Game Notes: UTAH TECH - PDF | WESTCLIFF
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TRAILBLAZERS AT A GLANCE
Utah Utah Tech closes the first month of the 2024-25 regular season with a post-Thanksgiving Saturday home matinee vs. Westcliff. 

Saturday's game will be the second-ever meeting between the Trailblazers and Warriors on the basketball court. The two sides first met during the 2021-22 in the Burns Arena, where the Trailblazers rolled to a 79-55 victory. 

The Trailblazers enter Saturday's game looking to rebound from a highly competitive 85-73 home loss to Big 12 member Colorado this past Wednesday afternoon.

That game marked the seventh time Utah Tech had faced an NCAA Division I "Power 4" conference opponent. Utah Tech is 1-6 all-time against Power 4 foes, which includes an 0-3 record against the Big 12 Conference (Kansas State 2022-23; Oklahoma State 2023-24).

Wednesday's game was also the first of three games that Utah Tech will play against a Power 4 opponent. The Trailblazers are slated to play at Big 12 member No. 22 Baylor on Dec. 18, before closing out their non-conference schedule with a home date vs. ACC member Pittsburgh on Dec. 21.

OPENING TIP: Utah Tech (3-4/0-0 WAC) closes out its Thanksgiving Weekend homestand on Saturday afternoon when the Trailblazers play host to Westcliff (3-2). 

FINALLY ELIGIBLE FOR POSTSEASON PLAY: Not only is the 2024-25 season Utah Tech's fifth Division I season overall, it is also the FIRST season that the Trailblazers are eligible for NCAA postseason play. 
        The NCAA Division I Board of Directors officially approved Utah Tech's move to active Division I status this past June 28. With that confirmation, Trailblazer Athletics is now officially eligible to participate in all NCAA postseason championships in its 15 intercollegiate programs.

LAST TIME OUT: Utah Tech gave visiting Colorado everything it could handle, but the Trailblazers could not overcome an early first quarter deficit in dropping an 85-73 home decision to the Buffaloes this past Wednesday afternoon inside the Burns Arena. 
            Colorado took a page out of Utah Tech's playbook to start the game. The Buffaloes knocked down five of their first six 3-point shots as they raced out to a commanding 22-7 lead with 4:38 to play in the first quarter. 
            The Trailblazers shook off the early Buffalo haymakers and got their perimeter game on track, going 4-for-5 from beyond the arc as part of a 12-2 run over the next three minutes to trim the deficit to 24-19.
            That instance was one of several throughout the game that saw Utah Tech fall behind by double-digits, only to rally and pull to within two possessions. However the Blazers could get no closer than four points as Colorado escaped with the Thanksgiving Eve road win. 

HEAD COACH JD GUSTIN: JD Gustin is in his ninth season as Utah Tech head women's basketball coach. 
            Last season, Coach Gustin guided the Trailblazers to an 18-14 overall record, including a 12-8 mark in Western Athletic Conference play, which was good for fourth place in the conference standings and a first round bye into the 2024 WAC Tournament.
            Along with the 18 wins last season, his 2023-24 Trailblazers broke school records in made 3-pointers (327; #1 WAC/#6 NCAA), points (2,343), single game points (116), field goals made/attempted (853/1942), 3-pointers attempted (945), free throw percentage (.736) and fewest turnovers (420).
            Gustin has seen marked improvements in each season on the Trailblazer sideline, culminating with an 19-12 overall record in 2022-23, a nine-win turnaround from the previous season. The 2022-23 campaign also featured a 10-8 mark and a fifth-place finish in Western Athletic Conference play. 
            Utah Tech's 19 wins that season were the most in the program's newly minted NCAA Division-I era, and is the highest win total during Coach Gustin's tenure on the Trailblazer bench.

GUSTIN FOR 100: Gustin collected his 100th-career win as Trailblazer head coach this past Nov. 16, with an 81-78 home win over in-state rival Weber State. Gustin has now tallied at least 100 coaching victories in each of his two head coaching stops (101-110 at Utah Tech; 2016-current / 146-83 at Westminster College; 2004-11).

