Dec. 18, 2005

Game #9

Utah Runnin' Utes (5-3) vs. Adams State College Grizzlies (5-3)
Dec. 19 ? 7:05 p.m. (MST)
Jon M. Huntsman Center (15,000) ? Salt Lake City

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Game Data


Television: None
Radio: Utah Sports Network(Hot Ticket 700/KALL-AM in Salt Lake City and affiliate stations).On the Internet at www.UtahUtes.com. Get Utah All-Access HereMatt Thomas (play-by-play), Mark Rydalch (analyst) and Bill Riley (host).
Utah Head Coach: Ray Giacoletti      Adams St. Head Coach: Larry MortensenAlma Mater: Minot State, 1985        Alma Mater: Adams State, 1988Record at Utah: 34-9 (2nd Season)    Record at ASC: 98-157 (10th Season)Overall Record: 151-92 (9th Season)  Overall Record: 98-157 (10th Season)
Series Record: Utah leads 1-0Utah's Record Home/Away/Neutral: 1-0/0-0/0-0Current Streak: Utah has won 1Last Meeting: Utah won 95-63 on Dec. 17, 1994 in Salt Lake City
Utah Probable StartersNo. Pos. Name              Ht.  Wt.  Cl.  Statistics20  F    Bryant Markson      6-7  198  Sr.  16.9 ppg, 6.3 rpg21  F    Shaun Green    6-8  208  Fr.  8.0 ppg, 3.8 rpg30  C    Chris Jackson    6-11 245  Sr.  8.6 ppg, 3.9 rpg1   G    Johnnie Bryant      6-0  190  So.  12.1 ppg, 3.6 rpg2   G    Lawrence Borha    6-3    205  Fr.  3.4 ppg, 2.4 rpg
Adams State Probable StartersNo. Pos. Name              Ht.  Wt.  Cl.  Statistics15  F    Wes Jensen    6-6  220  Jr.  9.6 ppg, 5.8 rpg30  F    Roman Moniak      6-5  210  Jr.  12.9 ppg, 7.5 rpg2   G    Richard Mincey    6-4  205  Jr.  2.0 ppg, 2.5 rpg13  G    Marcus Mortensen  6-1  170  So.  2.6 ppg, 2.9 rpg32  G    Greg Baker    6-4  200  Sr.  16.0 ppg, 4.8 rpg

After This
The Runnin' Utes head to Seattle to face Washington State at Key Arena in the Cougar Hardwood Classic on Thursday, Dec. 22 at 7:35 p.m. (PST). The game will be televised nationally by Fox Sports Net.

Quickly On Utah
The Runnin' Utes (5-3) close out a three-game homestand against Adams State College on Monday at 7:05 p.m. (MST) in the Jon M. Huntsman Center. The game will be broadcast on Hot Ticket 700 (KALL-AM) and the Utah Sports Network.

Utah is coming off of a 73-43 loss to No. 24 Arizona on Saturday afternoon in the Huntsman Center. Before a week off for semester exams, the Utes lost to Colorado 76-52 on Dec. 7 in Boulder, Colo., and defeated Southern Utah 69-53 in Salt Lake City on Dec. 10.

Senior forward Bryant Markson (6-7, 198), a preseason all-Mountain West Conference pick, leads the Utes in scoring (16.9 ppg), rebounds (6.3 rpg) and assists (3.1 apg). Markson is also shooting 75.6 percent at the free throw line. Sophomore guard Johnnie Bryant (6-0, 190), a junior college transfer in his first season with the Utes, is second on the team in scoring (12.1 ppg) and is averaging 3.6 rebounds per game. Bryant is also shooting 44.4 percent (16-of-36) from three-point range and 88.2 percent from the free throw line. Freshman center Luke Nevill (7-1, 250) is second on the team in rebounding (5.9 rpg) and third in scoring (9.0 ppg). Senior center Chris Jackson (6-11, 245) is third in both scoring (8.6 ppg) and rebounding (3.9 rpg). Jackson is also shooting a team-best 72.1 percent from the field.

Take Note
? Utah's 21-game home court winning streak, which ranked as the fifth-longest in NCAA Division I, was snapped with its loss to Arizona. The Utes had also won 37 consecutive nonconference games at home, tying Duke for the third longest streak in the nation.

? Utah is playing one redshirt freshman and four other newcomers. Through eight games, 52.8 percent of the Utes' points, 49.5 percent of their rebounds, 55.6 percent of their assists and 56.0 percent of their minutes played have come from the first-year players.

? The Utes are 5-0 when holding their opponents to 69 points or less this season and 0-3 when allowing 70 points or more.

