First Place On The Line For Utes

Feb. 21, 2001

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Game #27
Utah Utes (17-9, 8-3 MWC) vs. Brigham Young Cougars (19-7, 8-3 MWC)

Feb. 24 * 1:07 p.m. (MST) * Jon M. Huntsman Center (15,000) * Salt Lake City

A Quick Look At Utah
The Utes are 17-9 overall and tied with BYU for first place in the Mountain West Conference with an 8-3 record. Wyoming is a half game back of the Utes and Cougars at 7-3. Utah is on a season-best six-game winning streak and has taken 10 of its last 13. After stepping out of league play to get an 84-67 win over Louisville last Saturday, Utah continued its three-game homestand with a 67-45 win over Colorado State on Monday night.

Utah has five players averaging eight points per game or better, with one in double figures. Junior guard Kevin Bradley, coming off the bench the past 14 games, leads the team in scoring (11.0 ppg), shooting 41.0 percent from three-point range, which is second-best on the team. He is also third on the team in assists (2.1 apg). Junior forward Phil Cullen is second in scoring (9.6 ppg), shooting 39.1 percent from three-point range, and third in rebounding (4.7 rpg). Junior guard/forward Jeff Johnsen is third in scoring (8.7 ppg), hitting 38.8 percent from behind the arc and 76.6 percent from the line, and is second in assists (2.4 apg). Sophomore forward Britton Johnsen is fourth in scoring (8.6 ppg), shooting a team-best 45.2 percent from three-point range, and is second in rebounding (5.2 rpg). Senior center Nate Althoff is fifth in scoring (8.4 ppg). Junior Travis Spivey, who has started the last 14 games at point guard, is averaging a team-best 3.5 assists per game. Junior center/forward Chris Burgess, who has been back for five games after fracturing his left ankle against San Diego State on Jan. 15, leads the team in rebounding average (5.6 rpg) and blocked shots (25).

Utah returned just one starter and three other letterwinners from last season, as well as two return missionaries who played on the 1998 Final Four team. Utah went 23-9 overall, advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament and tied for the inaugural Mountain West Conference championship with a 10-4 record in 1999-2000.

Senior Salute on Saturday for Althoff
Senior 6-11 center Nate Althoff will play his final regular season home game as a Ute on Saturday against Brigham Young. He will be honored before the game.

Althoff is fifth on the team in scoring this season (8.4 ppg) and is averaging 3.1 rebounds to go with 13 blocked shots. He is shooting 61.3 percent from the field and has the best field goal percentage in the Mountain West Conference in league action at 68.8 percent. Althoff has played in all 26 games in with 14 starts in 2000-01, averaging 18.1 minutes per game.

The Delano, Minn., native ranks first in career field goal percentage at Utah (.608) and fifth in blocked shots (87). He has played in 103 games with 69 starts, scoring 673 points (6.5 ppg) and pulling down 385 rebounds (3.7 rpg).

Cullen Earns Mountain West Player of the Week Honors
Junior forward Phil Cullen was named the Mountain West Conference Basketball Player of the Week on Monday after leading the Utes to a 2-0 record Feb. 11-17. This is Utah's first player of the week honor this season and the first of Cullen's career. Cullen, from Chelan, Wash. (Chelan HS), averaged 17.5 points, 4.0 rebounds and 2.5 assists in two games last week. He also shot 80 percent from both the field (12-of-15) and three-point arc (8-of-10).

In an 85-77 win at UNLV last Monday, Cullen helped the Utes snap the Runnin' Rebels' nine-game home win streak with a team-high 19 points and three rebounds. He hit 7-of-9 from the floor, including 4-of-5 from three-point range. The 19 points were Cullen's second-highest scoring outing this season behind a 21-point performance at Washington State on Dec. 16.

In Utah's 84-67 victory over Louisville last Saturday, he went 5-for-6 from the field, including 4-for-5 from beyond the arc, for a game-high 16 points.

