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Saturday, December 14
Salt Lake City, UT
2:00 PM
University of Utah
8-2,0-0Pac-12
60
vs
49
Weber State
3-6,0-0Big Sky
1
2
F
Weber St.
25
24
49
Utah
31
29
60
Photo by: Rob Gray
Runnin' Utes Edge Weber State to Close Out Beehive Classic
12/14/2019 4:58 PM | Men's Basketball
Backed by 19 points from Timmy Allen, the Utah men’s basketball came away with a 60-49 win over Weber State Saturday.
SALT LAKE CITY – The University of Utah men's basketball team didn't have its cleanest game on the floor but effort and energy sustained the Runnin' Utes Saturday afternoon inside Vivint Smart Home Arena for the 60-49 win over Weber State to close out the Beehive Classic.
The opening minutes of the game didn't see either team find their rhythm as Utah trailed early, 12-6, and forced head coach Larry Krystkowiak to call a timeout with 13:12 left in the half.
However, Timmy Allen and Both Gach took over for the Runnin' Utes on offense and combined for 16-straight points – giving Utah the 19-18 edge at the 7:07 media break. After gaining momentum and the 31-20 lead, a couple turnovers saw Weber State cut into the lead at halftime, 31-25.
Utah (8-2) opened the second frame great offensively and jumped out to a 37-25 lead after a great defensive play from Jaxon Brenchley led to a nice two-handed jam by Branden Carlson. That 6-0 run to start the half forced the Wildcats to call a timeout 1:54 into the frame.
Carlson then gave the Utes a 46-30 lead, which was then the largest lead of the game, after connecting on 1-of-2 free throws before a bucket from Weber State's (3-6) Harding made it 46-32 at the 11:22 media break. Utah continued to hold a double-digit lead throughout the second half thanks to solid shooting from the free-throw line. The trend at the line continued late into the game for the Utes and saw them drain 15-of-19 by the time the buzzer sounded for the 60-49 victory.
Allen finished with a game-high 19 points, seven rebounds and four assists. Riley Battin posted nine points with a career-high 10 rebounds while Carlson chipped in with nine appoints and eight boards of his own. Mikael Jantunen nearly had his first-career double-double scoring nine points with a season-high nine rebounds on 4-of-5 shooting.
BY THE NUMBERS
With the win, Utah is now 27-14 overall against Weber State and 1-0 in neutral site games … the Utes wrap up the Beehive Classic 2-1 in its three-year existence with the win … head coach Larry Krystkowiak is now 4-3 all-time against the Wildcats with the win … Saturday was just the second time this season the Utes have not had the same starting five.
QUOTABLES
Head coach Larry Krystkowiak…
Coach K on how the game played out…
"Today we didn't shoot the ball very well, we were like 20% from three and a little over 40% from two, but I thought there was enough scrap. These in-state games, I think, come down to energy and we did a terrific job on the glass. Up until the last three or four minutes, we did a really good job of taking care of the ball. We had a stretch of 12 minutes in the second half where we didn't turn it over and then we didn't know quite well how to close it out. Our defensive transition was atrocious giving up layups but it was a big win for us and I'm proud of our guys."
Coach K on the team and how they played despite not having their point guard (Jones) playing…
"We didn't go deep into the bench. Both was out there and I thought fatigue came into play a little at times where we had break-downs on offensive execution where we didn't run properly and at the point of attack I thought we broke down too many times in transition and guarding the ball. It is a game of mistakes and I thought overall there was some really good stretches. We had a great 5-6 minutes stretch in the first half and a really good 10-minute stretch in the second half and that's it. I'm proud of our guys because they didn't shoot the ball well and a lot of times when you don't shoot the ball well you take that garbage with you to the defensive end and then you aren't able to get stops."
Coach K on slowing down Harding, Weber State's top player…
"It was a collective effort. Both did a really nice job on him at times, Alfonso did a nice job and whenever there was pick and roll coverage we corralled him so there was two guys on him. It was a collective effort for him and he's certainly the head of their snake, and I thought we did a great job for the most part. It was a good learning experience but I was really proud of our team, collectively, for stopping him."
UP NEXT
The Utes now hit the road for their second of three neutral site games and face No. 8/9 Kentucky on Wednesday, Dec. 18, on ESPN2 at 9 p.m. (MT) as part of the Neon Hoops Showcase to benefit the Coaches vs. Cancer initiative inside T-Mobile Arena.
The opening minutes of the game didn't see either team find their rhythm as Utah trailed early, 12-6, and forced head coach Larry Krystkowiak to call a timeout with 13:12 left in the half.
.@TutBoth with steal and 2-handed flush! Timeout Weber State.
