Utah has tried to see itself as the underdog this season, but most of the time that just hasn’t made sense.
As the Utes climbed the rankings and Delon Wright became more of a household name across the college basketball world, it was clear Utah had a target on its back. The Utes were better than the majority of the teams they faced — and frankly their opponents knew it too.
Well, Utes, welcome back to the underdog role, and this time you don’t even have to pretend.
If you look at the numbers, Duke and Utah really aren’t all that far apart — they just may be a little opposite. While the Blue Devils are using one of the most talented rosters in the nation to outscore everyone, the Utes are using a group of often overlooked players to lock their opponents down.
Duke averages 80.9 points per game (fourth in the nation), and has an adjusted offense rating — points scored per 100 possessions adjusted by opponent — of 122.2 (second in nation) per Kenpom.com. The Blue Devils are an offensive super team, but the Utes may just be their kryptonite.
Utah only gives up 56.9 points per game (ninth in the nation), and Kenpom.com has their adjusted defensive rating at 90.4, good enough for seventh in the land. So based off numbers this is a heavyweight title fight, but based off perception the Utes are nothing but a David to a Duke Goliath.
That perception though, should only favor the Utes. Take a look at the Utah roster — there’s an undersized point guard that was hardly recruited, but yet thinks he can go toe-to-toe with anybody, there’s a JUCO transfer that has lived in his brothers shadow his whole life, and there’s the players who decided to play for the Utes even when the program was in its lowest of lows. These guys are used to people telling them they are not big enough, not fast enough, or just simply not good enough.
They have proved people wrong before, and I’m going to assume they can’t wait to do it again. And this time they should have quite the backing.
“It’s the kind of March Madness, the underdog situation,” Utah coach Larry Krystkowiak said. “I mentioned that to our team. You have to do something to get some people’s attention.”
The message is simple — stay competitive, give the neutral fans some hope and they will cheer for you like you are their own.
The fans that aren’t sporting Duke blue when they enter NRG Stadium on Friday night will in essence be wearing red. The Utes are the upstart team and the Blue Devils are the traditional power — Utah will get the people’s vote.
The Utes will also be aided in the fact the South Region has an undeniable western feel to it. Of the four remaining teams in the region, Duke is the only one not from the West, and it feels safe to assume fans of both UCLA and Gonzaga will surely side with their western brother.
“Same thing happened in the previous game when we were in Portland,” Krystkowiak said. “You know, you’ve got Arizona playing a game before us. You’d like to think maybe your league can rally behind each other. We had a bunch of Arizona fans that sat behind our bench when we were playing Georgetown and kind of have that initial five, ten minute, the moment of truth, is this going to be competitive, are you giving them a reason to stick around and cheer. I think the longer that you can stay alive and keep the game close, the more that becomes a storyline.”
If the Utes can give the crowd hope and give them something to cheer, they may just slay the Devils.
Dust off those slingshots Utes, it’s once again your turn to slay a giant.
@millerjryan