ST. GEORGE — After a 10-day break for the Christmas holiday, the Utah Tech University women’s basketball team returns to action Saturday with its 2023-24 non-conference season finale at Florida International.
Saturday’s game is the Trailblazers’ second as part of the newly formed Western Athletic and Conference USA scheduling alliance. Utah Tech collected a 73-58 home win over C-USA member Jacksonville State on Nov. 9.
The Blazers, who enter Saturday’s game 6-4 in non-conference games, clinched their second-straight winning season record vs. non-conference foes and the fifth overall during JD Gustin’s tenure as head coach with a 92-86 home win over Oregon on Dec. 19.
The matchup at the Panthers will be Utah Tech’s third-ever game east of the Mississippi River during its current NCAA Division I transition, all of which have come this season. Last month, the Trailblazers traveled to New England and collected road wins at both New Hampshire (56-46) and at Stonehill College (81-58).
Meanwhile, Saturday’s game will mark Utah Tech’s second-ever trip to Florida for a basketball game. In the program’s first NCAA D-II season in 2006-07, the Trailblazers played three games in Fort Myers, Florida, to close out that campaign.
Utah Tech’s Calyn Dallas handles the basketball against Oregon as the Trailblazers defeated the Ducks 92-86 at Burns Arena, St. George, Utah, Dec. 19, 2023 | Photo by Stan Plewe, Tech Athletics, St. George News
Utah Tech is 7-5 overall and 1-1 in the WAC while Florida International is 8-5 overall and hasn’t played a conference game.
Tip-off inside FIU’s Ocean Bank Convocation Center (5,000) in Miami is set for 11 a.m. MST. The game will be streamed live on ESPN+. Click here for live streaming and live scoring information.
Utah Tech closed out the home portion of its 2023-24 non-conference slate on the wrong end of an 87-61 loss to Oklahoma State in the second game of the 2023 Trailblazer Classic back on Dec. 20. The day before, however, the Trailblazers won arguably their biggest game in program history, defeating Pac-12 stalwart Oregon 92-86.
Redshirt sophomore guard Maddie Warren was named WAC Player of the Week Tuesday for her efforts in the team’s two-game split at their own Trailblazer Classic last week.
Warren averaged 19.5 pts on 41.9 percent shooting (16-of-28), including a sizzling 58.8 percent (10-of-17) from the perimeter, along with 3.0 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 1.0 steals in her two starts.
Warren knocked down a career-high six 3-pointers on her way to 21 points, along with three rebounds, two assists and a steal in Utah Tech’s 92-86 victory win over Oregon. She also became the 13th-different Trailblazer in the program’s NCAA era to hit at least six 3-pointers in one game.