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Men's Basketball
at Washington
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The University of Utah Athletics
Thursday, November 16
Charleston, SC
7:00 PM
University of Utah
3-0,0-0Pac-12
77
vs
70
Wake Forest
1-2,0-0ACC
1
2
F
Utah
31
46
77
Wake Forest
41
29
70
Team Stats
Utah
WF
FG%
.500
.467
3FG%
.400
.385
FT%
.600
.667
RB
38
27
TO
11
9
STL
6
5
Game Leaders
Pts
31
FGM
12
3FGM
4
FTM
3
Pts
11
FGM
4
3FGM
2
FTM
1
Pts
10
FGM
4
3FGM
1
FTM
1
Pts
9
FGM
3
3FGM
0
FTM
3
Players Mentioned
G
/ Men's Basketball
F
/ Men's BasketballC
/ Men's Basketball
G
/ Men's BasketballC
/ Men's Basketball
G
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's BasketballPhoto Credit: Omar Torrest/Utah Athletics
Carlson's Career-High Propels Utah Past Wake Forest in Charleston Classic Opener
11/16/2023 11:02 PM | Men's Basketball
CHARLESTON, S.C. – A 20-point second-half eruption from Branden Carlson led to a career-high 31 points to carry the Utah men's basketball team past the Wake Forest Demon Deacons in the opening round of the Charleston Classic Thursday night inside TD Arena.
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Per the Stat Train, Br. Carlson became just the fifth player in the Pac-12 Era to score at least 30 points and shoot 60-percent from the floor.
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Wake Forest (1-2) drew first blood with two quick baskets before Lawson Lovering broke the seal for Utah with a two-handed jam from Rollie Worster. Cole Bajema got things going offensively for Utah, knocking down back-to-back baskets to start a 10-2 run for the 12-9 edge but a pair of threes from the Deacs put them back on top 15-14 at the 11:36 media break.
Br. Carlson then made his presence felt in the post to give the Runnin' Utes (3-0) an 18-15 edge out of the break. However, that lead was short-lived with Wake Forest going on an 8-0 run. The South Jordan native kept Utah within striking distance of the Deacs, scoring nine-straight points followed by a huge three from Lovering, but a 14-4 edge in points off turnovers for Wake Forest sent the Utes into the locker room down 41-31.
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The Runnin' Utes came out of the locker room with a little more poise and played off its defense to outscore the Demon Deacons 17-11 early on in the second frame. The steady hand of Worster and Br. Carlson cut Utah's deficit back into the single-digits but it was the slip and one-handed jam from Ben Carlson that forced a Wake Forest timeout at the 15:02 mark to bring Utah within 49-46.
Br. Carlson continued to anchor the Utes on both ends of the floor, swatting away four Wake Forest shots in the first eight minutes of the second-half while scoring nine of Utah's 21 points at the 11:48 media break down 54-52.
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The game from that point on stayed at-best a two-possession contest, but it was second-chance effort and team basketball that helped the Runnin' Utes tie things up with 6:58 to go when Hunter Erickson found Lovering on the dive for the and-1 (60-60).
A huge three on the ensuing possession from Br. Carlson followed by a huge dunk forced yet another Wake Forest timeout – this time with Utah on top 65-60 with 5:33 left to play. The Demon Deacons would cut it down to a one-possession game two more times, but Utah answered each time to push it back to a two-possession lead before sealing the 77-70 victory.
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Bajema and Lovering were the only other Utes in double-figures in the win 11 and 10 points apiece. Worster once again flirted with a triple-double, scoring 9 points with 5 rebounds and 9 assists.
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BY THE NUMBERS
With the win, Utah is now 3-0 in its opening game at an MTE in the Craig Smith Era … Smith is also now 3-1 vs. ACC teams all-time as a head coach with wins over Boston College (2021), Georgia Tech (2022) and now Wake Forest (2023) … the Utes are now 19-25 all-time against ACC teams … Branden Carlson is the first Ute this season to knock down 10-plus field-goals in a game since Mike Saunders Jr. last season (2/23/23) … last time a Runnin' Ute had 30-plus points was Alfonso Plummer (35) against Oregon State in the opening round of the Pac-12 Tournament … Utah has now dished out 22 assists in back-to-back games … Utah outscored Wake Forest 46-29 in the second half.
