The University of Utah men’s basketball team dropped a tight contest against the TCU Horned Frogs at Vivint Arena on Wednesday evening. The Utes have now lost two in a row heading into their Christmas break, and the non-conference schedule is over. They’ll only face Pac-12 foes from here on out.

Stagnant Offense

Utah goes through very rough stretches of offensive basketball at times, and none more apparent than what happened in the middle of the first half on Wednesday night. The Utes have too many guys who clap for the ball with a defender on their back, dribble five times and then jack up a contested midrange jumper. 

Basketball is a game to be played in chaos. The best teams thrive in it. When the ball is whipping around the court with energy and electricity, and no one knows where the next pass will be, it’s a thrilling experience. That’s why fans love the game. 

When it’s dribble, dribble, dribble, dribble, drive, look off the open teammate, slowly rise up for a 15-footer with the hope of drawing contact, the game can get ugly really fast.

Utah doesn’t always play that way. They’re the Runnin’ Utes, after all — it’s in their name to play quickly and with energy. It’s what won them the day against Arizona. They looked a little better in the second half tonight. But too often, for long stretches of important games, the Utes lean into the iso-heavy, shoot-first, pass-later, back-to-the-basket style straight out of the 1980s. And it’s not fun.

Turnovers

Utah turned the ball over 19 times. If you are trying to win a serious basketball game and turn the ball over 19 times, good luck to you. Now, TCU is an aggressive defensive team and gambles for steals often, but their on-ball pressure and jumping into passing lanes got the better of Utah tonight.

“We show our inexperience at times,” said Utes head coach Craig Smith. “We’ve gotta be able to make better decisions when we’re playing. Part of it is, that’s what they do, they turn teams over 17 times a game, which is an elite number … At halftime, they had 37 shots to our 21.”

Smith hit the nail right on the head. A 37-21 shot difference at halftime, 19 turnovers and poor pacing on offense really did Utah in on Wednesday. For them to have even come close to a victory is almost unthinkable.

Big Picture

The Utes have four losses on the season, but none of them can be categorized as “inexcusable.” Mississippi State, TCU and Sam Houston State are all great teams. BYU simply outplayed the Utes down in Provo, and despite their early struggles, the Cougars have been putting it together lately. Losing a rivalry game could happen to anyone.

Big picture, Utah is 2-0 in conference play with a dominant win over a top-five team and a gritty victory on the road in overtime. They can work with that. The Utes are much improved from last year and have a great chance to make some noise in the Pac-12 this season. 

Up next, following a week off for the holidays, are the Cal Bears, who just got their first win to put them at 1-12. Utah faces them on the road on Dec. 29.

[email protected]

@e_pearce_