Branden Carlson leads Utah with 27 points in 91-70 win over UTSA

SALT LAKE CITY — In the end, it was another blowout win for the Utes men's basketball team.

Branden Carlson controlled the night with a game-high 27 points, eight rebounds and four blocks, and Utah pulled away for a 91-70 win over the visiting UTSA Roadrunners on a snowy Tuesday night in the last game at the Huntsman Center of the year.

"BC was aggressive, he was chasing down rebounds, he was playing with physicality and hit a couple of tough and-ones in there, and he just had that look," Utah head coach Craig Smith said to describe the play of Carlson.

The fourth-year center took some hits from the Roadrunners, including a flagrant foul as he went up for a shot, but kept finding a way to make a difference in the game and put more points on the board. It all led to another career night for Carlson, who took advantage of what UTSA gave him in the post.

"I just think they were aggressive this game, they were a little bit of a physical team today, they're just a good team," Carlson said. "We were kind of expecting a little bit more of some doubles here and there, so I was kind of more ready to kind of kick out. And just throughout the game, I kind of realized they weren't doing that."

The Utes outscored the Roadrunners 52-36 in the second half and outrebounded the visiting team 51-24 for the game in an all-around effective and dominant night. It was Utah's second straight game and third game overall this season that they've scored over 90 points.

Utah (9-2, 2-0 Pac-12) had no problem putting UTSA (5-5) away in the second half on a controlled game plan that included tempo and consistent passes to find open looks, but the first half was anything but that for the home team who struggled to get into a good rhythm for much of the half.

The Utes built up a double-digit lead to open the game, and shot 53% from the field and outrebounded the Roadrunners by 10 in the first half, but Utah only had a 5-point halftime lead. Utah allowed UTSA to go on an 18-2 run that included several turnovers where Roadrunners players jumped passing lanes and converted with easy layups on the other end.

Utah went on its own runs to get back into the game, including a 15-1 run to closeout the half, but allowed the visiting team to keep it close behind the duo of Japhet Medor and DJ Richards' combined 25 points at the half.

The team made halftime adjustments and completely changed the dynamic of the game, which included holding Medor and Richards to a combined 10 points in the second half. Medor finished with a team-high 23 points, six rebounds and four assists.

"We made some changes with our lineup with our matchups, and then we were able to kind of steady the ship and go into halftime with some momentum," Smith said.

"Instead of playing our basketball, we were kind of letting them dictate just like mainly everything," said Marco Anthony, who was tasked with limiting their best scorers, especially in the second half.

Anthony finished the night with a double-double for the Utes, which included 16 points, 10 rebounds and four assists in the win. Lazar Stefanovic added 10 points on 4-of-7 shooting.

Utah guard Gabe Madsen, who had 16 points and four rebounds in the win, left the game midway through the second half to be examined in the locker room after limping off the court. Madsen never returned to the game, but told Smith that he was "all right."

"I don't think it's too serious," Smith said. "But obviously, it's just one of those things where he'll do his treatment or whatever tonight and check in with trainers tomorrow, and we'll just see how it all plays out."

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