A good clue here is that Utah out-rebounded Cal-Fullerton 65-32. That's right, 65 rebounds. In regulation time. More rebounds than Fullerton had points.
It wasn't exactly a masterful regular-season opener, but Ute coach Rick Majerus said he really can't complain about winning by 28 points in a game that counts. "I try not to get too happy," he said.The Utes opened the 1997-98 season Saturday night at the Huntsman Center by downing a try-hard Cal State-Fullerton of the Big West Conference in a non-league game, 87-59.
"Who knows?" said Majerus, admitting he doesn't know how his lineup will play out in the coming games. "I don't know about substitution patterns. We're all new guys. I'm puzzled myself what route to go with some guys.
"We did some good things. We win by 28 and shoot 36 percent, 76 percent from the foul line when we should be 80," the coach added.
Majerus had a problem with 11 of Utah's 18 turnovers, nine of them credited to Fullerton steals, three by guard Chris Dade (4-for-13 shooting, 13 points). Seven of the turnovers were acceptable, Majerus said, because they were made going to the basket or in some aggressive manner. Others were just not good.
Majerus also worried about the Utes' conditioning as several players got tired. Two are returned LDS missionaries, but regulars Michael Doleac (3-for-10 shooting, 11 rebounds) and Andre Miller (6-for-15 shooting, seven rebounds, 19 points, two short of his career high) are not in the shape Majerus would like.
The coach took responsibility for that conditioning, saying he spends too much time in practice trying to teach. He also said he had a 11/2-hour practice Saturday morning.
Alex Jensen, one of those returned missionaries, was another who struggled in the energy area, but Jensen had a career-high 16 rebounds. Like Doleac, he shot 3-for-10 from the field and scored 12 points with six from the free-throw line.
Hanno Mottola and Doleac each had 11 rebounds; Fullerton's top rebounder was guard Chris St. Clair with five. Its top scorer was Craig Whitehead (5-for-6-14 points).
"I thought that team (Fullerton) played hard. If they play that hard all year, they'll win that league," Majerus predicted.
The Titans used some fouls in slowing Doleac, with both centers - starter Matt Caldwell and freshman backup Corey Sanders - fouling out. Sanders hails from Magic Johnson's high school in Michigan.
About 60 percent of the game, Majerus calculated, his lineup consisted of freshmen and sophomores, and that helped account for the often-disorganized look.
Utah and Fullerton were both 2-0 in the exhibition season and had the California All-Stars as a common opponent, Utah winning 79-56 Wednesday and the Titans beating the Stars 86-82 in its first game. Utah leads the series with Cal-Fullerton 9-2, including last season's 74-67 win at Fullerton. Utah has won five in a row against the Titans.
The Titans hung fairly close to Utah much of the first half despite an 0-for-6 shooting start. They went down 14-3 but came back within six. With 1:09 left in the half, Fullerton got within nine on a Whitehead 3-pointer, but Utah would score five points in the final :26 of the first half. From behind the backboard, Mottola rebounded a Miller 3-point miss and hit Jon Carlisle with a quick pass for a 2-foot shot, and when Jason Cunningham missed a shot for Fullerton, Jensen rebounded, and Miller got quickly to the right angle and let fly a 3-pointer that dropped as the buzzer sounded for a 43-29 Ute lead at intermission. Ute free throws boosted the lead to 20 with six minutes left, and Utah had a period of scoring nine straight points to make it 80-53 when Doleac left for good.
Utah's next game is Wednesday at Weber State, and its next home game is Saturday when it hosts Southern Utah in the Huntsman Center.