— Utah Basketball?? (@UtahMBB) December 14, 2019
?? 15 | ??13#GoUtes???? pic.twitter.com/l3TfZQS2EP
However, Timmy Allen and Both Gach took over for the Runnin' Utes on offense and combined for 16-straight points – giving Utah the 19-18 edge at the 7:07 media break. After gaining momentum and the 31-20 lead, a couple turnovers saw Weber State cut into the lead at halftime, 31-25.
Utah (8-2) opened the second frame great offensively and jumped out to a 37-25 lead after a great defensive play from Jaxon Brenchley led to a nice two-handed jam by Branden Carlson. That 6-0 run to start the half forced the Wildcats to call a timeout 1:54 into the frame.
.@JBrench23 DEFENSE ?? @ballerbranden35 JAM!!
— Utah Basketball?? (@UtahMBB) December 14, 2019
?? 37 | ??25#GoUtes???? pic.twitter.com/NVbG5Wko8C
Carlson then gave the Utes a 46-30 lead, which was then the largest lead of the game, after connecting on 1-of-2 free throws before a bucket from Weber State's (3-6) Harding made it 46-32 at the 11:22 media break. Utah continued to hold a double-digit lead throughout the second half thanks to solid shooting from the free-throw line. The trend at the line continued late into the game for the Utes and saw them drain 15-of-19 by the time the buzzer sounded for the 60-49 victory.
Allen finished with a game-high 19 points, seven rebounds and four assists. Riley Battin posted nine points with a career-high 10 rebounds while Carlson chipped in with nine appoints and eight boards of his own. Mikael Jantunen nearly had his first-career double-double scoring nine points with a season-high nine rebounds on 4-of-5 shooting.
BY THE NUMBERS
With the win, Utah is now 27-14 overall against Weber State and 1-0 in neutral site games … the Utes wrap up the Beehive Classic 2-1 in its three-year existence with the win … head coach Larry Krystkowiak is now 4-3 all-time against the Wildcats with the win … Saturday was just the second time this season the Utes have not had the same starting five.
QUOTABLES
Head coach Larry Krystkowiak…
Coach K on how the game played out…
"Today we didn't shoot the ball very well, we were like 20% from three and a little over 40% from two, but I thought there was enough scrap. These in-state games, I think, come down to energy and we did a terrific job on the glass. Up until the last three or four minutes, we did a really good job of taking care of the ball. We had a stretch of 12 minutes in the second half where we didn't turn it over and then we didn't know quite well how to close it out. Our defensive transition was atrocious giving up layups but it was a big win for us and I'm proud of our guys."
Coach K on the team and how they played despite not having their point guard (Jones) playing…
"We didn't go deep into the bench. Both was out there and I thought fatigue came into play a little at times where we had break-downs on offensive execution where we didn't run properly and at the point of attack I thought we broke down too many times in transition and guarding the ball. It is a game of mistakes and I thought overall there was some really good stretches. We had a great 5-6 minutes stretch in the first half and a really good 10-minute stretch in the second half and that's it. I'm proud of our guys because they didn't shoot the ball well and a lot of times when you don't shoot the ball well you take that garbage with you to the defensive end and then you aren't able to get stops."
Coach K on slowing down Harding, Weber State's top player…
"It was a collective effort. Both did a really nice job on him at times, Alfonso did a nice job and whenever there was pick and roll coverage we corralled him so there was two guys on him. It was a collective effort for him and he's certainly the head of their snake, and I thought we did a great job for the most part. It was a good learning experience but I was really proud of our team, collectively, for stopping him."
UP NEXT
The Utes now hit the road for their second of three neutral site games and face No. 8/9 Kentucky on Wednesday, Dec. 18, on ESPN2 at 9 p.m. (MT) as part of the Neon Hoops Showcase to benefit the Coaches vs. Cancer initiative inside T-Mobile Arena.
Don't miss #8 @KentuckyMBB vs. @UtahMBB on Wednesday, Dec. 18 in Las Vegas!
— #NeonHoops (@NeonHoopsLV) December 9, 2019
?? Wednesday, Dec. 18 at 8 p.m. PT
?? @TMobileArena in Las Vegas
??? https://t.co/UekXwYZugy
?? Presented by @UK_HealthCare pic.twitter.com/mEhHV1aY1v
###
Team Stats
Weber
Utah
FG%
.333
.345
3FG%
.222
.200
FT%
.538
.789
RB
34
47
TO
9
12
STL
7
4
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
19
FGM
6
3FGM
0
FTM
7
Pts
9
FGM
4
3FGM
1
FTM
0
Pts
9
FGM
2
3FGM
0
FTM
5
Pts
9
FGM
3
3FGM
0
FTM
3
Players Mentioned
F
/ Men's BasketballF
/ Men's Basketball
G
/ Men's BasketballC
/ Men's Basketball
F
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