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UP NEXT
With the win over Wake Forest, the Runnin' Utes will now play No. 6/6 Houston on Friday, Nov. 17, at 2:30 p.m. (MT) / 4:30 p.m. (ET) on ESPN2 with Jay Alter and Debbie Antonelli once again on the call. Â
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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, X and Instagram.
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Per the Stat Train, Br. Carlson became just the fifth player in the Pac-12 Era to score at least 30 points and shoot 60-percent from the floor.
Â
Wake Forest (1-2) drew first blood with two quick baskets before Lawson Lovering broke the seal for Utah with a two-handed jam from Rollie Worster. Cole Bajema got things going offensively for Utah, knocking down back-to-back baskets to start a 10-2 run for the 12-9 edge but a pair of threes from the Deacs put them back on top 15-14 at the 11:36 media break.
Â??????@lawson_lovering ?? @ballerbranden35 pic.twitter.com/EpkL4Cawe8
— Utah Basketball (@UtahMBB) November 17, 2023
Br. Carlson then made his presence felt in the post to give the Runnin' Utes (3-0) an 18-15 edge out of the break. However, that lead was short-lived with Wake Forest going on an 8-0 run. The South Jordan native kept Utah within striking distance of the Deacs, scoring nine-straight points followed by a huge three from Lovering, but a 14-4 edge in points off turnovers for Wake Forest sent the Utes into the locker room down 41-31.
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The Runnin' Utes came out of the locker room with a little more poise and played off its defense to outscore the Demon Deacons 17-11 early on in the second frame. The steady hand of Worster and Br. Carlson cut Utah's deficit back into the single-digits but it was the slip and one-handed jam from Ben Carlson that forced a Wake Forest timeout at the 15:02 mark to bring Utah within 49-46.
ÂWATCH YA HEAD!! - @ben_carlson20 pic.twitter.com/Zp08GkU4Vt
— Utah Basketball (@UtahMBB) November 17, 2023
Br. Carlson continued to anchor the Utes on both ends of the floor, swatting away four Wake Forest shots in the first eight minutes of the second-half while scoring nine of Utah's 21 points at the 11:48 media break down 54-52.
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The game from that point on stayed at-best a two-possession contest, but it was second-chance effort and team basketball that helped the Runnin' Utes tie things up with 6:58 to go when Hunter Erickson found Lovering on the dive for the and-1 (60-60).
ÂThat's a NEW career-high for @ballerbranden35 and extends our lead to 75-70 with 17.3 seconds to go! pic.twitter.com/51n0gNUuAA
— Utah Basketball (@UtahMBB) November 17, 2023
A huge three on the ensuing possession from Br. Carlson followed by a huge dunk forced yet another Wake Forest timeout – this time with Utah on top 65-60 with 5:33 left to play. The Demon Deacons would cut it down to a one-possession game two more times, but Utah answered each time to push it back to a two-possession lead before sealing the 77-70 victory.
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Bajema and Lovering were the only other Utes in double-figures in the win 11 and 10 points apiece. Worster once again flirted with a triple-double, scoring 9 points with 5 rebounds and 9 assists.
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BY THE NUMBERS
With the win, Utah is now 3-0 in its opening game at an MTE in the Craig Smith Era … Smith is also now 3-1 vs. ACC teams all-time as a head coach with wins over Boston College (2021), Georgia Tech (2022) and now Wake Forest (2023) … the Utes are now 19-25 all-time against ACC teams … Branden Carlson is the first Ute this season to knock down 10-plus field-goals in a game since Mike Saunders Jr. last season (2/23/23) … last time a Runnin' Ute had 30-plus points was Alfonso Plummer (35) against Oregon State in the opening round of the Pac-12 Tournament … Utah has now dished out 22 assists in back-to-back games … Utah outscored Wake Forest 46-29 in the second half.
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UP NEXT
With the win over Wake Forest, the Runnin' Utes will now play No. 6/6 Houston on Friday, Nov. 17, at 2:30 p.m. (MT) / 4:30 p.m. (ET) on ESPN2 with Jay Alter and Debbie Antonelli once again on the call. Â
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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, X and Instagram.
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