SALT LAKE CITY – The Utah men's basketball team returned to the win column on Saturday inside the Jon M. Huntsman Center behind an 81-63 victory over Radford.
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After a quick back-and-forth to start the game, the Runnin' Utes offense woke up and reeled off a 16-2 run behind four 3-pointers to force a Radford timeout with 12:19 on the clock and Utah (7-2) on top 22-7. However, the Highlanders slowly cut into the Utah lead that culminated in a 12-1 run to get within 27-24 with 6:51 left in the first half.
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Things settled down before Utah closed out the final 3:31 minutes of action to hold a 40-31 edge heading into the locker room.
Hunter Erickson was electric off the bench for Utah in the first frame, scoring 11 points behind 3-of-3 shooting from deep.
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Utah opened the second frame with a 13-5 run to force yet another Radford (9-3) timeout, this time at the 16:01 mark. The Highlanders would get as close as 57-46 with 10:21 left to play after an 8-0 run but the Runnin' Utes would answer right back with a 14-4 spurt of their own to push the lead as high as 20 two times before settling for the 81-63 victory.
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Outside of Erickson's game-high 18 points,
Gabe Madsen also pitched in with 15 points to go with a career-high 7 assists and 5 rebounds.
Lawson Lovering had a solid night for the Utes as well, posting 12 points on 6-of-8 shooting with 4 rebounds, 3 assists, 4 blocks and 3 steals.
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POSTGAME NOTES
- Hunter Erickson had Division I career-high 18 points on 5-of-7 shooting – including 4-of-6 from the arc
- Gabe Madsen dished out a career-high 7 assists while pulling down a season-high 5 rebounds
- Lawson Lovering tied a career-high with 3 steals while denying a season-high 4 blocks – which ties Jake Wahlin (Central Arkansas) for most by an individual this season
- Utah is now 7-1 this season when scoring first
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UP NEXT
Utah wraps up its six-game homestand next Tuesday, Dec. 17, when it plays host to Florida A&M inside the Jon M. Huntsman Center. Chris Sylvester and former Runnin' Utes assistant coach Joe Cravens will once again have the call on
ESPN+ as Utah looks to go undefeated against the SWAC this season.
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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. Fans can also stay connected on their mobile devices or tablets with the Utah 360, the official app of Utah Athletics, through the
Apple Store or
Google Play.
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