SALT LAKE CITY (AP) – Erika Bean scored 23 points and a hit a go-ahead 3-pointer with a minute left to lift No. 21 Utah over No. 6 Stanford 75-68 on Sunday.
Megan Huff had 17 points and 12 rebounds for Utah, and Kianna Moore added 13 points. The Utes (18-1, 7-1 Pac-12) won their sixth straight.
Alanna Smith had 19 points and seven rebounds before fouling out with 50 seconds left for Stanford (17-2, 7-1). DiJonai Carrington scored 13 points, and the Cardinal shot just 25 of 65 (.385) from the field.
Bean broke a 68-68 tie with her 3-pointer. Smith committed an offensive foul on the next possession, and the Cardinal missed all three shots it took in the final minute.
The Cardinal opened the first quarter by missing 11 of its first 12 shots. That opened the door for Utah to charge out to a 17-12 lead after scoring baskets on four straight possessions. Kiana Moore capped the flurry by draining a 3-pointer with 1:06 left in the quarter.
Shots fell more consistently for the Cardinal in the second quarter. Stanford used a 15-6 run to take a 29-26 lead, starting with a layup from Smith and culminating in a 3-pointer from Carrington. The Cardinal scored on seven of eight possessions to facilitate its run.
Stanford pushed its lead to 42-35 early in the third quarter behind 3-pointers from Kiana Williams, Smith and Alyssa Jerome.
Bean took over and sparked Utah's rally to tie it at 44 on back-to-back layups. Bean scored a pair of fast-break layups to fuel an 11-0 spurt that put Utah up 58-50 with 9:38 left in the fourth quarter. The Cardinal missed seven straight shots and went four minutes without scoring, enabling the Utes to surge back in front.
Stanford tied it up four times in the fourth quarter, the final time at 68 on a pair of free throws from Lexie Hull with 2:04 remaining.
THE BIG PICTURE
Stanford: The Cardinal's normally efficient offense struggled to find consistency. Stanford endured bad shooting spells in the first and third quarter that made it possible for Utah to hang around and pull away late.
Utah: There's no question that the Utes are no mere upstart. Utah put itself in contention for the Pac-12 title by playing smart defense and efficient offense against the Cardinal.
