Utah Men's Basketball - Game #5 Notes - University of Utah Athletics

Dec. 2, 2002

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Game #5

Utah Runnin' Utes (2-2) vs. Winthrop Eagles (3-2)

Dec. 3 * 7:07 p.m. (MST) * Jon M. Huntsman Center (15,000) * Salt Lake City

The Game at a Glance

Utah Head Coach: Rick Majerus       Winthrop Head Coach: Gregg MarshallAlma Mater: Marquette, 1970         Alma Mater: Randolph-Macon, 1985Record at Utah: 285-84/14th Season  Record at Wintrhop: 82-44/5th SeasonCareer Record: 384-136/19th Season  Career Record: 82-44/5th Season
Television: None.Radio: 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).
Series Record: First Meeting

Quickly On Utah

The Utes (2-2) play Winthrop (3-2) on Tuesday at 7:07 p.m. (MST) in the Jon M. Huntsman Center. The game will be broadcast on KALL-910 in Salt Lake City and the Utah Sports Network.

Utah went 1-2 last week at the EA Sports Maui Invitational, playing three games in less than 39 hours. The Utes opened the tournament with a loss to No. 20 Gonzaga, 71-52, on Monday and defeated UMass, 69-53, on Tuesday. In its final game of the tournament, Utah fell to Arizona State in overtime, 83-79.

Four lettermen return from last year's team that went 21-9 overall, placed second in the Mountain West Conference with a 10-4 record and advanced to the NCAA Tournament. Utah's roster also includes two transfers and and four freshmen.

Senior forward Britton Johnsen (6-10, 210) paces Utah in scoring (15.8 ppg) and rebounding (8.5 rpg). Johnsen also has five blocked shots and is shooting 49.0 percent from the field. Junior guard Nick Jacobson (6-4, 200) is second in scoring (13.8 ppg), and is shooting 39.4 percent from three-point range and 88.9 percent from the free throw line. Junior center Tim Frost (6-10, 236) is third in scoring (13.3 ppg) and is shooting 56.4 percent from the field. Freshman point guard Tim Drisdom (6-3, 203) leads the Utes in assists (4.3 apg).

Looking Ahead

Utah faces Arizona State for the second time in 10 days on Saturday at 7:07 p.m. (MST) in Salt Lake City. The Utes will then take a week off for semester exams before hosting Northern Iowa on Dec. 14 at 1:07 p.m. (MST).

Scouting Winthrop

The Eagles are 3-2 and have won three in a row after getting a 67-54 win at Montana State on Sunday. Before making the trip out West, Winthrop defeated Nyack College (86-44) at home last Monday and won at Gardner-Webb (68-66) last Wednesday.

Winthrop returns two starters and six lettermen from last year's team that went 19-12 overall, advanced to the NCAA Tournament and won the Big South regular-season title with a 10-4 record.

Junior forward Tyrone Walker (6-6, 228) leads the team in scoring (15.2 ppg) and rebounding (7.6 rpg). The second team 2001-02 all-Big South selection is also connecting on 86.2 percent of his free throws and has made 7-of-25 three-pointers (.280). Walker had 24 points, making 7-of-10 field goals and 3-of-4 three-pointers, and eight rebounds against Montana State. Freshman center/forward Billy Houston (6-8, 230) ranks second in both categories, averaging 9.2 points and 5.0 rebounds. Sophomore guard Ivan Jenkins (6-1, 170), who is averaging 21.0 minutes per game off the bench, leads the Eagles in assists (2.8 apg).

Head Coach Gregg Marshall

Gregg Marshall has an 82-44 career mark in his fifth season at Winthrop. In each of his previous four seasons, he has led the Eagles to a Big South Conference championship and the NCAA Tournament. Marshall was a college assistant coach for 13 years before taking his first head coaching job at Winthrop. During the two years prior to his arrival in Rock Hill, S.C., he was an assistant coach at Marshall. He was also an assistant at the College of Charleston for eight seasons under John Kreese.

Utah-Winthrop Series Notes

* Utah and Winthrop meet for the first time on Tuesday.

* Winthrop is only the second Big South Conference team Utah has played. The Utes defeated High Point 73-42 on Dec. 30, 1998 in Salt Lake City.

Game #4 Rewind

Britton Johnsen's 23 points weren't enough as Utah lost to Arizona State in overtime 83-79 in the fifth-place game of the Maui Invitational last Wednesday. Curtis Millage scored 26 points in his season debut, and Arizona State overcame poor free throw shooting.

Millage, a senior guard who was Arizona State's leading returning scorer, missed the first three games of the season while questions about his academic eligibility were cleared up. He was given permission to play by the NCAA on Tuesday, and he joined his teammates in Hawaii that night.

The Sun Devils (3-1) took a 69-62 lead over Utah with 1:18 to play in regulation on a free throw by Jason Braxton. Nick Jacobson of Utah (2-2) then hit three three-pointers in a 33-second span-while Millage missed four free throws-to give the Utes a 71-69 lead with 24 seconds left.

