Utah Men's Basketball Notes - Game #18 - University of Utah Athletics

Jan. 26, 2006

Game #18

Utah Runnin' Utes (8-9, 1-5) vs. TCU Horned Frogs (5-15, 1-5)
Jan. 28 ? 1:04 p.m. (MST)
Jon M. Huntsman Center (15,000) ? Salt Lake City

Buy Tickets Here

Complete Release in PDF Format
Download Free Acrobat Reader

Game Data

Television: ESPN Regional(Shown on KJZZ-TV 14 in Salt Lake City).Rich Waltz (play-by-play) and Irv Brown (analyst).
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      TCU Head Coach: Neil DoughertyAlma Mater: Minot State, 1985        Alma Mater: Cameron, 1984Record at Utah: 37-15 (2nd Season)   Record at TCU: 47-65 (4th Season)Overall Record: 154-98 (9th Season)  Overall Record: 47-65 (4th Season)
Series Record: Utah leads 6-1Utah's Record Home/Away/Neutral: 4-1/1-0/1-0Current Streak: Utah has won 4 in a row.Last Meeting: Utah won 89-68 on March 8, 1997 in Las Vegas.

After This
The Runnin' Utes play back-to-back road games. Utah opens the two-game swing against Wyoming in Laramie, Wyo., on Wednesday, Feb. 1 at 7:07 p.m. (MST). The game will be televised by KJZZ-TV.

Quickly On Utah
The Runnin' Utes (8-9, 1-5 MWC) conclude a two-game home stand against Mountain West Conference newcomer TCU (5-15, 1-5 MWC) on Saturday at 1:04 p.m. (MST) in the Jon M. Huntsman Center. Tickets are on sale at www.UtahTickets.com, by phone at (801) 581-UTIX, or at the Utah Athletics Rice-Eccles Stadium Ticket Office.

The game will be televised by ESPN Regional and shown on KJZZ-TV 14 in Salt Lake City. It will also be broadcast on Hot Ticket 700 (KALL-AM) and the Utah Sports Network.

Utah is 7-3 at home this season. The Utes are coming off five consecutive losses--three of which came on the road--including a 71-59 defeat to UNLV in the Huntsman Center last Saturday night.

Senior forward Bryant Markson (6-7, 198), a preseason all-Mountain West Conference pick, leads the Utes in scoring (14.1 ppg), assists (2.9 apg) and steals (24), and is second in rebounds (5.3 rpg). Markson is shooting 78.1 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 (11.5 ppg) and assists (2.2 apg), and is averaging 2.6 rebounds per game. Bryant is also shooting 42.3 percent (33-of-78) from three-point range and 85.7 percent from the free throw line. Freshman center Luke Nevill (7-1, 250) is third on the team in scoring (9.3 ppg) and leads the way in rebounding (6.1 rpg). Senior center Chris Jackson (6-11, 245) is fourth in scoring (7.8 ppg) while shooting a team-best 77.6 percent from the field, and ranks third in rebounding (3.8 rpg).

Take Note
? Utah is playing one redshirt freshman and four other newcomers. Through 17 games, 54.8 percent of the Utes' points, 48.9 percent of their rebounds, 52.8 percent of their assists, and 55.1 percent of their minutes played have come from the first-year players.

? Four different players have led the Utes in scoring this season, six in rebounding and seven in assists. Ten different players have earned at least one start. Utah also has 10 players averaging at least 10 minutes per game.

? The Utes are 8-1 when holding their opponents to 68 points or less this season and 0-8 when allowing 69 points or more.

Scouting The Horned Frogs
TCU is 5-15 overall and tied for seventh place in the Mountain West Conference with a 1-5 record. The Horned Frogs are 0-7 on opponents' courts and 0-9 away from home this season. TCU snapped a six-game losing streak with an 85-72 win over Colorado State last Saturday in Fort Worth, Texas, before losing 89-80 in overtime at BYU on Thursday night.

Senior guard Nile Murry (6-4, 202) ranks second in the MWC in scoring (16.8 ppg), seventh in three-point percentage (35.7), 17th in rebounding (4.7 rpg) and fourth in steals (2.05 spg). Sophomore guard Brent Hackett (6-3, 203) is tied for 19th in the conference in scoring (11.0 ppg), eighth in three-point percentage (35.0), 12th in assists (2.75 apg) and third in free throw percentage (81.1). Senior forward Judson Stubbs (6-7, 228) is ranked fifth in the league in rebounding (6.6 rpg) and 10th in free throw percentage (72.7).

TCU ranks ninth in the Mountain West Conference in scoring offense (63.2 ppg), seventh in scoring defense (68.8 ppg), eighth in rebound margin (-1.5 rpg) and eighth in assist/turnover ratio (0.75).

Comparing The Numbers

                Utah    TCURecord          8-9 5-15MWC Record  1-5 1-5Streak          Lost 5  Lost 1Scoring         64.4    68.8Scoring Defense 65.5    63.2FG%             .473    .358FG% Defense .451    .4443-Pt. FG%   .355    .3223-Pt. FG% Def.  .368    .363FT%             .633    .644Rebound Margin  +3.9    -1.5Assists         13.7    12.2Turnovers   16.2    16.3Opp. Turnovers  13.0    18.8Steals          5.9 8.5Blocked Shots   1.9 2.1

Head Coach Neil Dougherty
Neil Dougherty is in his fourth season at TCU with a record of 47-65. In 2004-05, Dougherty led TCU to a 21-14 record, the NIT quarterfinals and an eighth-place finish in Conference USA with an 8-8 record.

