Men's Basketball Hosts Boise State on Tuesday Night

Nov. 19, 2001

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Game #2

Utah Runnin' Utes (1-0) vs. Boise State Broncos (0-1)

Nov. 20 * 7:34 p.m. (MST) * Jon M. Huntsman Center (15,000) * Salt Lake City

The Game at a Glance

Utah Head Coach: Rick Majerus            Boise State Head Coach: Rod JensenAlma Mater: Marquette, 1970         Alma Mater: University of the Redlands, 1975Record at Utah: 263-73/13th Season  Record at BSU: 96-77/7th SeasonOverall Record: 362-125/18th Season Overall Record: Same
Television: NoneRadio: Utah Sports Network (KALL-910 AM in Salt Lake City and affiliate stations).On the Internet at www.UtahUtes.com and www.kall910.com. Bill Marcroft (play-by-play),Mark Rydalch (analyst) and Brad Stone (host).
Rankings: Among teams receiving votes, Utah is ranked 34th by the Associated Pressand 36th by ESPN/USA Today.
Series Record: Tied 1-1Utah's Record Home/Away/Neutral: 1-0/0-1/0-0Last Meeting: Utah lost to Boise State, 62-61, on Mar. 11, 1987 in the first roundof the NIT in Boise, Idaho.

Utah Probable StartersNo.     Pos.    Name            Ht.     Wt.     Cl.     Hometown            Statistics21  F   Trace Caton   6-5 214 Jr. Alamosa, Colo.          0.0 ppg, 1.0 rpg31  F   Britton Johnsen   6-9 213 Jr. Murray, Utah            6.0 ppg, 2.0 rpg34  C   Chris Burgess   6-10    240 Sr. Irvine, Calif.          20.0 ppg, 4.0 rpg11  G   Travis Spivey   6-1 212 Sr. Myrtle Beach, S.C.  8.0 ppg, 1.0 apg15  G   Nick Jacobson   6-4 198 So. Fargo, N.D.         16.0 ppg, 3.0 rpg
Utah Off the BenchNo.     Pos.    Name            Ht.     Wt.     Cl.     Hometown            Statistics3   G   Martin Osimani 6-3 203 Fr. Montevideo, Uruguay 0.0 ppg, 4.0 apg13  C   Cameron Koford 6-11    230 Jr. Plain City, Utah    8.0 ppg, 7.0 rpg32  G   Eric Osmundson 6-3 196 Fr. Carlsbad, Calif.    0.0 ppg, 1.0 rpg35  G   Jeff Johnsen 6-4 204 Sr. Murray, Utah            8.0 ppg, 2.0 rpg40  F   Phil Cullen   6-9 221 Sr. Chelan, Wash.           8.0 ppg, 8.0 rpg41  C/F Lance Allred 6-10    239 So. Salt Lake City          0.0 ppg, 1.0 rpg
Boise State Probable StartersNo.     Pos.    Name            Ht.     Wt.     Cl.     Hometown            Statistics32  F   Abe Jackson 6-7 230 Sr. Boise, Idaho            24.0 ppg, 9.0 rpg45  F   Jason Ellis 6-7 220 Sr. Kent, Wash.         11.0 ppg, 5.0 rpg35  C   Richard Morgan  6-8 240 Sr. Port Coquitlam, Wash.   7.0 ppg, 5.0 rpg4   G   Joe Skiffer 6-2 195 Jr. San Francisco, Calif.   1.0 ppg, 2.0 rpg20  G   Booker Nabors   6-3 180 So. Boise, Idaho            7.0 ppg, 3.0 rpg

After This

Utah concludes a three-game homestand to open the season by hosting Utah State on Friday at 7:07 p.m. (MST). The Runnin' Utes then make their first road trip of the season, playing Alabama in Tuscaloosa next Monday (Nov. 27) at 6:05 p.m. (CST) on ESPN2.

Utah Wins Season Opener over St. Francis

It was business as usual with Rick Majerus back on the sideline for his first regular season game in nearly a year as the Runnin' Utes opened the 2001-02 campaign with a 74-55 victory over St. Francis of Illinois on Friday night.

Chris Burgess scored a career-high 20 points, hitting a personal-best nine field goals from the field in 14 attempts. He also had four rebounds and two blocked shots in 24 minutes.

Nick Jacobson, last season's Mountain West Freshman of the Year, hit 4-of-5 on his three-pointers and scored a career-high 16 points. Phil Cullen came off the bench to get eight points and eight rebounds.

