Will Runnin’ Utes build some momentum off a big win at Saint Mary’s?
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About this time a year ago, the University of Utah pulled off a 81-66 upset of then-No. 4 Arizona to kick off December and Pac-12 play.
While that led directly to three more victories in a row, including an overtime win at Washington State three days later, ultimately the Runnin’ Utes weren’t able to capitalize off that Quad 1 win to break their NCAA Tournament drought.
Instead, Utah eventually struggled down the stretch in a 17-15 season.
This time around, the Utes are hoping to build more long-term success off a similar result — though head coach Craig Smith is conscious of pointing out, it’s a long season and factors out of the team’s control — like injuries last season — can change the outlook in a blink.
On Monday, the Utes beat Saint Mary’s 78-71 in Moraga, California. It is Utah’s first true road win in nonconference play in four seasons, and that win has created some positive buzz about what Smith has built in his third season as Utah’s coach.
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After the teams went into halftime tied at 38-38, Utah got stops on 11 of the Gaels’ first 12 possessions of the second half — that set the tone for the eventual victory.
“Our guys just responded. You could look them in the eye and see (it), you could feel it tonight. We just had a really good look,” Smith said after the win.
“Hopefully it’s a sign of what’s to come. We knew we had to take a step forward tonight.”
Saint Mary’s turned the ball over three times on its first 12 possessions of the second half and Utah only allowed two offensive rebounds in that stretch — the Utes held one of the nation’s best offensive rebounding teams to 11 in the game, five fewer than their average.
That led to Saint Mary’s owning only a slight edge, 10-9, in second-chance points.
“For the most part, we were able to keep them to one shot and out in the second half,” Smith said.
During the victory over the Gaels, sophomore big Keba Keita returned for the Utes after missing the previous two games with an undisclosed injury.
While his stat line wasn’t flashy — he had four points, six rebounds, one assist, one steal and one blocked shot — Keita’s energy could be felt on both ends of the floor.
Early in the second half, Keita had offensive rebounds on back-to-back possessions, and both led to points in pushing Utah’s lead from one to five points. Moments later, he blocked a layup attempt.
The Utes also kept Saint Mary’s center Mitchell Saxen in check offensively — the double-digit scorer put up five points against Utah, on 2 of 7 shooting.
“Post defense really matters, I don’t care what level you’re at,” Smith said, during his Wednesday press availability. “We have a myriad of ways we defend in the post, whether it’s one-on-one or bringing doubles from different ways. That was a big key in the game, where we didn’t have to bring doubles to stop (Saxen).
“That’s been a strength of ours all year, we have great size and physicality, specifically on our front line.”
Prior to the win at Saint Mary’s, Utah (4-2) had lost two straight games to end the Charleston Classic — one to top 10 Houston, the another against a Rick Pitino-led St. John’s program.
The win over Saint Mary’s, though, could end up as a Quad 1 victory on Utah’s NCAA resume, if the Gaels can shake off a 3-4 start to the season. Saint Mary’s was picked to win the West Coast Conference, over Gonzaga, in the league’s preseason poll.
“Those games make you better, and those games helped us win this game,” Smith said Monday, of the Utes’ experience at the Charleston Classic, which also included a 77-70 win over Wake Forest.
“You find out a lot about yourself when you have to look in the mirror and find out what kind of guts you’ve got. ... Credit our guys. We had a spirited week of practice. Those first two practices after Charleston were difficult, and our guys responded in a great way and we grew as a team tonight.”
Utes on the air
Utah (4-2)
vs. Hawaii (5-0)
Thursday, 7 p.m. MST
Delta Center (capacity: 18,306)
TV: Pac-12 Network
Radio: 700 AM
Next up is an unbeaten Hawaii squad — the Utes and Rainbow Warriors (5-0) will play Thursday at 7 p.m. MST at the Delta Center, with the game being broadcast on Pac-12 Network.
Hawaii most recently competed in the Acrisure Invitational in Palm Springs, California, beating UT Rio Grande Valley and San Diego by an average of 15 points.
The Rainbow Warriors are led by veteran guards Noel Coleman (16.4 points, 3.6 rebounds per game) and JoVon McClanahan (11.2 ppg, 4.0 assists per game), as well as grad transfer forward Justin McKoy (12.4 ppg, 8.6 rpg). McKoy previously played in ACC territory at Virginia and North Carolina.
“They play hard, they’re aggressive. They shoot the 3 well. They’re very balanced, and they can score it at all three levels,” Smith said of the Rainbow Warriors. “They put a lot of pressure on you defensively.”
Utah’s coach also sees some similarities between Hawaii and Saint Mary’s, which makes sense, considering the Rainbow Warriors’ head coach, Eran Ganot, was previously an assistant for the Gaels under Randy Bennett.
“They do a good job running you off the 3, nothing’s easy on that end of the floor. They really make you work to get an easy basket,” Smith said.
Including that neutral-site visit to the Delta Center, Utah will stay in-state for through the rest of the calendar year — following the Hawaii matchup, the Utes’ next six games will be at the Huntsman Center.
That includes hosting No. 19 BYU on Dec. 9 and Utah’s first two Pac-12 games of the season against Washington State (Dec. 29) and Washington (Dec. 31).
“Hopefully we can gain some momentum as we head into conference play,” Smith said, while adding, “It’s a different vibe, though, when you only play 11 nonconference games, it’s kind of a different feel.
“On the flip side of that, you can garner some real practice time.”
No updates on two sidelined Utes
Smith talked about two Utes who have yet to play this season, though for different reasons.
Sophomore guard Wilgeuns Jr. Exacte has missed the team’s first six games due to injury, while transfer guard Deivon Smith is still waiting to hear whether he’ll receive a waiver from the NCAA to play this season, as a two-time transfer.
Craig Smith, when asked by KSL’s Josh Furlong, said it’s “very undetermined” when Exacte might be back, adding he’s missed time due to two different injuries — one that forced him to miss the first game, he practiced before the team’s second game, then he suffered another injury.
“He’s had some things done, and we’ve got to see how he responds,” the coach said. “We’re really just taking it day-by-day, see where we’re at. He’s doing everything he possibly can. No one is more frustrated about it than Wil.”
Deivon Smith, meanwhile, is in wait-and-see mode whether he’ll be eligible to play — he started his college career at Mississippi State, then played the last two years at Georgia Tech before transferring again, this time to Utah.
As a non-graduate transfer, he must receive a waiver to play — otherwise, he’ll be forced to use a redshirt year.
This all comes as news trickles out about other college basketball players receiving news about their waiver requests.
“I know what the process is, I just don’t know the timetable. That’s the hard part,” Craig Smith said. “I think we’re getting closer to that time, I just don’t have any specifics for you. I do anticipate finding something out here very soon, but I don’t have first-(hand) knowledge on knowing that.”
