Estimated read time: 5-6 minutes
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
SALT LAKE CITY — Senior center Jason Washburn caught a pass from freshman forward Jordan Loveridge deep in the paint, where he rose up and put the ball gently into the hoop.
The points, which put the Runnin' Utes up 12-6 in the early going against Oregon State, marked Washburn's 1,000th as a Ute, making him the 35th Utah player to reach the milestone.
"Loveridge found me and I hit that shot and the way the crowd went off with all the signs, I couldn’t help but crack just a little smile," Washburn said. "It was early in the game, so I was still trying to stay focused."
Washburn stayed focused all right, going on to score 13 more points with eight rebounds and three blocks as the Utes took care of Oregon State, 72-61, at the Jon M. Huntsman Center.
It's a real humbling thing to be honest. What is even sweeter is that it came on a good night for the Utah basketball program. It is a sweet, sweet feeling. It was meant to be at home. I had a lot of family in town that got to witness it firsthand and be a part of it. The crowd was amazing, I can't thank our fans enough.
–Jason Washburn
"It's a real humbling thing to be honest," said Washburn. "What is even sweeter is that it came on a good night for the Utah basketball program. It is a sweet, sweet feeling. It was meant to be at home. I had a lot of family in town that got to witness it firsthand and be a part of it. The crowd was amazing, I can’t thank our fans enough."
Washburn was quick to defer credit for the win to his teammates, namely Loveridge's 17-point, 12-rebound, three-assist performance.
"As far as the overall game goes, I actually think Jordan Loveridge is the player of the game," Washburn said. "The guy was a monster tonight, his stat line is crazy. He had a tough assignment guarding Burton and then guarding Moreland for most of the game, two guys who are very skilled and can do a lot of things. He took it, and a lot of times, put us on his back."
Loveridge's double-double outing was his fourth of the season, but just his first during Pac-12 play.
"Going into games, I never know how many shots I am going to make or how many points I am going to score," Loveridge said. "But what I can control is my effort on the boards and defense. We just came out and defended."
Senior guard Jarred DuBois scored 15 points with six assists and four rebounds, while freshman guard Brandon Taylor contributed 12 points and three dimes.
"It feels really good," Taylor said of the win. "We came out with the energy that we needed. We just went out there and played hard. We freed our minds up and just got it going."
Utah got ahead by seven after Washburn scored four-straight points to make it 18-11 with 7:07 left in the opening period.
The lead stretched to as many as eight when Taylor knocked down a 3-pointer at the 3:25 mark to make it 25-17.
But the Beavers closed the gap to four when junior guard Roberto Nelson drove the lane to beat the buzzer with a score, making it a 30-26 game at the half.
The Utes opened the second half with a 10-3 run, fueled by back-to-back 3-pointers by DuBois and Taylor.
Shortly after that, Utah sank three more from beyond the arc — courtesy of Taylor, freshman guard Justin Seymour and junior guard Glen Dean — during a 9-0 run to make it 51-35 with 13:41 left in the game.
Utah's largest lead came at the 5:47 mark, when Loveridge sunk an 18-footer to make it 61-42.
The Utes gave up an 8-0 run in the final two minutes to make the final score a little less indicative of how the game — particularly the second half — really played out.
"I thought the offense was taken care of by our defense," said Utah head coach Larry Krystkowiak. "I thought we were really locked in defensively. We were active and engaged."
Nelson led Oregon State (13-17, 3-14) with 18 points, while sophomore guard Challe Barton scored 15 on 5 of 6 from beyond the arc. Junior forward Devon Collier added 10 points and five boards in the Beavers' fifth-straight loss.
The Utes outrebounded OSU 39-29, including 14 on the offensive glass, which was key according to Krystkowiak.
"I wrote on the board before the game that I honestly thought whoever won the rebound battle tonight was going to win the game," Krystkowiak said. "Against a really good rebounding team, it was important to us. Our rebound focus and our defensive focus actually led to making the offense easier, and that is what we have preached here for a little while now: If you play the game in the right way and all you are thinking about is your effort and your rebounding, sure enough, the offense starts clicking."
Utah also converted 15 OSU turnovers into 21 points and hit 42.9 percent from 3-point range.
With the victory, the Utes improve to 12-17, doubling their overall win total from last season. They also claim their fourth conference victory (moving them into the No. 10 position in the Pac-12, ahead of Oregon State and Washington State), another increase from last year's three-win Pac-12 campaign.
There's still one more game to go, when the Oregon Ducks come to town on Saturday afternoon. That contest, which will be Senior Day for Washburn and the other seniors, will tip off at 12:30 p.m. MST.
"I want to win," Washburn said of his upcoming final game at the Huntsman Center. "Let whoever deserves to have a good game, whether it's me, J-Love, or J.D., but let's come out and play the way we did tonight. Not for me, not for our seniors, but for our team, our coach, and this program."
The Pac-12 tournament will then get started next Wednesday from Las Vegas.
Tyson Maddy has covered the University of Utah football and men's basketball teams as a contributing writer for KSL.com Sports since 2011. Follow his Utes coverage on twitter @Tyson_Maddy