The Runnin' Utes had little trouble with the NAIA-member Fighting Saints, whose tallest player was 6-6. Utah built a 22-9 lead through the first nine minutes and led 41-26 at halftime, though the Saints whittled the margin down with a few runs. Nick Cardone led St. Francis with 18 points. Bob St. Leger contributed 16.

Utah improved to 12-1 in openers under Majerus. Last season, Majerus coached the Utes to an opening night victory over Idaho State, then left for the remainder of the season on a personal leave of absence.

Utah outshot USF 53.6 to 47.5 percent and converted 7-of-17 threes. The Utes also has a 31 to 22 edge on the boards and collected 10 steals.

Scouting Boise State

The Broncos dropped their season opener to Portland State 60-53 on Saturday night in Boise, Idaho. Boise State was outscored 33-21 in the second half after leading 32-27 at halftime. The Broncos were outshot 41.9 to 37.8 percent from the field and allowed Portland State to shoot 46.7 percent (7-of-15) from three-point range. Boise State also committed 23 turnovers, but had a 34 to 24 edge on the glass.

Senior 6-7 forward Abe Jackson led the way for BSU with game highs of 24 points, making 4-of-11 three-pointers, and nine rebounds. Freshman 6-7 forward Jason Ellis had 11 points and five boards. Sophomore 6-3 guard Booker Nabors, who sat out both of the exhibition games for team disciplinary reasons, came off the bench to get seven points, four rebounds and three assists in 22 minutes. Junior point guard C.J. Williams has a broken foot and is out two to three more weeks.

Boise State returns four starters and seven lettermen from last year's team that went 17-14 overall and 8-8 to tie for fifth in the Big West Conference. The Broncos are now a member of the Western Athletic Conference.

Bronco Head Coach Rod Jensen

Rod Jensen is 96-77 in his seventh year as Boise State's head coach. He has produced a winning record each season, and led the Broncos to a 21-8 overall record and East Division title in the Big West with a 12-4 mark in 1998-99. Jensen joined the BSU staff as a part-time assistant in 1983 and nine seasons later was promoted to a full-time assistant, a position he held for three years.

Utah/Boise State Series Notes

Utah and Boise State meet for the third time on Tuesday night. The series is tied at 1-1 with Utah having a 1-0 advantage in games played in Salt Lake City. The two teams last met on Mar. 11, 1987 in the first round of the NIT in Boise, Idaho. The Broncos came away with a 62-61 win over the Runnin' Utes, then coached by Lynn Archibald. In the only other confrontation, Utah defeated BSU, 75-56, on Nov. 25, 1978 in the Huntsman Center.

Player Notes

Cullen Climbing the Career Charts After A Summer on the Mound

* Just beginning his senior season, forward Phil Cullen (6-9, 221) has already moved into the top 10 on numerous career charts at Utah. Cullen ranks sixth in three-pointers made (107), sixth in three-pointers attempted (284) and 10th in blocked shots (55). He has stared 42 games during his Utah career.

* This past summer, Cullen played minor league baseball with the Seattle Mariners. The pitcher was taken in the 32nd round of the 2000 Major League Baseball draft by Seattle and signed with the organization last August. He climbed to the Class A level with the Everett (Wash.) Aquasox in the Northwest League, starting 14 games. Cullen went 1-4 with a 5.08 ERA and 64 strikeouts in 56.2 innings.

Britton Johnsen Hoping to Build On Second Team All-MWC Selection

* Junior forward Britton Johnsen (6-9, 213) earned second team all-Mountain West Conference honors last season and was a preseason all-league choice by the media this season. Johnsen was second on the team in scoring (9.2 ppg), shooting a team-best 42.6 percent from behind the arc (20-of-47), and was second in rebounds (5.4 rpg) last year. During league play, Johnsen averaged 9.9 points per game to rank 21st in the MWC. He also ranked 10th in the conference in rebounding (5.5 rpg) and 15th in field goal percentage (.466) in MWC games. Johnsen scored in double figures in 14 of the last 25 contests. He also recorded the first two double-doubles of his career last season against Southern California and New Mexico in the semifinals of the Mountain West Tournament.

* Britton is joined on the Utah roster by his older brother Jeff Johnsen (6-4, 204), who is a senior guard/forward). Jeff was fourth on the team in scoring (8.6 ppg), shooting 40.4 percent from three-point range (second-best on the team) and 75.6 percent from the free throw line (second-best on the team).