Utes Have Strongest Schedule and Best RPI in the Mountain West
According to the ratings as of Wednesday, Utah's strength of schedule ranked 38th out of 319 NCAA Division I schools. Utah was the only Mountain West Conference team in the top 50 in strength of schedule. The next two closest were New Mexico (64th) and UNLV (69th). The Mountain West Conference has a 63-39 record in NCAA Division I nonconference games.

Utah's RPI was 42nd, the highest in the Mountain West Conference. Brigham Young was 46th, New Mexico was 54th and Wyoming was 61st. Three of Utah's nine losses have come to teams ranked in the top 20 in the RPI ratings through Sunday evening. Georgia is 14th with a 14-11 record, followed by No. 16 Texas (19-7) and No. 19 Southern California (16-7).

Utah vs. Brigham Young Notes

Scouting the Cougars
Brigham Young is 19-7 overall and tied with the Utes for first place in the Mountain West Conference with an 8-3 record. The Cougars, which are 2-5 on the road this season, open a three-game road swing to end the regular season against the Utes. BYU has won six of their last seven and three in a row. Last week, the Cougars defeated Wyoming (79-63) on Thursday and Colorado State (68-51) on Saturday.

Senior 6-9 forward Mekeli Wesley ranks third in the MWC in scoring (16.3 ppg) and 12th in rebounding (5.5 rpg). Senior 6-3 guard Terrell Lyday is fifth in the league in scoring (15.7 ppg), shooting 37.0 percent from three-point range and 80.8 percent at the line. Senior 6-1 guard Trent Whiting is third on the team in scoring (14.6 ppg) and has the sixth-best scoring average in league play (also 14.6 ppg), starting the last 18 games at the point. Junior 6-9 forward Eric Nielsen is 18th in the conference in rebounding (4.3 rpg) and junior 6-0 guard Matt Montague is ninth in the MWC in assists (3.0 apg).

The Cougars are fourth in the conference in scoring (71.2 ppg), first in scoring defense (61.6 ppg), fourth in rebound margin (+0.9) with a 33.3 to 32.4 advantage, first in free throw percentage (.773), first in field goal percentage defense (.400) and first in three-point field goal percentage defense (.294).

Head Coach Steve Cleveland
Steve Cleveland is in his fourth season at Brigham Young. He led the Cougars to their first postseason appearance in his tenure last season. BYU made it to the quarterfinals of the NIT, going 22-11 overall and placing sixth in the conference with a 7-7 record in 1999-2000.

After taking over a program that had suffered a 1-25 season, Cleveland has improved the Cougars each season, posting 9-21 and 12-16 records in his first two seasons. Before taking over at BYU, he complied a 157-77 record in seven seasons at Fresno City College.

Series Notes
Utah and BYU meet for the 230th time on Saturday. The Cougars lead the all-time series 115-114 after getting a 69-61 win on Jan. 29 in Provo, Utah. The Utes have a 67-46 record against their oldest rivals in Salt Lake City. BYU has lost six in a row in the Huntsman Center since getting a 64-62 win on Jan. 8, 1994.

Utah went 2-1 against the Cougars last season. After getting a 56-49 win at the Marriott Center on Jan. 15 and a 77-62 victory at the Huntsman Center on Feb. 12, Utah pulled ahead in the series that dates back to 1908 for the first time. However, BYU then defeated the Utes, 58-54, in the semifinals of the Mountain West Tournament on March 10 to level the series record once again. Before that BYU win, Utah had won 12 in a row dating back to 1995, which was the longest winning streak by either team in the series.

Last Meeting
Trent Whiting scored 21 points to lead BYU to a 69-61 win over Utah on Jan. 29 at the Marriott Center in Provo, Utah. Nick Jacobson led Utah with 11 points. The Utes had a 42 to 26 advantage on the boards, but were outshot 45.8 to 39.2 percent from the field and 52.6 (10-of-19) to 33.3 percent (4-of-12) from three-point range. The Utes also had 20 turnovers.

BYU took control of the game midway through the second half. The Cougars went on a 9-0 run that opened a 49-34 lead with 11:16 to play. Utah cut the lead to 11, but an 8-0 run by the Cougars gave them a 60-41 lead with 7:47 remaining. Utah made a late run, getting within eight points, but BYU put the game away at the free throw line.

