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SALT LAKE CITY — The Runnin' Utes are flirting with a top-25 bid.
For the last three weeks, Utah men's basketball has received votes in the Associated Press Top 25 poll — just outside the top 25 — marking the first time since the 2015-16 season the Utes have been considered for a spot in the rankings in the weekly poll.
Though meaningless to anything relevant to the sport, it's a benchmark of sorts for a program to be considered one of the best 25 teams in the country. On Friday, Utah checked in at 31st in KenPom and 21st in the all-important NET rankings.
To add to the statistical and resume rankings, Utah is a projected 8 seed in Joe Lunardi's latest ESPN bracketology that was released a little over two months before the sport goes mad in March. And TeamRankings.com gives Utah a 91% chance of making the postseason tournament.
Those are all encouraging metrics for Craig Smith's squad looking to return to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since that 2015-16 season. Even an NIT bid would be an upgrade from where Utah has been over the last five or so years.
Sitting with a 9-2 record on the season — Utah's two losses came when Keba Keita wasn't available, Smith hopes everyone remembers — the Runnin' Utes are poised to make some noise this season.
But conference play is where Utah has struggled the most in Smith's short tenure with the program (and the latter part of Larry Krystkowiak's tenure, too). Last season, Utah dropped seven of their last nine games; and the year before, Utah only won four conference games all season.
By all accounts, Utah is better than those previous two seasons, but can it finally withstand a tough conference slate beginning with Washington State Friday (6:30 p.m. MST, Pac-12 Networks) and Washington Sunday (4 p.m. MST, Pac-12 Networks)?
Smith believes the nonconference schedule, which could feature as many as five Quad 1 wins at the end of the season, is a good telltale sign as to what type of team he has this season.
"There's some teams we played that are gonna have some really good years, and you just wait and see how it all plays out, but I'd be shocked if that doesn't happen. So I thought we've made great progress. ... Love our depth, love our balance," Smith said. "I think any given night we have a lot of different guys that can step up to the plate. At the same time, I think this team still has a lot of room to grow and get better, and that's what's really exciting."
It's a roster that Smith believes in; he sees it as the first roster that is closer to what he expects to employ as a coach at Utah, especially if the team can stay healthy this season. It also helps, Smith said, that the middle of the Pac-12 has gotten stronger to provide a consistent level of play in the league.
"I definitely think the league's better than it's been the last two years. In my eyes, I don't think there's any doubt about that," Smith said. "There's a lot more depth in our league. I just think there's way more depth where the middle of the pack is much stronger than it has been.
"I do think there's a lot of different teams that can win any given night," he added. "I think there's gonna be a ton of close games in Pac-12 play throughout the year, and I think there's going to be a lot less surprises just because of the depth of the league where you've just got to be on point. You're never going to play perfect, but you've got to be ready to compete on a night-to-night basis or it's not going to end up well."
It's a challenge his team welcomes as it looks to improve and potentially win its way into the top 25 ... and maybe even more.
Without putting too much stock into one game or one series — especially at the beginning of conference play — this weekend's games are a stepping stone of sorts to lift Utah to greater heights.
"From here on out, they're all big," Smith said. "I mean, we want to win a Pac-12 championship. We want to do a lot of great things in this league. The league's had a great nonconference. ... Our league has positioned itself where there's gonna be a lot more 'big games' throughout Pac-12 play."
Playing for a Pac-12 championship (and potentially more) begins Friday night.
