Pac-12 women: UCLA, Cal advance to semifinals

SEATTLE — Jasmine Dixon and Atonye Nyingifa each scored 11 points, and No. 14 UCLA held off Utah’s second-half rally to win 54-43 in the quarterfinals of the Pac-12 women’s basketball tournament at KeyArena.

The Bruins play No. 5 California in Saturday’s first semifinal. UCLA (24-6) was swept by California during the regular season, including a 28-point loss at home in February.

Alyssia Brewer added 10 points for the Bruins, but missed a large portion of the game after leaving with an injury midway through the first half. She limped off the court with 8:59 to in the first half, but returned early in the second half.

Michelle Plouffe had 10 points and 14 rebounds for Utah (18-13), but made just 3 of 13 shots.

California 78, USC 59

SEATTLE — Gennifer Brandon has 17 points and 16 rebounds and No. 5 California scored the first 11 points on its way to a quarterfinal win.

California, the No. 2 seed in the tourney despite sharing the regular-season crown with Stanford, faces No. 14 UCLA in the semifinals.

Afure Jemerigbe and Brittany Boyd both had 15 points as California (28-2) won its 16th straight game. The 28 wins set a single-season school record. Talia Caldwell scored 12 points and grabbed nine rebounds as the Golden Bears topped the 70-point mark for the eighth time in their past 10 games.

Cassie Harberts led USC (11-20) with 24 points.

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