Mekeli Wesley scored 11 of his 16 points in the second half for BYU and Terrell Lyday added 14. BYU had lost 11 straight regular season games to Utah dating back to the 1994-95 season. The Cougars had not beaten Utah at home since a 54-47 win Jan. 3, 1995.

Team Notes

Game #26 Rewind
Travis Spivey and Jeff Johnsen each scored 13 points as Utah forced a tie atop the Mountain West standings with a 67-45 victory over Colorado State on Monday night at the Huntsman Center. Chris Burgess had 12 points and nine rebounds and Kevin Bradley added 10 points as the Utes (17-9, 8-3 MWC) won their sixth straight and drew even with rival BYU atop the league standings.

The taller Utes dominated against Colorado State's three-guard offense, clogging the lane to block seven shots and holding the Rams (13-10, 4-6 MWC) to 29 percent shooting. John Sivesind led the Rams with 12 points.

Utah took a 43-25 lead with 17:12 remaining as the Rams made only 1-of-7 over the first three minutes of the second half. Britton Johnsen scored twice during the spurt. The lead grew to 54-31 after Burgess slipped in a layup with 8:39 to play. It was 59-36 with 6:30 remaining after Jeff Johnsen hit a three-pointer, and the Utes were never challenged again.

Utah led 34-23 at halftime after Colorado State shot 27 percent. The Utes didn't allow much inside, blocking six shots before the break, and keeping things going in the second half with a 9-2 run coming out of the locker room.

The Nation's Most Dominant Team in League Play at Home
Following their 67-45 win over Colorado State on Monday, the Utes have won 43 consecutive league games at home, which is the nation's longest current streak. Utah's last home conference loss was to Fresno State (65-64) on Jan. 8, 1996. Utah is the nation's most dominant team in conference home games the past seven years with a 52-1 record (.981).

Against the seven other teams that now form the Mountain West Conference, Utah has won 39 in a row at home dating back to a 71-70 loss to Colorado State on Jan. 27, 1994.

Streakin' Through Conference Play
After winning its first three Mountain West Conference games at home, Utah dropped its next three games on the road. Since then, the Utes have won five league games in a row.

Utah's 3-3 Mountain West record through six games marked its worst conference start since the 1993-94 season when the Utes started 3-3 in the Western Athletic Conference. The 1993-94 season is also the last time the Utes dropped three consecutive games in league play, when it happened twice.

After its 3-3 start in `93-94, Utah went on to lose its next two to fall to 3-5 before finishing 8-10. Utah has done much better this time around, winning five in a row.

Maturing Down the Stretch in League Play
In three of the last four conference wins--two of which have been on the road--Utah has withstood runs and made the plays down the stretch to close out games. In its most recent win in league play, which came against Colorado State on Monday, the Utes made their run early in the second half to pull away.

New Mexico (Feb. 5 in Salt Lake City): Leading the Lobos 64-63, the Utes outscored UNM 16-6 to end the game and held New Mexico to just one field goal in the last 5:17.
San Diego State (Feb. 10 in San Diego): The Aztecs were within 60-52 with 4:15 to play before Kevin Bradley and friends took over. In a little over a minute span, Bradley sank a three-pointer, got a steal and made a layup in transition, and Britton Johnsen got a jump shot on an assist from Bradley to increase Utah's lead to 15 points (67-52) with 2:42 left.
UNLV (Feb. 12 in Las Vegas): The Utes led 64-51 with 11:57 remaining but the Rebels rallied behind Kaspars Kambala, who scored 13 of his team's next 21 points as the Rebels cut the lead to 77-71 with 3:45 left. Kevin Bradley then hit a free throw and a three-pointer to put the Utes back up by nine (81-72) with 1:52 remaining. After a three-pointer by UNLV, Bradley got a layup and Jeff Johnsen sank two free throws to make it a 10-point bulge (85-75) with 44 seconds left.
Colorado State (Feb. 19 in Salt Lake City): With a 34-23 halftime lead, Utah held CSU to 1-of-7 shooting and made a 9-2 run in over the first 5:30 of the second half to make jump out to a 43-25 lead.

