Utah looks to improve on its most recent victory and bump up its record to 4-4 as it takes on Santa Clara this weekend.
The Utes’ last game was a 20-point victory over Westminster College, 69-49. The two stars were shining as usual, with Morgan Warburton scoring 23 points and Kalee Whipple notching 21.
It was also a career day for Halie Sawyer, as she notched her first career double-double, with 11 points and 11 rebounds.
Although the starting five played well, there was a huge drop-off in production once the bench came in. Utah’s bench hasn’t provided much help in the scoring department all season, only averaging 4.3 points on the year. Against the Griffins, the bench scored zero points.
“The particular bench we have aren’t full of scorers,” said head coach Elaine Elliott. “They’re not shooters or kids that have that as their best to offer. They have other things they have to do for us, but having said that, if they can come in and just hit a key shot here or there, then that could be a real key for us.”
Although the bench players on the team are mainly used for defensive purposes, it is still a troubling sign that they couldn’t muster much production on the offensive end against a non-Division 1 opponent.
The other problem area that has plagued the Utes all season long is turnovers. Utah is averaging roughly seven turnovers more a game than its opponents, and has the worst assist-to-turnover ratio in the conference at 0.55.
However, there was light at the end of the tunnel in the Utes’ last game. In the first half against Westminster, Utah only committed five turnovers and had 14 assists8212;terrific numbers considering the Griffins thrive on forcing their opponents into throwing the ball away.
“I thought we showed good focus,” Elliott said. “We had decent one-on-one intensity of trying to get our jobs done. We didn’t force things and handled the press extremely well.”
In order for the team to reach its full potential and compete for the Mountain West crown, both areas will need to see improvement.
As for their next test, the Utes shouldn’t have too much to worry about. The Santa Clara Broncos stand at 1-8 on the season, with their only win coming against Chicago State. Like Utah, the Broncos have had problems putting up points and taking care of the ball. The Broncos only average 52.3 points per game and have a turnover margin of -11.1.
If Santa Clara does have a strength, it is rebounding. They average 40 rebounds a game, seven more than their opponents. Lena Gipson is the team’s leading scorer and rebounder, currently averaging a double-double with 13 points and 10.8 rebounds per game.
Santa Clara is even more turnover-prone than the Utes, and the bench shouldn’t have to score much at all to keep Utah ahead. And while the Broncos are a good rebounding team, Utah’s frontcourt combination of Whipple, Katie King and Sawyer should be more than enough to handle Gipson. If the Utes can give Louisville’s All-American Angel McCoughtry fits, then Gipson shouldn’t pose much of a threat.
Tyler CobbKalee Whipple battles for a lose ball during Tuesday?s win over Westminster. The Utes look to build on that win Saturday when they face Santa Clara at the Huntsman Center.