ASU Basketball: 2019 Pac-12 Week 5 Power Rankings
By Trevor Booth
11. Utah Utes (4-3) Last Week: 10
The start to the 2018-19 season has been rather tumultuous for Utah. After their first six games, the Utes sat at .500 with a dismal 3-3 record.
Two of those first three losses came at the hands of Big Ten opponents — Minnesota and Northwestern. While neither have stood out in the early part of the season, both are decent squads and somewhat respectable losses for the Utes.
However, Utah’s other loss is near inexcusable. The Utes fell 90-79 to a mid-major Hawaii team in the Wooden Legacy Classic.
Since the Utes’ last defeat — a 79-57 loss to Northwestern — they have only played one game, eclipsing the .500 mark with a win over Tulsa.
But it wasn’t pretty.
At the half, Utah scored just 23 points and shot 35 percent from the field. Luckily for the Utes, Tulsa also struggled offensively, scoring just 17 points through 20 minutes.
It wasn’t until the second half that both teams turned on the jets. Despite being outscored 47-46 in the final 20 minutes of the game, Utah defeated the Golden Hurricane 69-64.
Sedrick Barefield and Both Gach led the Utes in scoring with 15 points apiece.
Strong defense is what saved Utah against Tulsa. In the first half, Tulsa shot just 26 percent from the field, a testament to Utah’s stingy performance on the defensive end.
Before wrapping up the non-conference season, Utah faces two tough opponents.
First, the Utes host BYU in the Holy War. Then, they travel to Lexington for a test against the No. 9 Kentucky Wildcats.
Some Pac-12 schools opted for easier non-conference schedules — not Utah. In the long run, this could better prepare the Utes for the conference season.