. Utah went 48.5% from deep making 16-of-33 while UCF went 14.3% shooting 2-of-14. The Utes went 15-of-18 from the free throw line for 83.3% while the Golden Knights went 11-of-12 for 91.7%.
Utah had 28 assists on 32 made field goals while UCF had seven assists on 19 made field goals. The Utes outrebounded the Golden Knights 38-34.
NOTABLES
Gianna Kneepkens posted her third 30-point game of the season tying her career high of 32 points and six made threes.
Utah posted two season highs with its 28 assists and 16 made threes.
Hear from the Utes
Head Coach Gavin Petersen
Overall statement . . .
"It's great to be back in the Huntsman Center along with our alumni to celebrate the 50th year of Utah women's basketball. I'm excited about the performance our team was able to do in a very unselfish fashion with our 28 assists on 32 made baskets. We've always preached it but these guys really understand the assignment when it comes to sharing the basketball. I'm super proud of that."
On Gianna Kneepkens' performance
"Gianna is just so motivated. I don't know this for a fact but I can bet that Gianna had a hard time sleeping after the Texas Tech game. She was probably up early the next morning and in the gym working on getting better. You can't hold her to six points every night, that's a hard task and Texas Tech did that in Lubbock. I think after that game Gianna got a little more hungry. Tonight she took what the defense gave her and was able to have her night. She's a special player and you're not going to hold her down for long."
Kennady McQueen, senior, guard
On the teams' 16 made three pointers . . .
"We were moving the ball really well tonight. We were celebrating each other and having fun which just makes the basket get even bigger. It was a blast playing today."
Matyson Wilke, junior, guard
On the team's performance . . .
"We celebrated each other's success. We weren't worried about ourselves scoring. What mattered tonight was that the team was scoring. I think making that extra pass and seeing your teammate knocked down shots is just as exciting as scoring for myself. I think we had a strong team game today. Once one person started hitting the basket got bigger for all of us."
UP NEXT
Utah will welcome back the Colorado Buffaloes to Salt Lake City on Wednesday, Feb. 12 before hitting the road to take on Arizona State Feb. 15.
OFFICIAL MOBILE APP OF UTAH ATHLETICS – UTAH 360
The official mobile app of Utah Athletics is Utah 360. Download it today to unlock a refreshed game-day experience, from managing tickets to mobile concessions ordering, as well as video content, news and information, schedules, rosters and stats. The app is available in both the Apple Store (download) and Google Play (download). Add it today, access your game tickets and download them to your smartphone's wallet to make yourself game-day ready.
FOLLOW THE UTES!
Fans can follow along during the 2024-25 season on social media (Twitter: @UtahWBB | Instagram: @UtahWBB | Facebook: Facebook.com/UtahWBB).
Utah posted a new season high of 28 assists on its 32 made field goals. Gianna Kneepkens tied her career-high 32 points and six made three pointers. Kneepkens missed just one shot all game going 10-of-11 from the field including her 6-of-7 from the three. She also posted a perfect 6-of-6 from the line. Utah is now 18-5 overall on the season and sits at 9-3 in BIg 12 play.
GAME SUMMARY
Utah wasted no time getting an early 17-8 jump on UCF in the first quarter. The Utes pushed out and closed the first quarter with a 27-15 lead over the Golden Knights.
Matyson Wilke started the second quarter off with a made three ball for the Utes. Utah continued to charge in the remainder of the first half and pulled out for a 43-28 lead going into halftime.
Utah ended the third quarter on a 13-1 run over UCF that included eight unanswered points from Utah. The Utes held the Golden Knights to a three-minute scoring drought to end the third quarter and Utah pulled out for a 68-39 lead.
UCF started the fourth quarter on a 6-0 run but Utah didn't let that stand long as the Utes answered with a 15-0 run. With the momentum in Utah's favor, the Utes closed out the game with a 95-51 victory.
LEADERS
Utah had four players score in double figures and were led by Gianna Kneepkens' 32 points including six made from deep. Kneepkens went 10-of-11 from the field with her lone miss coming from three-point range. She also posted her 15th perfect game from the free throw line going 6-of-6.
