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Lying in the shadows of a nationally recognized football program and the high octane offense of an exciting men's basketball team, the BYU women's basketball team is quietly making their way into the years' best BYU team with an extremely impressive start. Through ten games the Lady Cougars have lost only one game and yet continue to play to crowds that are closer to 500 than 1000. With a little more support from the fans, could this special season turn magical?
In the stretch of games that has turned out to be the best start for the women's team in school history, they have won in a variety of ways. They have blown teams out, won the close ones, and even had a 24 point second half comeback against an in-state rival. What more could a fan base want?
The Lady Cougars are led by senior center Jennifer Hamson who is averaging 19 of the Cougars' 73 points per game. Hamson has the ability to fill up a stat sheet quickly and efficiently. Along with her points she is averaging 10 rebounds per game and is also averaging more than four blocks per game. She has an incredible 39 blocks in the first nine games. Hamson does have plenty of support with Lexi Eaton averaging almost 17 points per game and Kim Beeston averaging almost 12 points per game. Beeston is also averaging over four assists per game and Morgan Bailey adds an additional eight rebounds a game while Ashley Garfield pulls down six a game.
So far the team has had a number of highlights but it is hard to top the 24 point comeback win against Weber State. This game proved to themselves and the fans that this team will never give up. Not only did the Lady Cougars outscore the Lady Wildcats 52-29 in the second half, but they ended the game on a 14-0 run. Eaton led all scorers with 25 with Hamson adding 23 points, 11 rebounds, and nine blocks.
Even in their one loss the game went to double overtime against their rival Utah. In a hard fought game the Lady Cougars didn't make the plays that they normally do, and they still ended up playing extra time. This team was only a few plays away from being 10-0.
The team continues to bring excitement to the crowds that show up and they look to continue to provide exiting basketball in what could be a very special season. For a fan base that can fill the Marriott Center for a men's basketball game, it would be a travesty if the team continued to have a magical but unseen season.