21-FOR-22: Thanks to its road victory at McNeese State last Saturday, Utah Tech has now won at least one basketball game in 21 different states during the program's NCAA era.
            In all, the Trailblazers have played at least one game in 22 different states overall. The only state Utah Tech has visited and not won a game is Kansas, where the Blazers were handed a 91-82 loss at Big 12 member Kansas State (11/20/22) early in the 2022-23 season.

HARTLEY AND IBARRA SWEEP THE WAC AWARDS: Thanks to the Blazers' road split last week, junior guards Chardonnay Hartley and Aaliyah Ibarra combined to sweep the WAC women's basketball weekly awards this past Monday.
            Hartley was named WAC Player of the Week after averaging 17.0 points on 34.5 percent shooting (10-of-29), including 35.7 percent (5-14) from the perimeter. She also averaged 7.5 assists, 4.0 rebounds, and 1.5 steals in her two starts. 
            The junior guard, who scored 17 points in both games last week, dished out a game-high seven assists, and had four rebounds and two steals in the loss at Houston Christian on Nov. 21.
            Hartley then tallied a game-high eight dimes, along with four boards and one steal in the Blazers' 79-69 road win at McNeese State last Saturday.
            Meanwhile Ibarra earned WAC Newcomer of the Week accolades after she averaged 19.5 points on 52.0 percent shooting (13-25), including 40.0 percent (6-of-15) from the perimeter off the bench in Utah Tech's two-game split last week. She also averaged 3.0 rebounds and 1.5 steals. 
            After scoring three points with three rebounds and two steals in the loss at HCU, the junior came back in a big way with a career day in Utah Tech's win at McNeese State
            Ibarra poured in a career-high 36 points off the bench, including 18 second-quarter points, to go with three rebounds and one steal. She was a perfect 6-of-6 from the floor with four 3-pointers in that second quarter blitz, along with a 2-for-2 effort at the foul line.
            In all, Ibarra hit on 12 of her 20 total shot attempts on the afternoon, including 5-of-11 from the perimeter, and went 7-of-9 at the charity stripe.

8 FOR 30: Ibarra's 36-point day at McNeese tied for the fifth-most points scored by a Trailblazer in a single game in the program's NCAA era, and were the second-most points scored by a Trailblazer in a game during the team's current Division I era (38, Breaunna Gillen vs. UT Arlington; 2/24/24).
            Ibarra also became the eighth different Trailblazer to score at least 30 points in one game in the program's four-year era. In addition, her career day marked the 13th-time a Trailblazer had scored at least 30 points in a game overall.
            Former Utah Tech post player Haley Holmstead scored 30 or more points a school record six times during the 2013-14 season, during which she set the school's single season scoring record with 646 points. Holmstead's dominant season was highlighted by a school record 42-point effort in a road win at Fresno Pacific (86-84; 12/7/13).  

HOME SWEET HOME: Since joining the NCAA ranks in 2006-07, Utah Tech has played to a 143-77 (.650) overall record in 220 games inside the Burns Arena, which included an 11-5 mark last season.   
            Under Coach Gustin, the Trailblazers are 64-44 (.592) on their home floor and have won eight or more home games in six of their last seven seasons overall. In fact, Utah Tech's 11 home wins last season tied for the most during Gustin's tenure (11-4 in 2018-19) on the Trailblazer bench.

AWAY FROM THE BURNS: Utah Tech owns a 90-129 (.411) record in 219 road games since the 2006-07 season. Under Coach Gustin, the Blazers are 33-61 (.351) away from home, which included a 7-8 road mark last season. In addition, Utah Tech is 22-19 (.538) on neutral courts, 4-5 under Coach Gustin.

