Utah will enter the Pac-12 women's basketball tournament as a champion.
Gianna Kneepkens (Duluth Marshall) scored a season-high 28 points to lead the No. 8 Utes to an 84-78 victory over No. 3 Stanford on Saturday in Salt Lake City. Utah earned a share of its first regular-season Pac-12 title with the victory.
Alissa Pili finished with 14 points and Kennedy McQueen had 10 points, five rebounds, four assists and six steals for Utah (25-3, 15-3), which shares the Pac-12 title with Stanford.
The Utes claimed a share of the Pac-12 crown only two seasons after winning only five total games.
"That's my job and I'm stubborn," Utah coach Lynne Roberts said. "I wouldn't believe that it couldn't happen."
Kneepkens gave Utah a spark while Pili sat the final nine minutes of the first half after picking up her third foul and credited Roberts' trust in her abilities for helping the Utes weather Pili's absence.
"We don't have to play tentative out there," Kneepkens said. "We can just play free."
Hannah Jump led Stanford (27-4, 15-3) with 24 points. Cameron Brink had 14 points, 12 rebounds and six assists, while Haley Jones added nine points and eight rebounds.
