The Utah basketball team thought it was experiencing a strange case of deja vu as it played Texas Wednesday night at the Erwin Center. Like two years earlier, the Utes had overcome a large second-half deficit to to take the lead and needed to stop a last-second Longhorn shot.
This time history didn't completely repeat itself as Reggie Freeman's baseline jumper at the buzzer wouldn't fall, and Utah escaped with a 70-69 victory.The 14th-ranked Utes improved to 1-1 on the season thanks to Freeman's miss and Ben Caton's basket with 2.5 seconds left. The win broke the Longhorns' 26-game home winning streak, the second-longest in the nation.
The decisive shot came off an inbounds play from under Utah's own basket after Texas foiled a set play with 4.5 seconds left. Terry Preston spotted Caton breaking wide-open under the basket, and the JC transfer from Ricks took the pass and put up a shot that bounced around a few times before falling through.
"It must have been the magic in the mask," said Caton, who must wear a facemask to protect a broken cheekbone.
Preston said he was actually looking for Mark Rydalch coming off a screen on the opposite side from Caton. "Ben wasn't the first option, but they were slow getting to him, so I hit him," said Preston.
"That was an outstanding win, an unbelieveable win," said Ute coach Rick Majerus. "We fought back very hard and down the stretch our guys really rallied."
After leading by 10 late in the first half, the Utes fell behind 62-49 with 11:28 left before making their comeback.
Rydalch was here two years earlier when the Utes overcame an 18-point deficit in the final five minutes to tie the game, only to lose it in double overtime.
"We knew what happened last time," said Rydalch. "Coach said whether we're up by 30 or down by 30, there's always a chance because of the way they play."
The way the Longhorns play isn't exactly what you'd call disciplined. They press and trap all over the court on defense and throw up the first shot they can on offense.
The Texas style was a reason it came back from 10 down in the first half to lead by 13 in the second and also why it blew the big lead at the end.
"I thought if we could force a lot of turnovers, we could win the ball game, but we just stopped," said Texas coach Tom Penders. "I've set myself up to expect the unexpected from this group."
In the first half, the Utes controlled the action, despite having Keith Van Horn on the bench for the final 13 minutes because he had two fouls.
They led 39-29 with 3:16 left when the Longhorns charged back to get within two at halftime at 41-39..
After Utah went up 45-39 early in the second half, Texas came alive and went on an 18-2 run as Utah committed eight of its 26 turnovers during that stretch. The lead reached 13 when freshman DeJuan Vasquez made his second straight shot, and the 12,372 hook-'em-Horn fans roared their approval.
But Utah chipped back with free throws by Michael Doleac and Rydalch and a three-pointer by Van Horn. Another trey by Van Horn closed the gap to 66-61 with 3:25 left. Doleac made two more free throws and the Utes had a chance to take the lead, but Van Horn and Preston each missed a free throw.
Freeman made one of two foul shots to make it 67-65 with 53 seconds left, but Utah's Mr. Clutch, Rydalch, came off a double pick to sink a three-pointer from the right angle to put the Utes up 68-67.
Texas regained the lead on Freeman's free throws with 19 seconds left. Then, after a timeout, Utah set up a play in which Caton's pass into Doleac was knocked out of bounds. Then came the winning inbounds play.
Rydalch and Van Horn led the Utes with 15 points apiece, although Van Horn wasn't a real factor in the game. He only got off six shots, making three and uncharacteristically missed four free throws. Doleac had a fine game with 13 points and 16 rebounds.
Texas was led by Freeman with 25 points, Brandy Perryman with 11 and Vasquez with 10. The Longhorns shot just 32.9 percent from the field.
Utah will face Lewis-Clark State in its home opener Friday, followed by a game with Drake on Monday.