TRAILBLAZERS PICKED SEVENTH THE WAC: Utah Tech was picked to finish seventh in the 2024-25 Western Athletic Conference women's basketball preseason coaches poll, which was released this past October 16.
            Grand Canyon received four of a possible nine first place votes and 59 total points to be tabbed as the WAC preseason favorite, while defending conference regular season and tournament champion California Baptist collected four first place nods to finish second in the poll with 58 points.
            UT Arlington (1 FPV/53 pts) was picked to finish third, followed by Abilene Christian (37 pts) in fourth, Southern Utah (33 pts) in fifth, Tarleton State (28 pts) in sixth, Utah Tech (24 pts) in seventh, Utah Valley (17 pts) in eighth, and Seattle U (15 pts) was picked to finish ninth.  

FROM WAY DOWNTOWN....BANG: Utah Tech has hit at least one 3-pointer in 269-straight games, including 16 treys in the Weber State win (11/16), and a season-high 17 perimeter jumpers (17-of-47) in the 2024-25 season-opening victory vs. Northern New Mexico (11/4). 
            The Trailblazers shot a season-best 53.3 percent (16-of-30) from beyond the arc in the Weber State win. Meanwhile, those 16 treys continued a stretch that has seen the Trailblazers reach double figures in made 3-pointers 22 times in their last 39 games dating back to last season, highlighted by a season-best 21 3-pointers in its home win over Oregon (12/19/23). 
            In fact, the Trailblazers have knocked down at least 10 treys 105 times during its NCAA era overall, including 10 trifectas at HCU back on Nov. 21.
            Last season Utah Tech led the WAC and finished the year ranked sixth-nationally with a school record 327 made 3-pointers, and broke a school records in both 3-point field goal attempts (945) and 3FG percentage (.346). 
            The 21 made treys last year vs. Oregon were the second-most in a single game in program history. In addition, the Trailblazers combined to shoot school record-breaking 67.7 percent (21-of-31) from the perimeter vs. the Ducks, besting the previous record that stood for nearly 12 full seasons (.611, 11-of-18 at BYU-Hawaii; 2/4/2012). 
            In the 2021-22 season, the Trailblazers nailed a school-record 22 3-pointers in its 107-57 blowout win over LIFE Pacific (11/9/21).
            That record was one of two 3FG school records to fall that night as the Blazers also broke a team record for 3FG attempted (51). 
            In all, Utah Tech has hit at least one 3-pointer in 477 of its 480 games during its NCAA era, which began in the 2006-07 season.
            Two of the three instances when the Blazers did not hit a 3-pointer happened during the 2013-14 season (vs. Hawai'i-Hilo, 2/13/14; at California Baptist, 1/18/14), and the other came in the program's first NCAA season in 2006-07 (vs. UHH, 1/7/07). 
            Meanwhile, Utah Tech has surrendered at least one made opponent 3-pointer in 479 of 480 games during its NCAA era.

RELEASE - ROTATION - SPLASH: Heading into Saturday's game, the Trailblazers are currently tied for SECOND-NATIONALLY with California, and behind only Lipscomb, in made 3-pointers with 78, and secondbehind Tennessee in 3-point FG attempts (33.9 FGA/g).
            In addition, Utah Tech is sixth in 3FGM/G (11.1) and t-124th in the Division I ranks in 3FG% (.329). 

HARTLEY'S ON FIRE: Hartley continued her torrid scoring pace to begin the season, during which she has scored at least 14 points in six of her seven starts, highlighted by a career-high 28 points in the Weber State home win this past Nov. 16.
            The junior point guard's start had her join some pretty elite company as she became just the fifth Trailblazer in the program's NCAA era to score at least 20 points in three of the first four games to begin a season. 
            Hartley just missed making it four of her first five games overall after she poured in a co-game high 17 points with a season-high four 3-pointers at HCU (11/21), which she followed with 17 more points at McNeese last Saturday.
            Holmstead was the first to achieve the feat, opening the 2013-14 season with three straight 20-plus point efforts, including a 30-point night at Cal State LA (11/23/13). 
            The three other instances have come in the program's new NCAA D-I era, most recently last season when Maddie Warren tallied 20 points against both Jacksonville State (11/9/23) and UNLV (11/14/23), followed by a 21-point day at Texas A&M-Commerce (11/20/23). 
            Meanwhile, twin sister Macie Warren turned the trick one year earlier in the 2022-23 season thanks to consecutive 25-point games vs. Benedictine Mesa (11/10/22) and Utah State (11/15/22), before pouring in 21 points at Kansas City (11/18/22).
            Also that same year, former Blazer guard Breaunna Gillen scored 20 or more points in four of her first five games, starting with a 21-point effort in the opener at Washington (11/7/22). Gillen followed that with 26 points vs. USU, 25 points at Kansas City, and 23 points at Kansas State (11/20/22). 

