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Runnin' Utes Respond with Resounding Victory Over Oregon State

by Utah Athletics
Feb 3, 2022

SALT LAKE CITY – A lot of weight lifted off the shoulders of the Utah men's basketball team and replaced with relief and cheer as the Runnin' Utes snapped their 10-game losing streak with their most complete game of the season en route to their 84-59 victory over Oregon State Thursday night inside the Jon M. Huntsman Center.
 
Utah started off a little slow on the offensive end, but woke up in a big way out of the under-16 break. The floodgates then opened up for Utah as Lazar Stefanovic went off for 12 points on 4-of-6 shooting from deep while the Utes drilled a season-high nine triples in the first half to take a 46-33 lead at halftime.

 
As a team, the Utes (9-14, 2-11 Pac-12) shot 50-percent (9-of-18) from 3-point range while shooting a .531 (17-of-32) clip from the floor. Utah finally got the best of their opponents in the turnover category and turned nine Oregon State miscues into a 16-4 edge in points off turnovers.
 
Utah had a double-digit lead the first seven-plus minutes of the second half before Jarod Lucas led the OSU (3-16, 1-8 Pac-12) charge and connected on a 3-pointer to cut the lead down to 53-45 with 12:46 to play. A timeout by head coach Craig Smith (12:40) wound up being the turning point for Utah as the Runnin' Utes responded with a 22-5 run to put the game away and out of reach for Oregon State after a Rollie Worster drilled a 3-pointer to put the good guys ahead 75-50 with 3:41 remaining.
 
Utah had five players register double-digit points, including double-doubles from Branden Carlson and Both Gach – the first time Utah has had two players record a double-double in the same game since Carlson and Riley Battin did it against Stanford in 2020. Carlson ended the night with 12 points and 10 boards as Gach scored 11 points while dishing a career-tying 10 assists to go with four rebounds, two blocks and a steal.
 
Stefanovic, who hit 5-of-9 from 3-point range, finished with a game-high 15 points, eight rebounds, four assists and two steals. Worster added 13 points on 5-of-8 shooting with four boards, five assists and two blocks of his own while David Jenkins Jr. had a solid night off the bench with 13 points. Battin was nearly in double-figures, hitting 3-of-6 from deep off the bench for nine points.

 
BY THE NUMBERS
The win snapped a four-game losing streak at home, which tied the program record … Utah committed a season-low five turnovers … the .531 shooting clip in the first half was the seventh time this season the Utes have shot 50-percent or better in a single half … the 23 assists Thursday night was just the third time this season Utah has dished out 20-plus dimes in a game – others were against Bethune-Cookman (20) and Manhattan (28) … the 29 field-goals made is second-highest this season, trailing just the 35 against Manhattan … the 15 made 3-pointers was the most since Utah hit 17 against MVSU back in 2019 … last time Utah had five turnovers in a game was against UCLA on March 9, 2019 … Branden Carlson (10), Marco Anthony (11) and Lazar Stefanovic (8) accounted for 29 of Utah's 39 rebounds – including all 11 of the team's offensive boards.
 
UP NEXT
The Utes now turn their attention on the Oregon Ducks, who they'll play host to on Saturday, Feb. 5, inside the Jon M. Huntsman Center. Ben Wilson will have the call between Utah and Oregon while NBA veteran coach Dave Miller serves as the analyst on the FS1 broadcast. The Runnin' Utes program will also be honoring the great Tom Chambers at halftime.
 
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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