Lighting It Up from the Field
Before shooting 44.0 percent against Colorado State on Monday, Utah had shot over 50 percent from the field in its last four games, hitting a combined 57.0 percent (114-of-200). The Utes shot 54.3 percent against New Mexico on Feb. 5, 54.7 percent against San Diego State on Feb. 10, 60.0 percent against UNLV on Feb. 12 and 58.7 percent against Louisville on Feb. 17. The Utes have shot better than 50 percent 12 times this season, going 9-3 in those games.

Utah's 60.0 field goal percentage against UNLV on Feb. 12 was its best effort on the road this season against a Division I team. Utah shot an overall season-best percentage of 64.0 at American-Puerto Rico on Nov. 23.

Chairmen of the Boards
Utah has been outrebounded just twice in its last 58 regular-season conference games. Both of which came at the hands of Wyoming this season.

The Utes have been outrebounded just four times this season: 33-24 to Georgia, 33-27 to Memphis, 46-35 to Wyoming on Jan. 8 and 58-49 to Wyoming on Jan. 20. The Cowboys have the two highest rebound totals among Ute opponents this season.

Getting Defensive

For 12 consecutive games--11 of which have been in Mountain West Conference play--Utah has held its opponents under 50 percent shooting from the field. Utah's opponents have mustered just 40.8 percent shooting in the last 12 contests. Three of the Utes' top 10 defensive performances against Division I teams this season have come in the last four games.
Utah allowed its lowest field goal percentage by a Division I opponent this season against Colorado State on Monday, with CSU going hitting 28.9 percent of its shots. The Rams, which ranked sixth nationally in three-point percentage (.420) entering the game, where held to just 23.5 percent in the game and 1-of-8 from beyond the arc in the second half.
Only two teams have shot better than 50 percent from the field against the Utes the entire season. Southern Utah connected on 53.3 percent of its shots (60.9 percent in the second half) and 66.7 percent (8-of-12) from three-point range, while Long Beach State shot 51.9 percent from the field. Utah's opponents have shot just 40.2 percent this season overall and 41.3 percent in Mountain West Conference play.
Utah has held nine of its opponents to less than 60 points. American-Puerto Rico (37 points), Cardinal Stritch (47), Concordia of Calif. (37), San Diego State on Jan. 15 (39) and Colorado State on Feb. 19 (45) have been held below 50 points. Only eight teams have reached the 70-point barrier: Weber State (79), Southern Utah (77), Texas (70), Wyoming (71) on Jan. 8, UNLV (70) on Jan. 13, Wyoming (78 in overtime) on Jan. 20, Colorado State (73) on Jan. 22 and UNLV (77) on Feb. 12.

