PORTLAND, Ore. --- Portland junior Julie Spencer had a huge second half and finished with a career-best 25 points, but the Brigham Young Cougars built a double-digit lead before holding off the Pilots 72-58 to open play in the West Coast Conference on Thursday night at the Chiles Center. Portland freshman Josie Matz collected a career-high 13 rebounds in the loss.
 
It was Spencer who knocked down the game's opening shot, but the Cougars answered with nine unanswered points to surge ahead. BYU then tried to pull away, producing a double-digit lead. Matz helped keep the Pilots within reach with a jumper, and Lisa Kaempf buried a three-pointer from the top of the key late in the first quarter to make it an eight-point deficit.
 
Maddie Muhlheim then began the second period by drilling a three-pointer, which she followed moments later with a pull-up jumper to bring Portland within 22-17. From there the Cougars pushed the lead back to double figures, and they'd take a 37-23 edge in the locker room at half.
 
BYU opened the third with a 12-0 run, but the Pilots came storming back with a 15-2 outburst, which was fueled by 11 points from Spencer. Matz then capped the quarter with a pair of free throws to cut the BYU lead to 51-38, and the Pilots refused to falter throughout the final frame as the Cougars tried to ice the win. Spencer continued to connect from the field, and Darian Slaga raced the other way after corralling a rebound to convert a fast-break lay-up that made it an 11-point game with 4:43 left.
 
Later in the fourth Spencer found a couple of three-pointers to trim the deficit down to 10, but time would soon run out as the Cougars left with the win.
 
21 of Spencer's 25 points came after the break, and she was 11 of 18 overall from the floor. Slaga chipped in with 10 points for Portland (4-8, 0-1 WCC).
 
Amanda Wayment had a double-double for the Cougars (6-6, 1-0 WCC) with 10 points and 11 rebounds, and the Pilots held the league's leading scorer Cassie Devashrayee to just 2 of 10 shooting and 14 points. Devashrayee entered the game averaging 20 points per contest.
 
The Pilots next travel to San Francisco, Calif., to face the San Francisco Dons on Saturday afternoon. Tip-off at War Memorial Gym is set for 2 p.m.