? The Utes have a -4.9 turnover margin, averaging 17.3 turnovers per game compared to 12.4 for their opponents. Utah also has a 0.8 assist/turnover ratio (108 assists/138 turnovers).

Scouting The Grizzlies
Adams State College is located in Alamosa, Colo., and has an enrollment of 2,500. The Grizzlies, an NCAA Division II program, compete in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference.

The Grizzlies are 5-3 overall and 1-2 on opponents home courts this season. They will be playing their third game in four days on the road when they face the Utes on Monday night. Adams State lost 73-65 at Colorado Christian College on Friday night, then won at Colorado Mines 60-55 on Saturday night.

Senior guard Greg Baker (6-4, 200) leads the Grizzlies in scoring (16.0 ppg) and assists (3.9 apg). Baker is shooting 34.6 percent from three-point range. Junior forward Roman Moniak (6-5, 210) is second in scoring (12.9 ppg) and leads the team in rebounds (7.5 rpg). Junior forward Wes Jensen (6-6, 220) is third in scoring (9.6 ppg), hitting a team-best 42.2 percent (19-for-45) of his three-point attempts, and is second in rebounds (5.8 rpg).

Comparing The Numbers


         Utah    Adams St.Record          5-3 5-3Streak          Lost 1  Won 1Scoring         66.5    63.5Scoring Defense 66.9    60.2FG%         .469    .441FG% Defense .436    .3763-Pt. FG%   .336    .3283-Pt. FG% Def.  .338    .337FT%         .658    .556Rebound Margin  +6.6    +5.4Assists         13.5    15.5Turnovers   17.3    13.3Opp. Turnovers  12.4    13.9Steals          6.0 6.8Blocked Shots   1.9 2.9

Head Coach Larry Mortensen
Larry Mortensen is in his 10th season as the head coach at Adams State College. Mortensen earned his bachelor's and master's degrees from Adams State in 1988 and 1992, respectively. He coached and taught at nearby Sanford High School for seven years, from 1988-95, before coming to the Grizzlies' program as an assistant during the 1995-96 season.

In his second season at the helm (1997-98) Mortensen guided ASC its first winning season since the school moved to Division II in 1992. The Grizzlies finished 14-13 that year and advanced to the RMAC Tournament, a feat they have matched three times since. Guiding the Grizzlies to a new level of success in the recent past, Mortensen's Grizzlies set a new Division II era school-record for conference wins (10) in 2002-03 before matching that mark in 2003-04, a campaign in which ASC claimed 17 victories, another Division II era school record.

Utah vs. Adams State Series Notes
? The Utes and Grizzlies meet for the second time on Monday night.

? Utah won the first meeting 95-63 on Dec. 17, 1994 in the Huntsman Center.

? Adams State College is the only Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference team the Utes have faced.

Notables From Game #8
? The Utes had a season-high 24 turnovers. The previous high mark was 18 against Southern Utah on Dec. 10.

? The 30-point loss was Utah's most decisive at home since falling to Wyoming by 43 points (68-25) on Jan. 16, 1943 at Einar Nielsen Fieldhouse. The Cowboys won the NCAA Championship that season.

? It was Utah's most decisive loss since falling to Kentucky by 31 points (101-70) on March 21, 1996 in the NCAA regional semifinals in Minneapolis, Minn.

? The Utes scored a season-low 43 points in the loss to Arizona. It was their lowest offensive output since scoring 42 points against Air Force on March 13, 2003 in the MWC Tournament quarterfinals in Las Vegas, Nev.

? Utah fell to 5-2 against teams ranked in the Associated Press Top 25 the last 10 seasons in the Jon M. Huntsman Center, breaking a five-game winning steak. The Utes' last loss to a ranked team at home was against No. 2 Wake Forrest (70-59) on Dec. 31, 1996.

? Arizona was the first AP Top 25 team the Utes faced at home under second-year head coach Ray Giacoletti. Utah fell to 1-4 against AP Top 25 teams under Giacoletti. The Utes defeated No. 17 Oklahoma 67-58 last season on March 19 in the second round of the NCAA Tournament in Tucson, Ariz. Four of Utah's nine losses in two seasons under Giacoletti have been against AP Top 25 teams.

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Utah Men's Basketball Notes - Game #9

Game #9

Players Mentioned

Lawrence Borha

Johnnie Bryant

Shaun Green

Chris Jackson

Chris Jackson

Bryant Markson

Bryant Markson

Luke Nevill

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Utah Men's Basketball Notes - Game #9

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