Inside the Numbers

The Utes have utilized their depth this season. Utah's bench has been productive, outscoring its opponents bench by an average of 13.1 points per game. Nine players are averaging at least 10 minutes a game, while just one (Phil Cullen at 23.8) is averaging more than 23 minutes per contest this season.
Nine different players have led the Utes in scoring in 26 games this season. Kevin Bradley and Phil Cullen lead the way, having paced the Utes in scoring nine times each. Utah has had at least three players score in double figures in each of the last five games.
The Utes have used nine different starting line-ups this season with eight different players starting at least one game. The last three games, Utah went with the quintet of Britton Johnsen (SF), Phil Cullen (PF), Chris Burgess (C), Travis Spivey (PG) and Nick Jacobson (SG). Utah has gone 7-1 with that starting five. Before Spivey took over at the point the last 14 games, Kevin Bradley had started the first 12 games. Nate Althoff has also started 14 games at center this season.
With 368 assists and 381 turnovers on the season, Utah has a 0.97 assists-turnover ratio and has averaged 14.65 turnovers a game. Utah has improved that number greatly with a positive or even assists-turnover ratio in five of the last six games, getting 97 assists to 71 turnovers (1.4:1 ratio). A team from the Rick Majerus era has never finished the season with less than a 1.0 assists-turnover ratio. Since the turnover stat was recorded beginning in 1975-76, the only Utah team to finish with less than a 1.0 assists-turnover ratio was the 1981-82 squad that had 404 assists to 419 turnovers (0.96).
The Utes have had success when they take care of the ball, going 10-1 when they commit fewer turnovers then their opponent this season.
Eight games into the season, Utah was shooting just 67.2 percent from the free throw line. Since then, the Utes have shot 70.2 percent (207-of-295) from the line. The Utes have helped their cause at the stripe by shooting above 80 percent in six of the last 16 games, going 39-for-48 (.813) against Washington State, 21-for-26 (.808) against Pepperdine, 14-for-16 (.875) against both Long Beach State and UNLV on Jan. 13, 7-of-8 (.875) against Colorado State on Jan. 22 and a season-best 89.5 percent (17-of-19) against Colorado State on Feb. 19. Utah is now shooting 70.1 percent from the line on the season.
Utah is 9-0 when it scores 80 points or more.
On Jan. 20 in an overtime showdown in Laramie, Wyo., Wyoming attempted 48 free throws, the most by a Utah opponent this season, while the U. connected on just 22-of-35 free throws (.629). The Utes committed a school record 38 fouls in the game.
With defeats to then-No. 15 Southern California on Dec. 2, Utah State on Dec. 6, and Weber State on Dec. 9, Utah lost three consecutive nonconference games for the first time during the Rick Majerus era. The skid ended with an 87-63 win over Washington State on Dec. 16. Utah's most recent nonconference losing streak of three games or more came in 1988-89, the final season under Lynn Archibald, when Utah dropped four consecutive games to Florida on Nov. 27 (77-68), Cal State-Fullerton on Dec. 1 (59-57), Santa Clara on Dec. 3 (66-60) and Colorado on Dec. 6 (68-65).

Burgess Is Back
Junior 6-10 center/forward Chris Burgess, who missed four games with an avulsion fracture in his right ankle, returned to the court on Feb. 5 against New Mexico. He has been back in the starting lineup for the last four games. In the last three games he has averaged 13.6 points, shooting 17-of-27 from the field, and 7.0 rebounds in 25.3 minutes.

Burgess had one of his better all-around games of the season against UNLV on Feb. 12. He tied Utah career highs with 15 points and three assists. Burgess also had nine rebounds, three blocked shots and two steals in 32 minutes. He followed that up with 14 points, hitting 6-of-9 at the line in 20 minutes against Louisville on Feb. 17. The Irvine, Calif., native then had 12 points (6-of-8 FG) and nine rebounds in 24 minutes against Colorado State on Feb. 19. Burgess leads the team in rebounding average (5.6 rpg) and blocked shots (25). Before the injury, he had started 12 games in a row at center and power forward.

Getting to the Point
Junior point guard Travis Spivey, a transfer from Salt Lake Community College, has started the last 14 games with fellow junior college transfer Kevin Bradley, the staring point guard for the first 12 games, coming off the bench at both guard positions. Freshman point guard Marc Jackson has also seen significant playing time as of late, averaging 8.4 minutes per game in conference play. The shake up in the lineup has resulted in improved productivity at point guard for the Utes.

Utah hasn't had more than 12 turnovers in any of its last five conference games. Utah's assists-turnover ratio in Mountain West play is 1.10, which ranks third.
The Utes had 22 assists against UNLV on Feb. 12, its second-highest total of the season and best in Mountain West Conference play. Utah had assists on all but 11 of 33 field goals made.
Utah turned the ball over a season-low eight times while getting 15 assists against San Diego State on Jan. 15.
In the last 12 games, Spivey has had 60 assists to 28 turnovers (2.1:1 ratio). He posted a season-high eight assists with no turnovers against Colorado State on Feb. 19 after getting seven assists against Louisville two days earlier. In Mountain West Conference play, he ranks first in assists per game (4.45).
Highlighting some of his better performances in conference play, Spivey had had 13 points, making all seven free throws, and eight assists in 31 minutes against Colorado State on Feb. 19. He had 10 points, making 4-of-6 shots from the field, four rebounds and three assists in 32 minutes on Feb. 10 against San Diego State. Spivey had 12 points, hitting 2-of-4 three-pointers, five rebounds and three steals in 31 minutes against New Mexico on Feb. 5. He had five assists with no turnovers, eight points and three rebounds in 28 minutes against Air Force on Feb. 3.
Jackson had two of his better games of the season against Wyoming on Jan. 8 and San Diego State on Jan. 15. Jackson made 7-of-8 free throws with three rebounds, two assists and no turnovers in 12 minutes against the Cowboys. He had two points, three rebounds, three assists and no turnovers in 16 minutes against the Aztecs.

