The University of Utah men’s basketball team is on the road again as it is traveling to Oregon for this week’s slate of games. On Thursday night the Runnin’ Utes will take on the Oregon Ducks in Eugene.
The first time the two squads met in Salt Lake City, things did not turn out in the Utes’ favor. The then No. 10 team in the country came into the Huntsman Center and escaped with a 73-67 win. Although the Utes were competitive most of the match, head coach Larry Krystkowiak is going to be expecting more from his team in terms of hustle and readiness because close enough isn’t going to cut it.
Too often this season, the Utes have had to play catch up in the early parts of a game. Krystkowiak knows this can’t happen against the now No. 7 team in the nation in a tough road environment.
“It’s a heck of a college environment and a really solid team,” Krystkowiak said. “Heck of a test, and we’re going to have to have a great mindset going in there.”
Although Utah will be focusing a lot of its efforts on Dillon Brooks, it’s hard to put so much of an emphasis on him because according to Krystkowiak, when Brooks doesn’t play well, other Oregon players immediately fill in the gap. The Utes will be working to limit the amount of turnovers they commit and they hope to play better transition defense whether it be after made or missed shots.
Junior David Collette got into a bit of foul trouble that first outing against the Ducks and he is eager to stay on the court this time around and show Oregon what he can do when he isn’t trying to limit his aggressiveness. Collette has been one of the more consistent players for the Utes this season and he hopes to continue making the same contributions to keep the team on its winning track.
“That first game was a tough one — didn’t get to play as much as I wanted to,” Collette said. “I’ll be working to stay in the game this time and hopefully do a little more damage.”
Like Collette, sophomore Parker Van Dyke hopes to do whatever he can to help his team get the win. Van Dyke hopes to build off his performance this past Saturday afternoon where he set a new career high of 16 points.
In his weekly press conference, Krystkowiak mentioned there could be another change to the starting lineup and he isn’t afraid of hurting anyone’s feelings. Last week he decided Van Dyke would get the start, and Krystkowiak is taking more of an approach where the guys who show up to practice are the ones who are going to receive more playing time.
So as long as the Utes continue to give it their best shot in the practices leading up to Oregon, Krystkowiak thinks his team should fare just fine on the road.
The Utes are aiming to finish in top four in the Pac-12 to receive a bye in the first round of the Pac-12 Tournament in Las Vegas, and with five games remaining left on the schedule there is little room for error.
“Every game is a challenge, and every team has a player that is capable of having a big night,” Van Dyke said. “Every team has a chance to beat the other team on any give night because of the talent and because of the high level of competition in the Pac-12. Every night you got to bring your ‘A’ game.”
Tipoff is at 7 p.m. MT.
@kbrenneisen