* Rick Majerus has literally made his program a family affair at Utah. The Johnsens are the fifth set of brothers to play for Majerus spanning his 13-year career at the U. However, they are the first brothers to play together.

Getting to the Point with Spivey

* Senior point guard Travis Spivey (6-1, 212), who transferred to Utah from Salt Lake Community College prior to last season, seemed to only get better and better as the 2000-01 season wore on. Spivey started the final 19 games of the season at the point, playing over 30 minutes in seven of those games.

* In the final 16 games of the regular season, the Myrtle Beach, S.C., native had 75 assists to 33 turnovers (2.3:1 ratio). He averaged 4.7 assists and 7.3 points per game, scoring in double figures four times during that stretch.

* In Mountain West Conference play, Spivey ranked second in assists per game (4.64). Spivey's steady play at the point provided a calming presence for the team as well. Utah didn't have more than 12 turnovers in seven of its last eight conference games. Utah's assists-turnover ratio in Mountain West play was 1.10:1, which ranked second.

* Spivey is off to a good start to the season, getting seven assists to just two turnovers and two steals against St. Francis in the season opener. He also scored eight points. He is on track to receive his undergraduate degree in December.

From the Training Room

Freshman 6-7 forward Cameron Goettsche has not dressed for a game this season and has not been able to practice due to a bone bruise in his right knee and patella tendinitis in his left knee. No timetable has been set for his return to the court. At this time, he not considered a redshirt candidate for this season.

Team Notes

Utes Going For 400th Win in the JMHC Tuesday

* With an all-time record in the facility of 399-86, Utah will be going for its 400th win in the history of the Jon M. Huntsman Center on Tuesday against Boise State. The Utes are 168-15 (.918) in the Huntsman Center during the Majerus era (including the 15 games he did not coach during the 2000-01 season) and have never lost back-to-back home games. With Majerus on the sidelines, the Utes are 148-10 (.937) in the Huntsman Center.

* Utah has gone unbeaten seven times in the 32-year history of the Jon M. Huntsman Center. Six of those undefeated home seasons have come under Rick Majerus: 1990-91 (16-0), 1992-93 (15-0), 1994-95 (15-0), 1997-98 (13-0), 1998-99 (14-0) and 1999-2000 (17-0).

* Utah finished its 2000-01 home schedule with a 13-3 record. The Utes ended the regular season by winning 10 in a row, including all seven Mountain West Conference games. Despite the three losses last season, the Utes have still won 105 of their last 110 games in the Jon M. Huntsman Center.

Rick's Remarks

On Utah's win over St. Francis - "We played bad. We were terrible defensively. A couple of guys were good, a couple of guys were bad. But if one guy's bad you're going to be bad because it's five-on-five. It's hard to find [positive points] right now. These guys (St. Francis) are a small school with limited resources. They just came and played hard. Seven for 14 from the foul line stinks. That's abysmal. That's probably the bottom of the barrel. We've got a long way to go. It's just going to be a big journey."

On playing Boise State - "They're really well coached. They play and excellent match-up zone and a great man-to-man defense. They are one of the unique teams that's able to defend both ways, and that will present a challenge for our players. Secondly, Abe Jackson is one of the premiere players in the WAC, if not the West. He's an outstanding scorer and a great athlete. I like the fact that their team has excellent overall quickness, and it will be challenging on both sides of the court for us. We're going to have to play a smart game and get ready for an extraordinary defense and a highly competitive team."

Tough Schedule Ahead

Utah has a challenging schedule ahead over the next two weeks. After playing Boise State, which brings back four starters and three other lettermen from a team that went 17-14 last season, the Runnin' Utes face three-consecutive teams that won 20 games a year ago.

The stretch begins Friday with a home game against in-state rival Utah State. The Aggies went 28-6 last season, including a 58-57 victory over the Utes in Logan on Dec. 6. Utah State also won the Big West Tournament after placing second in the league during the regular season and defeated Ohio State in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. Utah State is picked to finish second in the Big West this season by the league's coaches.

Next Monday, the Utes play their first road game of the season against Alabama in Tuscaloosa. The Crimson Tide return four starters from a team that finished 25-11 and was the NIT runner-up in 2000-01. Alabama was selected to win the SEC Western Division in a preseason media poll. Utah returns to Salt Lake City to host Pepperdine on Dec. 1. The Waves went 22-9 last year and advanced to the second round of the NIT. Pepperdine has eight lettermen back under new head coach Paul Westphal.

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