Boasting of Bradley
Junior 6-0 guard Kevin Bradley, a relatively unheralded transfer from Compton Community College, has raised some eyebrows with his solid play. Bradley started the first 12 games of the season and has continued to get significant playing time off the bench since then, averaging 22.5 minutes per game. He leads the team in scoring (11.0 ppg), shooting 41.0 percent from three-point range overall (second-best on the team), 50.0 percent from beyond the arc in league play to rank first in the MWC and 73.4 percent from the free throw line. Bradley is also averaging 2.1 assists per game (third-best on the team). He has led Utah in scoring nine times and assists eight times.

When Bradley scores in double figures, Utah is 11-3. He has scored in double figures in each of the last five conference games, averaging 15.2 points per game. He has also shot 61.2 percent from the field (21-of-36) and 57.1 percent from three-point range (12-of-21) in those games. Bradley had 10 points against Colorado State on Feb. 19 to score in double figures for the 14th time. At San Diego State on Feb. 10, he had 18 points and tied a career high with six assists. He also had three boards and two steals in 26 minutes. Against New Mexico on Feb. 5, Bradley had 19 points, making 4-of-5 three-pointers, and got six rebounds in 30 minutes. On Feb. 3 against Air Force, Bradley got 15 points, making all of his shots from the field (four field goals and two three-pointers) and 5-of-7 free throws in 19 minutes.

In other recent games, he had 19 points at Wyoming on Jan. 20, making a three-pointer to send the game into overtime and hitting 3-of-7 treys in the contest. Bradley also came up with a career-high nine rebounds. His career-high game was 20 points against Cardinal Stritch on Nov. 28.

A native of Los Angeles, Bradley was named the conference player of the year as a senior at Crenshaw High School.

Cullen Coming On
Junior 6-9 forward Phil Cullen has scored in double figures in 12 games this season, including the last three prior to the Colorado State game on Feb. 19. After getting 13 points and six boards at San Diego State on Feb. 10, he busted loose for 19 points, hitting 7-of-9 shots from the field and 4-of-5 from three-point range, against UNLV on Feb. 12. He had 16 points, making 5-of-6 from the field and 4-of-5 threes, versus Louisville on Feb. 17. Cullen has led the Utes in scoring nine times. He is second on the team in scoring (9.6 ppg) and third in rebounds (4.7 rpg), starting 21 of 26 games this season.

In a six-game stretch from Dec. 2-22, Cullen averaged 13.5 points, shooting 47.1 percent (25-of-53) from the field, 48.5 percent (17-of-35) from three-point range and 70.0 percent (14-of-20) from the free throw line.

All in the Family
Utah has one of 11 brother combinations in NCAA Division I this season in Jeff and Britton Johnsen. Both of the Johnsens rank among the top five Utes statistically.

Jeff (G/F, 6-4, 200), a junior, is third on the team in scoring (8.7 ppg), shooting a 38.8 percent from three-point range (fourth-best on the team) and 76.6 percent from the free throw line (third-best on the team). He is also averaging 2.4 assists (second-best on the team), and has led the team in scoring three times and assists 10 times. He returned to the starting lineup for the first time since Dec. 9 against New Mexico on Feb. 5. Jeff responded with 15 points, making 6-of-8 field goals, to score in double figures for the fourth consecutive game. He also had a season-high nine rebounds and three assists in 28 minutes.