TRAILBLAZER PLAYER NOTES
* - Hartley has not only scored the basketball, she has also been a facilitator, having recorded 10 or more assists in three times through her first seven games this season, including posting her third double-double of the year with 14 points and 10 dimes vs. Colorado last Wednesday afternoon. 
* - Hartley opened the year with 10 assists in the Northern New Mexico win (11/4), then dished out a career-high 12 helpers vs. Weber State ... Hartley's 12 assists tied for the second-most in a single game in program history, and were one helper shy of tying the school record of 13 set by Gillen twice during the 2022-23 season.
* - Hartley now stands as one of only three Trailblazers to post multiple 10-plus assist games in a career, and she now just the second player in the program's NCAA era to do it at least three times.
* - Gillen (2019-24) reached double figures in assists a school record nine times in her career overall, while former guard Leslie Tademy (2014-16) achieved the feat twice in her two years at Utah Tech. 
* - Hartley enters Saturday's gave vs. Westcliff as the WAC leader and SECOND nationally in both total assists (59) and assists/game (8.4 apg) ... in addition, Hartley currently LEADS all of Division I in free throw attempts (66) and is t-SIXTH nationally in free throws made (42). 
* - After missing virtually the entire 2023-24 campaign due to a season-ending knee injury, senior forward Emily Isaacson picked up right where she left off, averaging 13.3 points through her first seven games ... Isaacson opened the season with 14 points on 5-of-9 from the floor with three 3-pointers in the NNMC win (11/4) ... Isaacson also picked off a co-game high three steals and pulled down five rebounds in 22 minutes. 
* - Isaacson followed that up with 16 points on 6-of-12 shooting with a pair of treys, four rebounds, three dimes and a game-high five steals at New Mexico State (11/7).
* - Isaacson then enjoyed arguably her finest game in a Trailblazer uniform in the win over Weber State (11/16), against which she poured in 20 points on 7-of-9 shooting, including 6-of-7 from the perimeter, along with six boards, three assists and four steals, highlighted by the game-saving steal on the Wildcats' final possession.
* - Isaacson (190 3FGM), who scored 13 points with two 3-pointers vs. Colorado last Wednesday, heads into Saturday's game vs. Westcliff only 13 made 3-pointers shy of passing former Trailblazer guard Kaylah Miller (207; 2011-15) to become Utah Tech's career 3FGM leader.
* - Isaacson, who is already the program's all-time leader in 3FG% (.398, 195-of-490), also needs 103 more points to become just the sixth player in program history to reach the 1,000-point plateau.
* - Isaacson is also sixth all-time in rebounding (472) and needs only 28 more boards to become the fifth player in program history with at least 500 career rebounds ... in addition, Isaacson moved into a tie for seventh place on Utah Tech's career steals list with 98, and fourth in career blocks (54).
* - Freshman guard Ellie Taylor got the starting nod in her collegiate debut, and she proceeded to fill the stat sheet with 11 points, four rebounds, four assists and two blocked shots in the Northern New Mexico win (11/4).
* - Taylor went off for 15 points on 6-of-12 shooting and seven boards vs. Stonehill (11/13), then followed that up with a career-high 17 points, including 4-of-4 from the perimeter, four caroms, three steals and two blocks in the Weber State win (11/16).
* - Prior to her career day at McNeese State, Ibarra enjoyed a breakout game vs. Stonehill (11/13), against which she poured in a game-high 23 points off the bench on 9-of-14 shooting, including a 5-of-8 clip from the perimeter ... Ibarra scored 15 of her points in the first half, 10 of which came in the second quarter that helped stop a Skyhawk run.
