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CORVALLIS, Ore. — For a team in need of every win possible as a supposed bubble team for the NCAA Tournament, the Runnin' Utes had no answer Thursday night on the road.
Stop me if you've heard that before.
Even against a four-win team in Pac-12 play, Utah couldn't compete against Jordan Pope and an Oregon State team that shot 51% from the floor and 41% from behind the 3-point line en route to a 92-85 win.
And though Pope made his mark with a team-high 25 points, it was Tyler Bilodeau that torched the Runnin' Utes, especially early. The starting forward went 5-of-7 from behind the arc to easily put some distance between the two teams. Bilodeau finished with 20 points, six rebounds and two assists in the win.
Utah (18-12, 9-10 Pac-12) opened up the game on an 8-0 run amid a five-minute scoring drought by Oregon State (13-17, 5-14 Pac-12). But once the Beavers got a shot to fall, it was over for the visiting team. Oregon State reeled off a 12-0 run to control a 6-point lead, and the lead only ballooned from there.
The Beavers built up a 16-point lead before the Utes eventually got some momentum behind back-to-back 3-pointers by Branden Carlson to help a 13-2 run by the Utes. But the Beavers didn't flinch and built the lead back up to 17 points with four minutes left in regulation.
Utah answered back again behind a career-high performance from Carlson, who continued to will the visiting team in a comeback effort. The fifth-year senior finished with a career-high 40 points, including five 3-pointers, seven rebounds and two assists.
Utah managed to get Oregon State's lead down to 7 late in the game, but the team didn't have enough late to completely erase the deficit.
The Utes were mostly doomed by their propensity to turn over the ball. Though the team only finished with 12 turnovers — there's been plenty more in games this season, especially on the road — it was the returning 17 points created on the other end for the Beavers that ultimately hurt.
Oregon State, too, had 13 turnovers, which turned into 15 points for Utah, but the Utes weren't able to fully capitalize while the Beavers had little trouble with a home crowd behind them as the team worked for its fifth win in conference play.
Utah has only won one game on the road in Pac-12 play this season, while looking like a different team at home. Ahead of the Thursday night road matchup, Utah was in contention for a top-four seed in next week's conference tournament in Las Vegas.
The loss guarantees Utah will be playing a first-round game Wednesday in Las Vegas, with a final seeding determined after Saturday's road matchup against Oregon, which locked up the final bye despite a loss to Colorado Thursday night.
