LOS ANGELES—It was a celebration for BYU when the buzzer sounded at Pauley Pavilion. Morgan Bailey and Jennifer Hamson used their athleticism to help eliminate Nebraska 80-76 on Monday night at Pauley Pavilion. Bailey lead all scorers with 18 points, Hamon added 15 points and 14 rebounds.
After a 12-year drought, the Cougars are going dancing into another round. It’s been over a decade (2002), since BYU has advanced to the sweet 16 NCAA women’s tournament. And they were so excited, they just couldn’t hide it.
“It’s indescribable,” Hamson said. “So many emotions flow through me. We played so well together.”
The Cougars came out full of energy and quickly ran up the scoreboard, leading by as many as 17 points in the first half. They played as a unit and their success came from cohesiveness.
“It shows just how much hard work pays off,” said Bailey. “I know how much all of us worked this summer in the weight room, conditioning and getting up shots. It’s just great to see that all this is paying off finally.”
The No.14 seeded Cougars have a lot to be sanguine about heading into the next round, they have ended two lower seeded teams season within the last two days; the No.5 seed North Carolina State and
fourth-seeded Nebraska.
They are waiting in a patient manner to see who their next victim will be. They’ll play the winner of the Connecticut-Saint Joseph game. Meanwhile, BYU coach Jeff Judkins hopes God answers his prayers.
“We’re praying like crazy that Saint Joe’s wins,” Judkins said, jokingly.
BYU picked up a couple of unforeseen fans after beating Nebraska. Big Ten Player of the Year Jordan Hooper isn’t holding a grudge about the loss; In fact, she hoped the Cornhuskers would come out on top.
“I’ll be rooting for BYU. We knew they were a great team,” said Hooper. “We knew their weapons. We got beat by a great team; I’m not ashamed of that at all. But it’ll definitely hurt not being out there.”
Cooper finished the game with 20 points and teammate Tear’a Laudermill added 20 points for Nebraska, but it wasn’t enough to get the victory. The Cougars showed heart after falling behind by double-digits, closing the gap to within one. But every time Nebraska made a run, BYU would answer. The Cornhuskers just couldn’t figure out how to slow down the Cougars offensively.
Tamara is a graduate of Cal State Los Angeles where she received a Bachelor’s degree in Broadcast Journalism. Tamara is passionate about covering sports. She has covered the NBA and Major League Baseball routinely for the past several years. A Southern California native, Tamara developed her skills as a sports journalist while working for various Los Angeles-based news publications.
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