Kennady McQueen posted 17 points for the Utes including three made from beyond the arc. Matyson Wilke knocked down four from deep for 12 points. Reese Ross balanced out Utah's scoring with 10 points. Jenna Johnson and Mayé Touré each added eight points for the Utes.
Touré also led the Utes on the boards with 11. Inês Vieira had seven assists to help the Utes' offensive efforts while Johnson posted six.
COMPARISON
Utah shot 54.2% from the field while UCF shot 30.6% from the field. Utah went 48.5% from deep making 16-of-33 while UCF went 14.3% shooting 2-of-14. The Utes went 15-of-18 from the free throw line for 83.3% while the Golden Knights went 11-of-12 for 91.7%.
Utah had 28 assists on 32 made field goals while UCF had seven assists on 19 made field goals. The Utes outrebounded the Golden Knights 38-34.
NOTABLES
Gianna Kneepkens posted her third 30-point game of the season tying her career high of 32 points and six made threes.
Utah posted two season highs with its 28 assists and 16 made threes.
Hear from the Utes
Head Coach Gavin Petersen
Overall statement . . .
"It's great to be back in the Huntsman Center along with our alumni to celebrate the 50th year of Utah women's basketball. I'm excited about the performance our team was able to do in a very unselfish fashion with our 28 assists on 32 made baskets. We've always preached it but these guys really understand the assignment when it comes to sharing the basketball. I'm super proud of that."
On Gianna Kneepkens' performance
"Gianna is just so motivated. I don't know this for a fact but I can bet that Gianna had a hard time sleeping after the Texas Tech game. She was probably up early the next morning and in the gym working on getting better. You can't hold her to six points every night, that's a hard task and Texas Tech did that in Lubbock. I think after that game Gianna got a little more hungry. Tonight she took what the defense gave her and was able to have her night. She's a special player and you're not going to hold her down for long."
Kennady McQueen, senior, guard
On the teams' 16 made three pointers . . .
"We were moving the ball really well tonight. We were celebrating each other and having fun which just makes the basket get even bigger. It was a blast playing today."
Matyson Wilke, junior, guard
On the team's performance . . .
"We celebrated each other's success. We weren't worried about ourselves scoring. What mattered tonight was that the team was scoring. I think making that extra pass and seeing your teammate knocked down shots is just as exciting as scoring for myself. I think we had a strong team game today. Once one person started hitting the basket got bigger for all of us."
UP NEXT
Utah will welcome back the Colorado Buffaloes to Salt Lake City on Wednesday, Feb. 12 before hitting the road to take on Arizona State Feb. 15.
OFFICIAL MOBILE APP OF UTAH ATHLETICS – UTAH 360
The official mobile app of Utah Athletics is Utah 360. Download it today to unlock a refreshed game-day experience, from managing tickets to mobile concessions ordering, as well as video content, news and information, schedules, rosters and stats. The app is available in both the Apple Store (download) and Google Play (download). Add it today, access your game tickets and download them to your smartphone's wallet to make yourself game-day ready.
FOLLOW THE UTES!
Fans can follow along during the 2024-25 season on social media (Twitter: @UtahWBB | Instagram: @UtahWBB | Facebook: Facebook.com/UtahWBB).
Team Stats
UCF
Utah
FG%
.306
.542
3FG%
.143
.485
FT%
.917
.833
RB
34
38
TO
20
17
STL
8
5
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
32
FGM
10
3FGM
6
FTM
6
Pts
17
FGM
5
3FGM
3
FTM
4
Pts
12
FGM
4
3FGM
4
FTM
0
Pts
10
FGM
4
3FGM
1
FTM
1
Players Mentioned
F
/ Women's BasketballG
/ Women's BasketballG
/ Women's BasketballF
/ Women's Basketball
F
/ Women's Basketball
G
/ Women's BasketballG
/ Women's BasketballFan Fest 2025 Coaches and Players Interviews: Women's Basketball
Sunday, August 17
Utah Women's Basketball: 76 - BYU: 73 | Postgame Press Conference
Saturday, March 01
Utah vs BYU - The Rivalry Continues
Saturday, March 01
Utah Women's Basketball: 46 - West Virginia: 75 | Postgame Press Conference
Thursday, February 27