BYU Women’s Basketball Falls to UCF in Big 12 Tournament First Round
BYU women’s basketball had a short stay in the Big 12 Tournament in Kansas City, getting eliminated in the first round by 13-seed UCF with a final score of 81-69.
UCF guard Kaitlin Peterson scored 35 points on 12-of-21 shooting from the field, leading the Knights to their first-ever win in the Big 12 Tournament.
BYU Women’s Basketball Defeated by UCF in Big 12 Tournament
“UCF is a really strong team. They played well today. A couple of factors that impacted the game were transition points and offensive rebounds. We didn’t do a good job with that, and now we have to look ourselves in the mirror,” said BYU coach Amber Whiting.
This loss marks BYU’s fifth consecutive defeat, bringing their record to 13-17 overall. While the team isn’t ruling out the chance of a postseason appearance in the WNIT, that will be decided on Selection Sunday, March 16.
BYU had a slim 22-20 lead after the first quarter. However, issues that had troubled the team all season resurfaced in the second quarter, as they committed eight turnovers and scored only seven points in that period.
BYU finished with 18 turnovers in the loss, and UCF capitalized by scoring 27 points off those turnovers.
BYU continued to fight, with reserve forward Kendra Gillisipie scoring seven of her career-high 10 points in the third quarter, pulling the Cougars within one by the end of the period.
“I thought some of our players played really well, and I thought ‘KG’ stepped up tonight,” Whiting said. “She imposed her will, and I’m really proud of her.”
UCF then surged with an 8-0 run to open the fourth quarter, pulling away for good.
“They got some easy baskets in transition,” Whiting noted about UCF’s fourth-quarter performance. “They scored off offensive rebounds, and then we allowed Kaitlin to get loose. We needed to lock her down.”
UCF limited BYU star guard and Big 12 Freshman of the Year, Delaney Gibb, to just 15 points on 17 shots. Gibb missed all four of her field goal attempts in the fourth quarter.
BYU had four players reach double figures in scoring. Sophomore guard Amari Whiting contributed 14 points and five rebounds, while senior guard Kemery Congdon added 11 points.
Amber Whiting Reflects on the 2024-25 Season
This marks the second straight year that BYU women’s basketball has suffered a one-and-done exit in the Big 12 Tournament.
With a 13-17 record (.433), this is BYU’s worst winning percentage since 2008.
Unless the Cougars make a deep run in a postseason tournament or receive an at-large bid, the 2025 season will mark the third consecutive losing season for third-year head coach Amber Whiting.
Reflecting on the season as it wraps up, Whiting said, “We lost a tough one at Utah just a few days ago. We’ve lost eight games by 10 points or less, and we’ve been right there in a lot of those. I see the potential in our team. I see that we need to address some small issues, but turnovers and offensive rebounds have hurt us all season. We need to focus on improving these areas during the offseason.”