Dougherty took his first head coaching job at TCU after serving as an assistant coach at the University of Kansas from 1995-2002. During Dougherty's seven years on the Kansas staff, KU averaged nearly 30 victories per season and won four Big 12 Conference championships. The 2001-02 Jayhawks captured the NCAA Midwest Regional title and advanced to the Final Four where they were defeated by the eventual champion Maryland Terrapins.

Dougherty also worked as an assistant coach at Cameron University (1984-88), Drake (1988-89), Vanderbilt (1989-93) and South Carolina (1993-95). He earned his degree from Cameron University in 1984.

Utah vs. TCU Series Notes
? Utah and TCU meet for the eighth time on Saturday afternoon. The Runnin' Utes lead the all-time series 6-1. The series dates back to a 72-55 win by the U. on Dec. 14, 1953 in Salt Lake City.

? The Utes have won four in a row in the series. The last time they met, Utah defeated TCU, 89-68 on March 8, 1997 in the WAC Tournament championship game in Las Vegas.

? Utah has a 4-1 edge over TCU in games played in Salt Lake City and have won two in a row. The Horned Frogs' only win in the series came in Salt Lake City, 71-66, on Dec. 13, 1958.

? The Utes and Horned Frogs have met twice before as conference rivals during the regular season. As members of the 16-team WAC, Utah defeated TCU twice during the 1996-97 regular season. Utah won 81-77 on Jan. 18 in Fort Worth, Texas, and 94-91 on Feb. 15 in the Huntsman Center.

Take Notice Of Nevill
Redshirt freshman center Luke Nevill (7-1, 250) is averaging 9.3 points (third-best on the team) and 6.1 rebounds (best on the team) per game. He has scored in double figures eight times this season--including three conference games--and has a pair of double-doubles.

? Nevill had his second double-double against UNLV last Saturday night. He had 12 points (5-11 FG, 2-4 FT) and 10 rebounds in 31 minutes in his first career start.

? He had season highs of 19 points and 13 rebounds in 29 minutes during Utah's triple overtime loss to Rice on Dec. 3. Eight of Nevill's rebounds were on the offensive end, giving him his first double-double. After playing just 19 minutes and tallying six points and five rebounds in regulation, Nevill came up big in the overtime periods before fouling out in the third.

? Nevill had the second-highest scoring game of his career against BYU on Jan. 7. He had 14 points (5-12 FG, 4-7 FT), nine rebounds and a career-high three blocked shots in 30 minutes. He followed that performance with nine points (3-4 FG, 3-5 FT), three rebounds and two blocked shots in 21 minutes against San Diego State on Jan. 11.

? The native of Perth, Australia, lived in Marietta, Ga., and attended Kell High School as an exchange student in 2003-04. Nevill averaged 17.6 points, 8.9 rebounds, 3.7 blocked shots and 2.5 assists per game at Kell. He earned honorable mention all-state and second team all-region honors.

Take Note of These Utes
? Junior guard Ricky Johns (6-3, 190), a junior college transfer in his first season with the Utes, is averaging 5.5 points per game in Mountain West Conference play. While making his first start of the season against UNLV on Jan. 21, the Bronx, N.Y., native posted seven points (3-5 FG, 1-2 FT) in 27 minutes. Johns had a season-high 16 points (7-9, 1-1 3FG, 1-2 FT) in 18 minutes off the bench against High Point in Utah's final nonconference game on Dec. 28. He also had three rebounds, three assists and two steals.

? Sophomore guard Chris Grant (6-3, 200) has started the last seven games. He is averaging 3.2 assists per game in conference play to lead the Utes. He is also averaging 4.2 points and 3.3 rebounds per game in league games. Grant tied his career high with five assists (no turnovers) and had three points against San Diego State on Jan. 11. Against UNLV last Saturday night, Grant had a career-high eight points (2-4 FG, 1-1 3FG, 3-4 FT) as well as two rebounds and two steals in 22 minutes. Joining the team as a walk-on last season, Grant has eight starts in his two-year career.

Upcoming Events

Recent Results

Utah Men's Basketball Notes - Game #18

Game #18

Players Mentioned

Johnnie Bryant

Chris Grant

Chris Jackson

Ricky Johns

Bryant Markson

Luke Nevill

Completed Event: Men's Basketball versus No. 9-Seed Cincinnati (1st Round) on March 10, 2026 , Loss , 66, to, 73

Completed Event: Men's Basketball at Baylor on March 7, 2026 , Loss , 75, to, 101

Completed Event: Men's Basketball versus Colorado on March 3, 2026 , Loss , 78, to, 92

Completed Event: Men's Basketball at Arizona State on February 28, 2026 , Loss , 60, to, 73

Completed Event: Men's Basketball versus #4/5 Iowa State on February 24, 2026 , Loss , 59, to, 75

Completed Event: Men's Basketball versus UCF on February 21, 2026 , Loss , 71, to, 73

Completed Event: Men's Basketball at West Virginia on February 18, 2026 , Win , 61, to, 56

Completed Event: Men's Basketball at Cincinnati on February 15, 2026 , Loss , 65, to, 69

Completed Event: Men's Basketball versus #3/3 Houston on February 10, 2026 , Loss , 52, to, 66

The University of Utah Athletics

Utah Men's Basketball Notes - Game #18

Game #18

Related News

Players Mentioned

Johnnie Bryant

Chris Grant

Chris Jackson

Ricky Johns

Bryant Markson

Luke Nevill

Related Videos