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Las Vegas • When guard Britta Hall's go-ahead free throw somehow stayed in the basket with 21 seconds remaining, Utah Valley University positioned itself to complete an improbable run to the championship game of the Western Athletic Conference women's basketball tournament.
But nothing went right for the Wolverines after that. Kaylee Best's two free throws with 9.8 seconds left salvaged No. 2 seed Seattle's 61-60 victory Friday afternoon at Orleans Arena.
The No. 6 Wolverines' bid for another upset ended when their last play broke down and guard Mariah Seals' long 3-point attempt fell short. UVU defeated No. 3 Cal State Bakersfield in overtime in the quarterfinals and almost earned a matchup with No. 1 New Mexico State in the title game, but Seattle's 19 offensive rebounds proved critical in the semifinals.
Coming into the tournament, "I don't know how many people had a lot of respect for our team," said UVU coach Cathy Nixon, who labeled the Wolverines' run "a tremendous success."
It could have been even better. Hall, who scored 17 points Friday after missing her only shot against Bakersfield, was fouled on a 3-point try with UVU down by one point. She made the first two free throws, even though the second attempt almost crawled out of the basket, then missed the third.
"I just kept telling myself I could I do it," she said. "Unfortunately, I didn't make the third one. I have the offseason to get better at that, and when the time comes again, I'll knock 'em down."
In the quarterfinals, UVU fought off Bakersfield's last possession of regulation by using two fouls to give and forcing the opponent to reset its offense twice. This time, Nixon said, "We decided to just play it out."
Seattle's driving strategy worked. Best was fouled in the lane and made the tying and winning free throws.
"Just a really gusty, gritty win," said Redhawks coach Suzy Barcomb.
The same description applied to UVU's losing effort. The Wolverines held Seattle to 31.7 percent shooting and shot 52.4 percent themselves, making 5 of 7 attempts in the fourth quarter — even counting Seals' last-second miss. Sam Lubcke scored 16 points and Seals and Taylor Gordon added 11 each, but 16 turnovers and a lack of rebounding hurt the Wolverines.
Amid injuries that once left UVU (9-22) with only six players available for a conference game, Nixon admired how her team with no seniors kept playing this season and made a strong showing in the tournament. The effort made her "incredibly optimistic about the future of UVU basketball," she said.
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