* - Ibarra also followed up her career day at McNeese with a team-high 15 points vs. Colorado last Wednesday ... Ibarra went 6-of-12 from the floor with three 3-pointers, all while notching career highs in both rebounds (5) and assists (3). 
* - After missing the NM State game due to illness, redshirt freshman Kastyn Young posted her second straight 17-point outing vs. Stonehill (11/13) ... Young went 6-of-15 from the floor with three 3-pointers and a steal in 23 reserve minutes.
* - Young made her long-awaited Trailblazer debut in the NNMC win (11/4), and she did not disappoint as she knocked down a co-game high four 3-pointers en route to 17 points off the bench in the NNMC win (11/4) ... the redshirt freshman hit three of her four trifectas during Utah Tech's 21-2 first quarter run ... she wound up going 6-of-13 from the floor and 4-of-11 from the perimeter.
* - In all, the Trailblazer bench accounted for 45 of the team's 86 points vs. Stonehill on Nov. 13 ... the 45 bench points scored were a program Division I era high, and were the most bench points scored since the 2021-22 season, when the Blazer reserves tallied 40 points in a home win over Simpson (12/11/21).
* - Utah Tech has scored 40-plus bench points in 25 of its 480 NCAA-era games since the program transitioned from junior college to four-year competition in 2006-07 ... 23 of those occasions came during the Division II era, including five 50-plus point games, highlighted by a school record 59 points from Utah Tech reserves in a 93-54 road win at Chaminade (2/4/09) during the 2008-09 season.
* - Sophomore forward Lauren Crocker was stellar in her Blazer debut vs. NNMC (11/4) with 10 points, eight boards and two blocks ... Crocker drained a pair of first-quarter 3-pointers, both of which came during Utah Tech's big run.
* - Redshirt junior guard Brie Crittendon enjoyed a breakout day vs. Colorado, against which she poured in a Utah Tech career-high 14 points on 6-of-11 shooting with a pair of 3-pointers. 
* - Crittendon pulled down a career-high nine rebounds and scored four points at HCU (11/21) ... she then went on to tie her then-season high with eight points and had seven boards and three assists at McNeese last Saturday.
* - Sophomore forward Nicole Willardson led the Trailblazers' rebounding effort with a career-high nine caroms and hit on 2-of-7 from the floor for four points vs. NNMC (11/4) ... Willardson also picked off a career-high four steals and had two points, three boards and a block in a season-high 27 minutes vs. Weber State (11/16).
* - Freshman guard Mylee Graham continues to be a solid contributor off the bench in her debut season, especially in the rebounding department as she is second on the team in rebounds (35; 5.0 rpg) ... Graham pulled down a season-high nine boards and scored four points at NM State (11/7) ... that effort followed a seven-rebound effort along with two points, two assists and one steal in 16-plus reserve minutes in her collegiate debut vs. NNMC (11/4). 
* - Graham hit for a career-high six points on 3-of-5 shooting with three more boards in a season-high 23 minutes vs. Colorado.
* - After being held scoreless in the opener vs. NNMC, sophomore guard Calyn Dallas bounced back with 10 points on 3-of-6 shooting, along with two boards and two steals at NM State (11/7) ... Dallas knocked down a pair of threes and had four rebounds in the loss at HCU.

NEXT UP FOR THE TRAILBLAZERS: Utah Tech will make the second of its five regular season trips to Texas, and in particular a return visit to Houston, next Wednesday night for a road date at Rice. Tip-off inside Tudor Fieldhouse is set for 6 p.m. (MT).