Rylan Jones comes up clutch to lead Utah to 67-66 victory over Washington

SALT LAKE CITY — As his team trailed by 1 point with 14 seconds left in the game, Utah guard Rylan Jones needed to make two free throws to overcome a 12-point deficit and give his team a shot at beating the visiting Washington Huskies and ending a four-game losing streak.

As the freshman stepped to the line, all he said to himself was “swish.”

And sure enough, Jones swished both free throws to confirm his mental thought and give the Utes their first lead of the second half, a 67-66 lead that would end up being the final score of the game after Washington’s Jamal Bey was called for an offensive foul as he was driving to the basket in an attempt to hit a game-winning shot.

“There's no give-up on our team,” Jones said. “We're a bunch of tough kids, and we just want to play hard and win, and we weren't going to give up. We were trying to get off this losing streak and get off 10 wins and get to 11. We just all played with a lot of heart, and our crowd was great — they got us going a little bit.

“We’re just a bunch of tough kids that want to play and want to win, and we played together tonight.”

Utah (11-7, 2-4), which struggled to hit shots for much of the game, started to chip away at Washington’s (12-8, 2-5) lead after Timmy Allen hit a 3-pointer at the top of the key with four minutes left to play. The deep shot, which was only Utah’s third-made 3-pointer in 24 attempts, started a slow-gaining momentum by Utah that included 14-of-15 made free throws in the final 2:32 of the game.

Jones managed to hit eight of the team’s 14 free throws from the charity stripe during that stretch to seal the team’s victory. The freshman finished the night with 13 points, nine assists and seven rebounds.

For much of the night, though, Utah struggled on the offensive side of the ball and missed shot after shot against a debilitating and league-leading zone defense by Washington. The Utes finished the night shooting only 34% from the field and an even worse 13% from the 3-point line.

“It can get you bored, playing against that zone, because there's not a whole lot you can do,” Utah head coach Larry Krystkowiak said. “And sometimes you throw in the towel and you try to create new things. And I thought we stayed to the plan for the most part, trying to move the ball, and it was an extra pass night for us.

“We just made enough baskets to squeak it out.”

The win snapped a four-game losing streak that included a difficult three-game road stretch in Colorado and Arizona — a streak that featured a low shooting percentage and a team playing out of sync. The win Thursday night, though, was a “little feel good,” Krystkowiak said.

“It's hard; the guys have been busting it, working hard, and we've had a heck of a schedule,” Krystkowiak added. “And there's more good teams ahead, this conference is proven.”

And though the shots weren’t falling for the Utes, the turnover battle was another key to Utah staying in the game. The Utes ended the first half with eight turnovers but managed to have only two turnovers in the second half. Meanwhile, the Utes forced 17 turnovers and outscored the Huskies 21-10 in points off turnovers.

Washington managed to make nine 3-pointers on the night for 45% shooting from deep, while shooting 51% from the field. But the turnovers and late-game fouls doomed the Huskies on a night where they controlled the momentum.

“I think I've been really proud of our approach. So, when you get rewarded with the win, certainly it's good medicine in sports to be able to do that,” Krystkowaik said. “But you have to remain humble and hungry and know that there's a good Washington State team coming in here in a couple days.”

Utah returns to action Saturday as they welcome Washington State to the Huntsman Center at 5 p.m. MST. The game will be broadcast on the Pac-12 Networks.

Correction: A previous version misspelled the name of Washington guard Jamal Bey, as Jamal Bay.

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