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Stockton, Calif. • Utah's women's basketball team survived an ugly offensive performance Thursday night, rallying in the final seconds of regulation and prevailing in overtime, as the Utes defeated host Pacific 60-55 in the third round of the WNIT.
With the victory, Utah (21-13) advances to Saturday's quarterfinals, where it will face Saint Mary's (23-10) at 3 p.m. MT.
The Utes trailed by six points with six minutes left, by four points with about 1:30 to go, and by three with 25 seconds remaining.
The Utes' Michelle Plouffe hit the game-tying 3-pointer with 14 seconds left, and the Tigers missed a pair of game-winners in the final seconds.
Plouffe finished with 26 points and a career-high 19 rebounds, while Taryn Wicijowski added 23 points and 13 rebounds.
It was not a pretty offensive performance, however, as Utah shot just 34.7 percent from the field for the game and committed 22 turnovers, leading to 28 points for Pacific.
The Tigers, on the other hand, committed just six turnovers, but shot even worse, making just 26.4 percent.
Utah coach Anthony Levrets saw the beauty in victory, though.
"I am really proud of our team," Levrets said. "We played an exceptional game tonight."
WNIT schedule
Third round
Wednesday
• Saint Mary's (Calif.) 59, BYU 55
• James Madison 77, Fordham 61
• Florida 67, Charlotte 65
• Auburn 72, Tulane 52
Thursday
• Drexel 50, Bowling Green 47
• Illinois 63, Toledo 55
• Kansas State 60, Ball State 48
• Utah 60, Pacific 55 (OT)
Quarterfinals
Saturday
• Florida (27-8) at James Madison (25-10), 2 p.m.
• Utah (21-13) at Saint Mary's (Calif.) (23-10), 3 p.m.
• Illinois (19-13) at Kansas State (18-17), 3 p.m.
• Drexel (25-10) at Auburn (19-14), 5 p.m.