Another rematch awaiting Y. women

PROVO -- It's one down and one to go for the BYU women's basketball team as it tries for back-to-back victories against the teams that helped stifle the Cougars into an 0-2 start to the Mountain West Conference season last month.

On the heels of Thursday night's 67-50 home victory over Wyoming, BYU (13-9, 3-5) plays host to Colorado State (12-9, 3-5) at 4 p.m. today in the Marriott Center.

CSU opened league play Jan. 15 with a 54-52 win over the Cougars in Fort Collins, with BYU faltering two days later in Laramie. And it's not so much that either Front Range team overwhelmed the Cougars as much as they themselves failed to live up to potential.

"I think we just expected to win, but we didn't know how hard it would be and how to work as a team," said BYU junior guard Julie Sullivan.

Coming off a 71-57 loss Thursday at league-leading Utah, CSU features leading scorer Melissa Dennett (13.4 points a game) and leading rebounder Lindsay Thomas (7.4), with the Rams a strong team around the basket.

"We've gotta do a good job on their inside game and not give them second- and third-chance shots," said BYU coach Jeff Judkins, still smarting from the free-throw disparity in the Jan. 15 game, when the Rams shot 23-of-29 and the Cougars were given only two attempts from the line.

Sullivan remembers the MWC opener and is anxious for a second chance. "The fouls, the refs -- I just feel like we were the better team," she said.

The Cougars should be well-rested from Thursday's victory, in which 16 players played, 11 scored and nobody played more than Sullivan's 25 minutes. Sullivan and Nancy Seljaas tied for team-high honors with 11 points each. Ashley Chamberlain logged a double- double with 10 points and 10 rebounds.

Another three teammates -- Jennie Overdiek, Angie Gatten and Kali Taylor -- each scored between six and nine points. That means the Cougars still won despite their two leading scorers -- Ambrosia Anderson and Danielle Cheesman, each averaging 11-plus points per game -- having sub-par outings.

E-mail: taylor@desnews.com

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