Published Jan 1, 2025
WBB: Bearcats comeback in the 4th quarter to defeat BYU, 72-63
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J.T. Smith  •  The Front Office News
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Per GoBearcats:

The Cincinnati women's basketball team scored 23 straight points to open the fourth quarter to complete a 13-point comeback in a 72-63 victory over BYU on Wednesday at Fifth Third Arena.

The Bearcats outscored the Cougars 26-6 in the final frame and forced eight BYU turnovers over the final 10 minutes. BYU led 57-46 at the start of the fourth, but tenacious Cincinnati defense forced the Cougars to miss their first 13 shots of the final frame. BYU did not make a basket in the fourth quarter until 23 seconds remained.

Cincinnati was led by fifth-year senior forward Jillian Hayes, who finished with 16 points and 13 rebounds for her seventh double-double of the season and 30th of her career. Hayes led four Bearcats in double figures with sophomore guard Reagan Jackson (13 points), junior guard A'riel Jackson (11) and redshirt junior Alliance Ndiba (10) joining the Cincinnati native.

Trailing by 11 at the start of the fourth quarter, the Bearcats scored the first 12 points of the final frame to take a 58-57 lead on 3-pointer from A'riel Jackson with 5:04 remaining in the game. Reagan Jackson sparked the scoring in the fourth by opening the final quarter with a jumper and Ndiba made a putback. A'riel Jackson converted a three-point play while being fouled on a layup before her game-altering 3-pointer.

Cincinnati extended the fourth-quarter run all the way to 23-0 and went up 69-57 on a pair of free throws by Reagan Jackson with 31 seconds left before BYU's Kemery Congdon made a 3-pointer for the Cougars first basket of the final frame.

The Bearcats finished the fourth quarter by shooting 46 percent from the field without a turnover and made 13 of 17 free throws.

Sophomore center Delaney Snyder scored a career-best seven points, scoring five quick points to give UC a 12-11 lead at the end of the first quarter.

BYU took control in the second quarter as guard Delaney Gibb got hot from behind the arc. She scored all 14 of her points in the first half, making four 3-pointers.

The Cougars led 33-28 at halftime and scored 24 points to go up by as many as 13 in the third quarter.

UP NEXT

The Bearcats hit the road to face TCU in Fort Worth, Texas, on Saturday for an 8 p.m. Big 12 matchup. The game will be televised on ESPN+.