Runnin' Utes Struggle Against Texas Tech in Big 12 Home-Opener

Saturday, January 4

Salt Lake City, UT

5:00 PM

University of Utah

8-5,0-2Big 12

Texas Tech

10-3,1-1Big 12

Texas Tech

Utah

Photo by: Sophia Kuder/Utah Athletics

Runnin' Utes Struggle Against Texas Tech in Big 12 Home-Opener

1/4/2025 8:32 PM | Men's Basketball

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Utah basketball couldn’t contain #RV/RV Texas Tech Saturday night at home in 93-65 loss.

SALT LAKE CITY – The Utah men's basketball team couldn't contain #RV/RV Texas Tech Saturday night in its Big 12 Conference home-opener, falling to the Red Raiders 93-65 inside the Jon M. Huntsman Center

After Texas Tech started the game hitting 7-of-10 from the field, a Utah timeout at 14:37 down 17-7 proved fruitful for the home team. Utah would then go on a 12-6 run to bring them within 23-19 of the Red Raiders behind a 5-for-5 effort from the floor.

Utah (8-5, 0-2 Big 12) would continue to play well on both sides of the ball, cutting the Texas Tech lead down to 30-29 at the 6:33 mark after Miro Little drained a 3-pointer free-throw line extended. However, things flipped after the media break with Utah hitting just 3-of-10 from the field in those remaining minutes while TTU converted 7-of-11 from the field as the Utes headed into the locker room down 47-36.

The Red Raiders (10-3, 1-1 Big 12) kept the Runnin' Utes on their heels the entire second half, outscoring Utah 46-29 while shooting .556 from the field while the Utes struggled shooting just .280 from the floor.

Zach Keller led the team with a new career-high 12 points on 6-of-7 shooting with 2 rebounds and an assist. Keanu Dawes also added 11 points off the bench for Utah, knocking down 6-of-8 from the free-throw line with 5 rebounds. Jake Wahlin rounded out the list of double-digit scorers for Utah with a new career-high as well, scoring 10 points and 3 boards.

POSTGAME NOTES

The all-time record between Utah and Texas Tech is now tied at 4-4 after the loss and 1-1 inside the Jon M. Huntsman Center
Utah moves to 18-8 since the turn of the century in its conference home-opening games
Zach Keller (12) and Jake Wahlin (10) both had career-high nights on offense
Caleb Lohner made his first-career start as a Runnin' Ute on Saturday, scoring a season-high 9 points with 4 rebounds
Mike Sharavjamts returned to the starting line-up vs. Texas Tech, scoring 8 points with 4 rebounds and 5 assists

UP NEXT
The Runnin' Utes hit the road once again and will get their second crack at a ranked opponent, this time against #3/3 Iowa State – who have now nine-straight with its recent victory over #25/21 Baylor at home. Shawn Kenney and former Hawkeye Jess Settles will guide fans through the action on Tuesday, Jan. 7, inside Hilton Coliseum on ESPN+ as the Runnin' Utes look to knock off a top-3 AP ranked opponent for the first time since defeating Alabama at home, 51-49, on Dec. 30, 2002.

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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