Britton (F, 6-9, 205), a sophomore, is fourth on the team in scoring (8.6 ppg), shooting a team-best 45.2 percent from behind the arc (19-of-42), and is second in rebounds (5.2 rpg). He has also scored in double figures in 11 of the last 20 games. Britton got a career-high 23 points, making 8-of-14 field goals and 4-of-6 three-pointers, with eight rebounds and three blocked shots in 27 minutes against Long Beach State on Jan. 3. He had 20 points and eight rebounds in 26 minutes against Colorado State on Jan. 22.

Jeff began his career at Utah in 1996-97 before going on a two-year LDS Church mission to Fresno, Calif. He averaged 5.9 points, 2.9 rebounds and 2.0 assists in 32 games last season with five starts. Britton who resumes his Utah career this season, played for the Utes in 1997-98 before going on his LDS Church mission to Houston, Texas. He averaged 3.5 points and 1.0 rebounds in 21 games as a freshman.

The Johnsens, who hail from Murray, Utah, hadn't played together for four years. The last season the Johnsens played together, they led Murray High School to the Utah 4A state title in 1996.

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 12-year career at the U. However, they are the first to play together.

Close Calls In Defeat
A few bounces of the ball here or there, and Utah could have had a record far better than its 17-9 mark. Utah's nine losses have came by a combined 48 points for an average of 5.3 points per game.

Utah suffered a pair of one-point losses at Utah State (58-57) on Dec. 6 and at Wyoming (78-77 in overtime) on Jan. 20 and a two-point loss at home (79-77) to Weber State on Dec. 9. The Utes also experienced two five-point setbacks to Georgia (Nov. 24) and USC (Dec. 2) by identical 65-60 scores on neutral courts. Utah's worst loss of the season was by an 11-point margin (70-59) at 25th-ranked Texas on Dec. 30.
In five of its nine losses, Utah had significant leads in the second half. The Utes led Georgia 55-36 with 12:13 to play, had a 52-48 lead over Utah State with 10:27 to go, a 56-50 cushion over Southern Utah with 10:46 remaining, a 53-50 advantage over Texas with 6:18 left and a 54-41 lead over Wyoming with 13:23 showing. Utah is 14-4 when it leads at the half and 17-3 when it leads with 5:00 remaining this season.
Utah's six losses in nonconference play is the most that it has had in the past 12 years. The last time the Utes went into league play with more than five losses was in 1988-89, the last season of Lynn Archibald's tenure, when Utah went 9-6 through its pre-conference schedule. During the Majerus era, Utah had a high mark of four losses before the start of conference play just twice, going 7-4 in 1989-90 (Majerus' first season) and 10-4 in 1998-99.

Defense, Defense, Defense

One of the trademarks of a Utah team during the Rick Majerus era is a stifling half-court defense. In the past 11 seasons under Majerus, Utah has ranked in the top 30 in the nation eight times in field goal percentage defense, eight times in the top 25 in scoring defense, seven times in the top 25 in scoring margin and eight times in the top 30 in rebound margin.
This season, the Utes are giving up 62.4 points per game. Utah ranked 20th in the NCAA in scoring defense last season, giving up 61.8 points per game. The Utes are one of just eight teams to appear in the top 10 in the NCAA in scoring defense at least four times in the last 11 years. Utah is also one of just four teams to rank in the top 25 in the nation in scoring defense at least nine times in the last 11 years.
Utah has a 6.9 rebounds per game advantage over the opposition this season and ranked 13th in the NCAA as of Feb. 20. The Utes ranked 26th in the nation in rebound margin (4.8 rpg) last season and have been ranked been ranked among the top 30 teams in the nation in rebound margin in each of the last six years. Utah is one of just seven schools to rank in the top 10 at least three times in the last five years. Only Navy's four appearances rank ahead of Utah.
Opponents have shot 40.2 percent from the field on the Utes this season. Utah is one of just eight schools to rank in the top 30 in the nation in field goal percentage defense four of the last five years. Utah has also been in the top 10 in the NCAA in field goal percentage defense four times during the Rick Majerus era.
Thanks to their stifling defense, the U. has also ranked among the top 25 teams in the nation in scoring margin four times in the last five years and seven times in the last 11 years. Utah has outscored its opponents by an average of 10.8 points per game this season. In the last five years, the Utes are one of just eight teams with four appearances in the top 25, bettered only by Cincinnati's streak of five consecutive years. Utah is also one of just six teams to rank in the top 10 at least three times in the last five years.

