Runnin' Utes Battle Washington on Alumni Night

Saturday, January 21

Salt Lake City, UT

6:00 PM

University of Utah

Washington

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Photo by: Hunter Dyke/Utah Athletics

1/20/2023 5:23 PM | Men's Basketball

Utah Game Notes Washington Game Notes Pac-12 Statistics

Utah battles Washington on alumni night as they welcome home former Runnin’ Utes Saturday night.

SALT LAKE CITY – The Utah men's basketball team plays host to Washington as it vies for second place in the Pac-12 standings as we hit the halfway point through league play this Saturday, Jan. 21. The Utah basketball program will also be welcoming home several former Runnin' Utes home as it hosts alumni night inside the Jon M. Huntsman Center.

JB Long will have the call between the Runnin' Utes and Huskies while Don MacLean serves as the analyst in the 20th meeting all-time between Utah and Washington in Pac-12 play.

WELCOME HOME
The Utah athletics department will be welcoming home Runnin' Utes from several decades on Saturday, Jan. 21, for its alumni game. The former Utes will be recognized at halftime by decade on the very same court they started their collegiate career on.

FIRST OF HIS NAME AND LAST OF HIS KIND
The Utah athletics department will also be honor Herb Wilkinson, the lone surviving member of the 1944 NCAA Championship team at halftime on Saturday. Wilkinson scored seven points going 3-of-14 from the field and 1-of-4 from the line in the National Championship game against Dartmouth.

SUITS AND SNEAKERS
The Utah men's basketball program has paired with the Huntsman Cancer Institute with a fundraising goal of $5,000 as part the annual #SuitsAndSneakers initiative with Coaches vs. Cancer and the NABC. With the Runnin' Utes hitting the road next week, the program got a head start on the campaign this week at home.

To join the Runnin' Utes program in the fight against cancer, fans can donate here.

ODDS & ENDS
Per the Stats Train, Greg Mroz, from the Pac-12 Research Department…

This is the fourth time Utah has opened Pac-12 play 6-3 or better
The 6-3 record is the best 9-game start to Pac-12 play since 2016-17
Utah is 7-0 this season when shooting at least 47-percent from the field
The 57.1-percent in the first half was the second-best FG% in the first half this season and best FG% in the first half at home this season
Thursday's 55.4-percent shooting vs. WSU is the second-best shooting clip in league play this year – Utes shot 57.5-percent at Stanford
Utah is 7-1 when Gabe Madsen makes three or more 3-pointers this season
The 21 first-half points for Branden Carlson vs. WSU was the second time he's done that

BC ELEVATES
Utah center Branden Carlson continues to have a great senior season, breaking his career-high for the third time this season with 28 points and eight rebounds against Washington State at home. Not only did Carlson record a new career-high, he did so knocking down 11-of-12 from the field – including 3-of-4 from beyond the arc.

The South Jordan native became the first Runnin' Ute since Britton Johnsen vs. Colorado State on Feb. 2, 2002, to score at least 28 points and shooting over 90-percent from the field.

Through nine Pac-12 games, Carlson is averaging 18 points (3rd), 7.1 rebounds (9th) and 1.63 blocks (6th) with a .656 shooting clip (6th) – which ranks top-10 in the Pac-12.

ROLLING WITH ROLLIE
Utah floor general Rollie Worster has had a solid junior season, dishing out 4.75 assists through nine Pac-12 games – which ranks fifth in the league. Meanwhile, he leads the Pac-12 with a 2.86 assist to turnover ratio. The Missoula, Mont., product is also third in the Pac-12 in free-throw percentage (.905) and seventh in defensive rebounds (5.0).

Worster is just 1-of-7 players in the Pac-12 to dish out 10 or more dimes in a single game and his 10 assists against UTSA is just 1-of-11 instances this year a Pac-12 player has recorded double-digit dimes in a game.

LAST TIME OUT
The Utes found their rhythm once again on the offensive end and shot 55.4-percent from the field against Washington State at home to get back in the win column and snap its three-game skid. Branden Carlson led the Utes with a career-high 28 points on a near perfect night shooting 11-of-12 from the field with eight rebounds. Rollie Worster added 14 points, four rebounds and seven assists while Gabe Madsen chipped in with 12 points on 4-of-8 shooting from 3-point range. Lazar Stefanovic was just a point shy, scoring nine points on four rebounds and three assists.

UP NEXT
Utah hits the road next week as it travels to the PNW to face the Oregon school to close out the season series against Oregon State (Jan. 26) and Oregon (Jan. 28). JB Long will once again have the call between the Utes and Beavers while Eldridge Recasner serves as the analyst. The Utes and Ducks will then have Ted Robinson and Bill Walton on the call in their game that Saturday. Both games are schedule to broadcast on Pac-12 Networks.

LOOKING AHEAD
The Utes will return home after its PNW trip and begin their three-game homestand, starting with Stanford on Thursday, Feb. 2, before welcoming in California on Sunday, Feb. 5, before closing things out with Colorado on Saturday, Feb. 11.

For the latest news and information on the Runnin' Utes men's basketball program, fans can stay connected online at www.UtahUtes.com and on social media by following @UtahMBB on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

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