The Utah men’s basketball team entered Sunday’s matchup against the University of Washington riding an impressive seven-game winning streak and looked to extend that streak in game number two of Pac-12 conference play. The Utes struggled offensively early but relied heavily on Branden Carlson down the stretch to secure a 95-90 win against a Washington group that has looked solid to start the year.
First Half
The first-half struggles have been a common theme for the Utes all year, and that continued in this matchup as well. Utah opened up a 20-9 lead at the 11-minute mark of the first half but hit a massive scoring lull throughout the remainder of the first half. Utah was outscored 37-15 in the final 10 minutes of the half to give the Huskies a commanding 46-35 lead heading into the locker room.
Washington had a specific game plan to eliminate Carlson from the game in any way they could. The Huskies threw double teams and put smaller forwards on him, making it harder for Carlson to use his quickness and footwork to get around slower defenders. With the defensive focus solely on the preseason All-Pac-12 selection, other Utes would need to step up to relieve the pressure off of Carlson’s shoulders.
Utah’s guard play was hindered by solid ball pressure by the Huskies, which led to tough contested shots and live ball turnovers that turned into layups on the other end. Head coach Craig Smith could not have been happy with what he saw from his team in the first half, and things would need to drastically change in half number two if the Utes wanted to extend their win streak to eight.
Second Half
Despite holding Carlson to just four first-half points, the Washington defense faltered in the second half. Coach Smith was able to draw up offensive sets that allowed Rollie Worster to control the offense and eventually get Carlson in spots to isolate the defense and use his length to score over the top.
Utah and Washington traded buckets back and forth for the first six minutes of the second half before the Utes eventually started to cut into the Husky lead thanks to some timely three-point shots by Gabe Madsen and Deivon Smith. At the 11:30 minute mark of the second half, the Huskies held just a 66-60 lead with plenty of time left for the Utes to make a run.
Coming out of the timeout, Carlson, Madsen and Keba Keita all scored buckets to give Utah their first lead since the first half. The Washington defense had neutralized Carlson all night and was a few minutes away from coming away with a massive road win. Fortunately for Utah, Carlson had other ideas. From the 6:36 mark to the 1:18 mark, Carlson scored 16 straight points for Utah, knocking down two 3-pointers, two free throws, two layups and two dunks. With a minute left to go, Utah held a 90-84 lead and knocked down timely free throws to eventually put this game away and give Utah their eighth straight victory. Utah would come away with a 95-90 win against a formidable Washington team.
Utes Stuffing the Stat Sheet
Carlson led the Utes with 34 points (30 in the second half), seven assists and seven rebounds — putting up one of his most impressive stat lines. Worster continued to be a difference-maker as well, putting up 14 points, five assists and six rebounds to help pace the Utah backcourt. Madsen and Cole Bajema both chipped in 11 points of their own, while Madsen surprisingly led the Utes with 11 rebounds. The Utah bench continued to impress, as Keita and Smith each scored nine points, which proved crucial against a deep Washington team.
What’s next for the Utes?
Utah will head on the road for the first time in over a month as they play Arizona State on January 4th at 9:00 p.m. MST. Utah looks to continue to boost its NCAA tournament resume with a road win against a tough Arizona State squad. Tune into ESPN2 this Thursday to catch this one in prime time.