Majerus Takes Medical Leave for Rest of the Season
Rick Majerus announced on Jan. 9 he was leaving the team for the rest of the season to be with his cancer-stricken mother and recover from his own health problems.

Majerus underwent a coronary angiography and stenting of two coronary artery branches on Jan. 2. He had a follow-up procedure performed on Jan. 3. Doctors reported that both procedures went very well. Prior to that, Majerus had been away from the team for seven weeks while undergoing rehabilitation from late-September arthroscopic surgery on his right knee. He had anticipated to rejoin the team on Jan. 1 before admitting himself to the hospital with chest pains. Majerus is planning to return to coaching for the 2001-02 season.

Hunsaker Directing the Utes
Dick Hunsaker, in his third year at Utah, is serving as the acting head coach in the absence of Rick Majerus. His record as Utah's acting head coach is 16-9, directing the team since the second game of the season.

Hunsaker was the associate head coach under Majerus at Ball State from 1987-89. Hunsaker followed Majerus as the head coach at Ball State from 1989-93. He compiled a 97-33 record with the Cardinals, giving him the seventh-best four-year coaching record in NCAA history. During his stay in Muncie, Ind., Ball State made two trips to the NIT and two appearances in the NCAA Tournament. He led the Cardinals to the NCAA Sweet 16 in 1990. Hunsaker posted four 20-win seasons at BSU. His teams also captured two Mid-American Conference championships and placed second twice. Hunsaker has a 164-69 record in eight seasons as a college head coach or acting head coach.

Hunsaker came to Utah from Manchester College in North Manchester, Ind., where he had been the head coach since 1995. During his three years at Manchester, he posted a 51-27 record and led the Spartans to three of the 10 winningest seasons in the college's 85-year history. He played college basketball one season for Hall of Fame coach Don Haskins at UTEP (1972-73) and finished his career at Weber State (1974-77).

Upcoming Events

Recent Results

Utah vs. Brigham Young Notes

Team Notes

Players Mentioned

Marc Jackson

Upcoming Event: Men's Basketball versus Grand Canyon on November 25, 2025 at 10 PM

Upcoming Event: Men's Basketball versus Ole Miss / Iowa on November 26, 2025 at 7:30 PM / 10:00 PM

Upcoming Event: Men's Basketball at Cal on December 2, 2025 at 8:00 PM

Upcoming Event: Men's Basketball versus Cal Baptist on December 6, 2025 at 5:00 PM

Upcoming Event: Men's Basketball versus Mississippi State on December 13, 2025 at 8:00 PM

Upcoming Event: Men's Basketball versus Eastern Washington on December 20, 2025 at 5:00 PM

Upcoming Event: Men's Basketball at Washington on December 29, 2025 at 9:00 PM

Upcoming Event: Men's Basketball versus Arizona on January 3, 2026 at 2:00 PM

Upcoming Event: Men's Basketball at Colorado on January 7, 2026 at 7:00 PM

Completed Event: Men's Basketball versus Cal Poly on November 20, 2025 , Loss , 85, to, 92

Completed Event: Men's Basketball versus Purdue Fort Wayne on November 18, 2025 , Win , 85, to, 77

Completed Event: Men's Basketball versus Sam Houston State on November 15, 2025 , Win , 85, to, 79

Completed Event: Men's Basketball versus Holy Cross on November 10, 2025 , Win , 87, to, 69

Completed Event: Men's Basketball versus Weber State on November 8, 2025 , Win , 92, to, 89

Completed Event: Men's Basketball versus San José State on November 3, 2025 , Win , 84, to, 75

Completed Event: Men's Basketball at Oregon [Exh] on October 24, 2025 , Loss , 53, to, 73

Completed Event: Men's Basketball versus Nevada [Exh] on October 17, 2025 , Loss , 77, to, 80

Completed Event: Men's Basketball versus Butler on March 31, 2025 , Loss , 84, to, 86

The University of Utah Athletics