What is fueling No. 20 Utah heading into matchup with No. 5 UCLA

Two weeks ago, Utah women’s basketball coach Lynne Roberts and star forward Alissa Pili, along with Jenna Johnson, showed the frustration in their faces after a difficult week marked by close losses to Arizona and Stanford.

That had dropped the No. 20 Utes to 1-3 in Pac-12 play, even though Utah had been close, or led, in the fourth quarter of every loss.

Last Friday, though, the frustration was replaced by smiles for Roberts and Pili after Utah knocked off No. 6 USC by 20 points.

Roberts made a promise after that Stanford loss, vowing the disappointment would “motivate us.” Pili made a similar statement, saying the Utes would “keep swinging” and eventually they’d “come out on top.”

After thoroughly handling the Trojans, the pair discussed the team’s emotional state after their second straight blowout win that has Utah back on an upward trend.

“I think we were tired of that, like we had lost a lot of close games to ranked teams and I think we were sick of coming up short. We talked about before Cal and even tonight, like let’s not let it to where things that are out of our control matter in the outcome, let’s control we can control,” Roberts said.

“I’m proud of our team for fighting back and not pouting or not feeling sorry for ourselves or whatever, with the adversity. They’ve just battled back and I think we’ve played with a little bit of a chip on our shoulder. I’ve coached with a little chip on my shoulder. That’s the way it is. I think that’s the difference. We’re playing with a little more swagger.”

The Utes followed up a 37-point win over California with that 78-58 victory over the Trojans.

Utah (13-5, 3-3 Pac-12) held USC to 36.1% shooting in a game where the Utes led nearly from start to finish.

The All-American Pili tied her career high with 37 points, shooting an efficient 13 of 16 from the field and 5 of 6 from 3-point range, while also adding six rebounds, an assist and a steal.

“Like coach said, we’re obviously frustrated with how the last few games were going against Stanford and Arizona. I think our attitude is just different and it kind of pushed us to just want to play harder and want to, I guess just really buy into our team and focus on what we could do to win,” Pili said.

“And like coach said, we don’t want to leave it in the refs’ hands, so why not blow out teams by 40 and 20 like we did the last two games.”

Utah also got back senior guard Issy Palmer, who was out for two months with an undisclosed injury.

Palmer played nine minutes in her return and had four points, two assists and a rebound to go with two turnovers. 

“She was on a minutes restriction, so we had to be careful of how much she could play. But I thought she did a nice job,” Roberts said. “You know, you could tell she was a little rusty which is to be expected. She hasn’t played in 10 weeks. That’s a long time. But I’m proud of her for pushing through what she’s been through.”

Up next for Utah is No. 5 UCLA, which is fresh off a road win at No. 3 Colorado.

The Bruins (15-1, 4-1 Pac-12) are arguably as formidable as any opponent the Utes have faced this season — that list includes teams like No. 1 South Carolina, No. 3 Colorado, No. 8 Stanford and No. 12 Baylor. 

Utah lost to all four of those schools. The Utes’ lone win over a top 25 team came Friday against the Trojans.

A victory over UCLA would get Utah, the defending Pac-12 regular season co-champions and the preseason favorite to win the league, right back in the thick of the conference race.

The Bruins are led by 6-foot-7 center Lauren Betts, who averages 15.9 points and 8.9 rebounds.

Four others average double-digit points, including senior guard Charisma Osborne, who averages 14.6 points, 5.3 rebounds and 4.3 assists while shooting a team-best 39.1% from 3-point range. 

It will be a rare late afternoon tip on Monday at the Huntsman Center, with Utah and UCLA meeting at 5 p.m. MST in a game televised on ESPN2.

“I think we’re playing a lot better. We’re playing a little more cohesive. There’s a lot more, I can sense, just kind of synergy out there. I think people have settled into their roles,” Roberts said.

“I do feel like we’re hitting our stride. But you know, this league is merciless and we’re gonna enjoy this tonight and feel good about it. And then tomorrow, we wake up to play the No. 3 team in the country on Monday, and we’ll be ready.”