SALT LAKE CITY — The Utes closed the first full week of Pac-12 play at 2-1 after beating Arizona State 87-82 in Tempe on Saturday. KSL contributor Stephen Lindsey details the Utes’ decent start in this week’s trending, and previews an important week ahead for Utah men’s basketball.

A team devoid of stars

The 2017 Runnin’ Utes are nothing if not a conundrum. With each successive game, it seems, one question is answered, only for another to arise in its place. The fact is, of course, that this team bears strong resemblance to the professional team that plays its home games just a few miles away.

Like the Utah Jazz, you just never know which Ute might take his star turn on any given night, only to recede into the background the very next game. One game it’s Sedrick Barefield scoring 35 in Hawaii, only to foul out with just 5 points the very next night. Or it’s Kyle Kuzma, scoring a paltry eight points on 10 shots at Arizona, only to turn around and drop a career high 26 points and 12 rebounds two days later, as he did Saturday against ASU.

KSL.com Ute beat writer Josh Furlong has posited the claim that this team is similar to the one that former Ute Delon Wright played on in his first season at the university in 2014. The comparison is quite accurate, per metrics provided by Kenpom.com.

The 2014 team ranked 77th in the country in offensive efficiency; the 2017 Utes rank 69th. The 2014 Utes attempted 33 percent of their shots from 3-point range; the 2017 Utes attempt 32.8 percent of their shots from three. Both teams ranked in the top 40 teams in the NCAA in both 2-point field goal percentage and effective field goal percentage. The 2014 Utes finished 21-12. The 2017 Utes are projected by Kenpom to finish 20-10.

These Utes don’t have a star like Delon Wright, but according to head coach Larry Krystkowiak, that’s just fine with him.

“I wouldn’t mind having those guys back,” he said after the win against Colorado, “but it’s a good question because I touched on that before we broke and went out on the court. It wasn’t that long ago this season that we had seven guys in double figures, or close to it, and I want to be that kind of team. Every season has a different story to it, or a different book or chapter to it, and you have to figure out a way to define your success.”

The problem, of course, hasn’t been finding guys to put the ball in the basket as seven different Utes have scored at least 17 points or more in a game this season. The more troubling issue has been finding guys who can do that consistently, as was touched on earlier in regards to Barefield and Kuzma.

David Collette has probably played the most consistent basketball of any player on this team, but has issues staying out of foul trouble and making free throws (58.3 percent). JoJo Zamora is Utah’s best 3-point shooter, but has shown the tendency to turn the ball over and has displayed some poor shot selection. Unfortunately, those same things can be said of all the Utah guards.

Devon Daniels, unheralded as he is and as raw as he is, is probably the real bright spot on this Utah roster. He may not be as complete a player as some of the other guys on this team, but as a true freshman he’s shown some great resolve. Chided in the media by Krystkowiak to make fewer mistakes and focus better, he’s stepped up in true road games, averaging nearly 13 points. He’s not there yet, but he has shown up in tough environments when it’s mattered most.

2-1 conference start

After Utah beat Colorado soundly at home, 76-60, optimism was high that Utah could go into Arizona and perform well. Initially they did, leading 15-10 with 13:40 left to go in the first half. Unfortunately, that would be the last lead for the Utes, as Arizona went on an 8-0 run and closed the last ten minutes of the half outscoring Utah 22-12.

Utah would go on to lose 66-56 to the Wildcats, making it 31 years since the Utes have beaten Arizona in Tucson. The zone defense that Krystkowiak had installed prior to the Utes’ matchup with Colorado performed well again against Arizona, limiting the Wildcats’ talented, penetration-minded guards Kadeem Allen and Rawle Alkins. When those guys did get into the paint, it seemed all they could find was a brick wall of solid red black Utah jerseys. The Utes struggled on the glass, however, and didn't shoot well from behind the 3-point line, going 4-of-21.

However, the zone defense that had performed so well against Colorado and Arizona disintegrated against ASU, and before long, Utah was back into a man-to-man defensive set. This time, though, the 3-point shot was falling for the Utes, and Utah’s 50 percent from behind the line was its best showing of the season. Kyle Kuzma’s 3-point performance was especially encouraging; his 3-for-4 from deep was his best of the season and is an encouraging sign that he’s beginning to take his game to another level at the right time.

Big week for Utah’s tournament hopes

It should be said that considering Utah’s resume (124th in RPI, 9th in the Pac-12) and strength of schedule (234th in the NCAA, per ESPN), Utah’s current tournament hopes look bleak barring a Pac-12 championship and an automatic bid. That can all change with a strong showing this week at home against the LA schools.

The Utes, who don’t have home games against the Arizona schools or road games against the LA schools because of schedule rotations, need statement wins to add to their resume, and they can start Thursday night against No. 25 USC. The Trojans are 15-2, their lone loss coming against a strong Oregon squad on the road, 84-61 on Dec. 30. The fourth-ranked UCLA Bruins then follow on Saturday.

Both games offer the Utes a chance to change their fate. Knock off USC, and you’ve done something admirable, but beat the Bruins and Lonzo Ball, and you’ve done something extremely difficult. The Bruins boast talent across the board: true freshman Ball’s advent into the starting point guard slot has allowed the Bruins to move sharpshooter Bryce Alford to shooting guard, where he has excelled, while freshman power forward TJ Leaf has dominated, scoring 17.5 points per game while pulling down 9.1 rebounds. The matchup between he and Kuzma should be a major keys to the game for either team, and is the one fans should look forward to most.

UCLA also is one of the higher-flying teams in college basketball; at 75.8 possessions per game, it is the 10th fastest-tempo team in the nation. Transition defense has been an issue for the Utes and is an element they’ll need to assess in the coming week of practice if they are to stop the Bruins, let alone USC.

Extras:

• Krystkowiak apparently suffered a back injury at some point during Saturday’s game against ASU, grimacing noticeably and applying ice packs in the latter stages of Utah’s win.
• Sedrick Barefield, who scored 35 points against San Francisco in his second game as a Ute, has tallied just 30 in the five games since while also sporting a disappointing 25.6 percent turnover rate.
• Kuzma, with his 26-point career-high at ASU, finally got over his 23-point bugaboo, if it can be called that. “I just can’t get past 23,” he said earlier this season after scoring 23 against Northwest Nazarene.
• Guards Lorenzo Bonam and Devon Daniels are making it rain from inside the arc; each is among the top 100 players in the nation for 2-point percentage. Bonam, at 71.4 percent, ranks 16th nationally, while Daniels, at 66.2 percent, ranks 52nd. The Utes, as a team, are shooting 58.3 percent on 2-point field goals, good for 6th in the nation.

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