Hailey Van Lith, Sedona Prince lead the way as No. 10 TCU holds off No. 23 Utah 81-73
FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) — Hailey Van Lith scored 24 points, Sedona Prince added 23 and No. 10 TCU beat 23rd-ranked Utah 81-73 on Friday night for the Horned Frogs' 10th consecutive victory.
Madison Conner had 13 points and six assists as TCU (19-1, 7-0 Big 12) won its 17th consecutive home game, holding on in the second half after cruising to a 21-point halftime lead.
Gianna Kneepkens had 26 points and seven rebounds for the Utes (13-5, 4-3), who lost twice in Texas this week. Matyson Wilke scored 14 points, and Reese Ross had 11.
Takeaways
Utah's tough trip to Texas figures to end a two-week run in the Top 25. The Utes lost 71-60 at Baylor on Tuesday and have dropped three of four since a seven-game winning streak that started with a victory over No. 3 Notre Dame.
TCU was sluggish in the second half for the second consecutive home game, once again after leading by as many as 23 points. UCF got within six in the final minute of TCU's 90-81 victory Tuesday. Utah got that close with almost six minutes remaining.
Key moment
With its lead down to six, TCU followed a pair of free throws from Conner with two scrappy defensive possessions. Prince scored after the first stop, Van Lith after the second, pushing the Frogs' lead to 12 with 3:33 remaining.
Key stat
TCU went 18 of 20 on free throws, but both misses came while trying to put the game away in the final minute. After Prince's miss with a six-point lead, Kneepkens missed a 3-pointer with 19 seconds to go.
Up next
Utah returns home to face Kansas on Wednesday. TCU visits No. 24 Oklahoma State on Wednesday.
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