Runnin' Utes Entertain 18th-Ranked Cougars Saturday Night

SALT LAKE CITY – The Utah men's basketball team returns home to the friendly confines of the Jon M. Huntsman Center to entertain long-time rival No. 18/18 BYU in a RED OUT this Saturday, Nov. 27, at 7:30 p.m. (MT).
 
Roxy Bernstein will have the call while Don MacLean serves as the analyst in the 262nd meeting between the two storied programs. This will be the first match-up between Utah and BYU since the 1912-13 season where both teams were at least 5-0 heading into the rivalry game. The Utes were 10-0 while the Cougars were 5-0 heading into that contest with Utah coming away victorious 49-31 on Feb. 8, 1913.
 
RIVALRY RUNDOWN

• First year head coaches at Utah are 3-12 all-time in their first meeting against BYU
  • Thomas Fitzpatrick: at BYU 27-21 (2/9/1918)
  • Jerry Pimm: vs. BYU 91-73 (1/18/1975)
  • Ray Giacoletti: at BYU 75-58 (1/31/2005)
• Utah is 4-11 all-time against BYU when the Cougars are ranked
  
  • Utah is 3-5 all-time at home when playing a ranked Cougars team
    • Last time Utah beat a ranked BYU team at home was on Feb. 27, 1993, when #11 Utah defeated #23 BYU 89-83
  • Utah is 1-6 all-time on the road when playing a ranked Cougars team
• Utah is 12-4 all-time vs. BYU in overtime games, including a 6-1 edge when games are at home
  
  • Most recent occurred on Dec. 4, 2019, a 102-95 OT victory for the Utes
  • Only 1 game has gone into double OT and two have gone into triple OT
• In the 261 games played so far in the heated rivalry, there have only been nine games where either team have reached the 100 points mark – which is in favor of the Cougars 5-4

 
OVERTIME GAMES VS. BYU

 
100+ POINTS SCORED IN RIVALRY

 
SUNSHINE TOURNAMENT NOTES
The Sunshine Slam Championship was Utah's fifth title in an MTE since the turn of the century and first MTE championship that was outside the State of Utah. Coincidentally, the last time Utah won an MTE outside of Utah was in 2008 when it captured the Glenn Wilkes Classic in Daytona Beach, Fla., at the Ocean Center nearly to the exact date.
 
The Utes first defeated Ole Miss 83-72 (Nov. 21) in the opening game before taking down Morgan State 66-37 (Nov. 22) in the title game.
 
Branden Carlson was named the Tournament MVP after posting a double-double in the title game against Tulsa with 15 points and a career-high 13 rebounds. The 7-0 center averaged 14 points and 8.0 rebounds during the two games at the Ocean Center. Meanwhile, David Jenkins Jr. was named to the all-tournament team after averaging 13 points with a .412 shooting clip – including a .417 clip from beyond the arc.
 
KEEP ON, KEEPIN ON
Heading into Saturday's contest 5-0, the 2021-22 Utah squad looks to become the first team to start a season 6-0 since 2013-14. In the program's 113 years of existence, the Utes have started a season 6-0 a total of 23 times but just once since the turn of the century.
 
SCOUTING THE COUGARS
BYU head into Saturday's match-up 5-0 for the first time since 2010-11 when they opened the year on a 10-0 streak. The 18th-ranked Cougars' undefeated start to the season is highlighted by their 81-49 victory over then-No. 12/12 Oregon at the Moda Center in the PK Invitational.
 
Arizona transfer Alex Barcello paces BYU, averaging 18.8 points, 2.2 rebounds and 3.2 assists with a .604 shooting clip and .519 clip downrange. Te'Jon Lucas, a transfer from Milwaukee, is the other Cougar in double-figures averaging 10 points and 2.0 rebounds with a team-high 5.6 assists average. Gideon George leads the team on the glass, averaging 7.4 rebounds to go with his 6.0 points per game while Fousseyni Traore isn't far behind at 7.0 rebounds per game on top of his 9.3 points average.
 
As a team, BYU is second nationally in 3-point field goal defense, holding opponents to just 21-percent beyond the arc while out-rebounding opponents by a margin of 10.2 – which ranks 27th in the NCAA. Meanwhile, the Cougars are 32nd in the country thanks to its 20.2 scoring margin over opponents and 35th in scoring defense holding opponents to just 58.6 points per game.
 
UTAH VS. AP RANKED OPPONENTS
All-Time vs. AP Ranked Opponents: 68-149 (.313)
All-Time vs. AP Ranked Opponents at Home: 38-39 (.494)
All-Time vs. #18 Ranked Opponents: 3-8 (.273)
All-Time vs. #18 Ranked Opponents at Home: 2-6 (.250)
Last Win vs. AP Ranked Opponent: 12/18/19 vs. #6 Kentucky, 69-66 in T-Mobile Arena
Last Win vs. AP Ranked Opponent at Home: 1/12/17 - #25 USC 86-64
Last Win vs. AP Ranked Opponent at Home in Non-Conference Play: 12/3/14 - #8 Wichita State 69-68 (OT)
 
LAST TIME OUT
In its first game against Boston College, Utah trailed at the half for the first time this season before mountain its comeback in the final seven minutes of play to secure the win over a future Alliance opponent. That game between the Runnin' Utes and Eagles was the first time Utah was out-rebounded in a game this season.
 
In the second game in as many days against Tulsa, Utah got off to a double-digit lead but a gritty Golden Hurricane squad didn't back down. Tulsa brought the Utes lead down to single-digits with less than five minutes to play but Utah answered right back and pushed the lead back up before comfortably winning 72-58 to secure the Sunshine Slam Championship. Utah saw five players register double-digit points with Branden Carlson leading the pack thanks to his double-double with 15 points and 13 rebounds in the win.
 
UP NEXT
Utah will turn around and prepare for Pac-12 play as it travels to Los Angeles to take on the Trojans of USC next Wednesday, Dec. 1, at 9:30 p.m. (MT) as Craig Smith looks to make his debut in the Pac-12. Roxy Bernstein and Don MacLean will once against have the call on Pac-12 Networks between the Utes and Trojans.
 
LOOKING AHEAD
After kicking off Pac-12 play with USC on the road, Utah returns home to the Jon M. Huntsman Center to welcome in Cal on Sunday, Dec. 5. Todd Harris will have the call on that game between the Utes and Golden Bears while Matt Muehlebach serves as the analyst to close out the two early conference for Utah.
 
For the latest news and information on the Runnin' Utes men's basketball program, fans can stay connected online at www.UtahUtes.com and on social media by following @UtahMBB on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
 
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