Arizona State tied it on Braxton's rebound basket with 7.5 seconds to play, and Utah missed a chance to win it at the buzzer when Johnsen's spin move was off the mark.

The Sun Devils scored the first eight points of overtime. Freshman Ike Diogu sandwiched four free throws around a three-pointer by Millage, who then added a free throw that made it 79-71 with 1:35 left. Diogu scored 22 for the Sun Devils, who were 32-for-57 (56 percent) from the free throw line, including 10-for-24 over the final 1:18 of regulation and the overtime. The 57 attempts were a school record, one more than it had against Arizona in 1955.

Tim Frost added 17 points and Jacobson had 15 for the Utes. Jacobson shot 5-of-12 from three-point range to account for all of his points.

Inside the Numbers

* In its two wins, Utah's opponents have shot below 40 percent both times, averaging 36.9 percent, while the Utes have shot an average of 48.5 percent.

* Utah has kept its opponents off the free throw line in its two wins, allowing just 20 attempts. In the two losses, the opposition has made 100 trips to the line, making 65.

* The Utes have outrebounded their opponents in the two wins by an average of 34.0 to 31.0 and have been on the negative side of that stat in the losses, 38.5 to 31.5.

* The Utes had a season-low 13 turnovers against UMass, including just six in the second half.

* Utah's point guards, freshman Tim Drisdom and sophomore Marc Jackson, have combined for 27 assists and 14 turnovers for a 1.93 assists/turnover ratio.

Great Britton: Senior Forward Up For Wooden Award

Senior forward Britton Johnsen (6-10, 210) has been named to the Wooden Award Preseason All-America Team. Johnsen is one of 50 players in the nation considered early candidates for John R. Wooden Award, presented annually to college basketball's player of the year.

* Johnsen has scored in double figures in all four games this season, leading Utah in scoring three times. Dating back to the 2000-01 season, Johnsen has scored in double figures in 42 of the last 59 contests.

* The Murray, Utah, native had a his second double-double of the season with a game-high 10 points and 11 rebounds in 35 minutes in the win over UMass. He has had seven double-doubles in the last 20 games dating back to last season.

* Johnsen has led Utah in rebounding in every game this season, averaging 8.5 boards per contest. He also led the Utes in rebounding 14 of the final 20 games last season, averaging 7.4 rebounds per game during that stretch.

* Johnsen had his best overall game of the season in the overtime loss to Arizona State. He had a season-high 23 points to lead the Utes, shooting 9-of-18 from the field and 4-of-7 from the free throw line. Johnsen also had a team-best seven rebounds and three assists in 39 minutes.

* Last season, Johnsen was named Mountain West Conference Player of the Year and USBWA District 8 Player of the Year, and made the NABC/Pontiac All-District 13 first team. Johnsen was second on the team in scoring (12.6 ppg) and first in rebounding (6.3 rpg), ranking 13th and eighth in the Mountain West Conference in those categories, respectively. He also ranked 12th in field goal percentage (49.6) and 15th in three-point percentage (35.6) in the MWC.

Jacobson Stroking "J"s

Junior guard Nick Jacobson (6-4, 200) is Utah's second-leading scorer this season (13.8 ppg) and paces the team from behind the arc, making 13-of-33 (39.4) three-pointers.

* Jacobson, with 21 points against UMass, reached 20 points for the fifth time in his career and the first time this season. He shot 5-of-10 from the field, 3-of-6 from three-point range and 8-of-9 at the free throw line in 38 minutes.

* In the final 2001-02 NCAA statistical rankings, Jacobson was 23rd in three-point percentage (44.4). The Fargo, N.D., native was named third team all-Mountain West and second team NABC/Pontiac All-District 13 in 2001-02. Jacobson led the team in scoring (13.0 ppg) and three-point percentage (44.4). He scored in double figures in 21 of the 30 games last season.

* Also last season, Jacobson set the Utah single-season mark with 71 three-pointers made last season, bettering the mark of 68 by Phil Dixon in 1991-92. He also ranked third in three-point attempts (160).

* Jacobson has already climbed into sixth place in career three-pointers made (116) and seventh in three-pointers attempted (278) at Utah. His career three-point percentage of 42.0 entering this season would have ranked fourth all-time at Utah.

Getting Defensive

One of the trademarks of a Utah team during the Rick Majerus era is a stifling half-court defense. Since 1989-90, Utah has ranked in the top 30 in the nation 10 times in scoring defense, nine times in rebound margin, eight times in field goal percentage defense and eight times in scoring margin.

* Utah allowed an opponent to score over 80 points for the first time in 70 games in its 83-79 overtime loss to Arizona State on Nov. 27. The last team to score 80 points on the Utes was Wyoming (88-61) on Feb. 28, 2000 in Laramie, Wyo. An opponent still hasn't reached 80 points against Utah in 67 consecutive games that ended in regulation.

* Last season, Utah ranked 13th in the NCAA in scoring defense (61.3).

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