Despite losing its last two games at the Charleston Classic, Utah believes it found enough things to build on as it starts its next stretch of nonconference play.
The Utes aim to get back into the win column Monday night with a trip to Moraga, Calif., for a matchup with a Saint Mary’s team looking to find itself.
Utah (3-2) hasn’t played since a 91-82 loss to St. John’s in the third-place game on Nov. 19. The Utes had trouble at the defensive end, allowing the Red Storm to hit 53 percent from the field and make 13 of 26 3-point attempts.
That wasted a good individual showing by Branden Carlson, who scored 22 points and grabbed eight rebounds to earn all-tournament honors. The 7-footer is averaging 19.4 points and 6.2 rebounds per game, combining with guard Gabe Madsen (14.2 ppg, 5.4 rebounds) to form one of the top inside-outside duos in the Pac-12 Conference.
“It’s a long, grinding season,” said Utah coach Craig Smith. “The key is, you’ve got to be open to coaching and receptive and keep pushing it forward.”
Meanwhile, the Gaels (3-3) have gone from being ranked No. 23 when the season started to a team that just got back to the .500 mark Friday with an 89-55 blowout win at home against Davidson.
Saint Mary’s lost three straight after a 2-0 start, getting upset by Weber State and then suffering one-sided defeats to San Diego State and Xavier at a tournament in Las Vegas. But it looked more like itself in the rout of Davidson as four players scored in double figures, led by 23 points from Alex Ducas, who canned 7 of 11 3-pointers.
There was a question if Ducas would return after averaging 12.5 ppg and hitting 41.4 percent of his 3-pointers last season.
“He was our biggest recruit at the end of last year,” said Gaels coach Randy Bennett. “That kept us out of the portal.”
Utah leads the series 15-3. The Utes won the most recent meeting, 67-58 in overtime on March 21, 2018 in the NIT quarterfinals at Moraga.
–Field Level Media
