University of Utah basketball fans have dreaded matchups with the Oregon Ducks for pretty much the last decade, because coach Dana Altman’s teams have owned the Runnin’ Utes like no other opponent in the Pac-12.
Oregon has won its last nine games against Utah, and holds a 19-1 advantage over the Utes in Pac-12 games.
Will that dominance end in 2023?
“I am excited for them. It is early. It is still really, really early, but we are in a good place. We are 5–0 (in the Pac-12), and it beats every other alternative.” — Utah basketball coach Craig Smith
Second-year coach Craig Smith’s rebuilding efforts appear to be right on track, while Oregon is backsliding at an astounding rate.
Fresh off its 19-point blowout of Oregon State Thursday night, Utah (5-0, 12-4) plays host to the disappointing Ducks (2-2, 8-7) at 5 p.m. Saturday at the Huntsman Center with all kinds of momentum and confidence, but also a healthy amount of respect.
“Obviously you can look at our record against them, and what they have done as a program over the years (and know they can’t get complacent),” Utes point guard Rollie Worster said Thursday after a solid eight-assist, six-point effort in 34 minutes against the Beavers. “And our goal is obviously to change that. We want to come out and play our game and just play hard.”
Oregon was blown out 68-41 by Colorado (10-6, 2-3) in Boulder Thursday while the Utes were remaining undefeated in Pac-12 play and moving to 5-0 for the first time since they joined the league in 2011. The Buffaloes led 37-19 at halftime and were never threatened.
Oregon lost 77-72 at home to Utah Valley on Dec. 20 and beat OSU 77-68 on New Year’s Eve when Utah was sweeping the Bay Area schools on the road for the second-straight year. The Ducks have battled through some injuries to show flashes — they beat Wazzu 74-60 and played then-No. 3 Houston tough before falling 65-56 — but are not currently at Utah’s level, at least on paper.
“We will take the dub, get to 5-0, and we got an Oregon team coming in here that I know didn’t play the way they wanted to play tonight, from what I hear,” Smith said. “I have so much respect for Dana Altman, and that program. We have struggled against Oregon. I don’t know the exact numbers. … But we have struggled overall against them in a big way. We are going to have to play really good basketball to take care of business on Saturday.”
The Utes almost broke through last year, losing 80-77 at the Huntsman Center on Feb. 5 after losing 79-66 in Eugene, in what would become the second of a school-record 10 straight losses.
Suffice it to say, these aren’t the 2022 Utes, or 2022 Ducks. Utah is a solid favorite.
“It is good to set some new history that is not negative like last year’s history,” senior center Branden Carlson said after matching his career-high of 27 points against OSU. “… Last year we had too many games slip away from us in the last couple of minutes. I think it is (due to) not being locked in for the whole game. With this team, that has been a huge emphasis, (being) locked in all 40 minutes.”
It is almost as if Utah and Oregon have swapped places this season, after the Ducks were picked to finish third in the Pac-12 race, and the Utes 10th. Utah is tied with UCLA (5-0, 14-2) atop the Pac-12 standings, and will meet the Bruins next Thursday in Los Angeles.
“Well, it is a great start, and that is what it is, it is a start. It is 25% of league play,” Smith said. “I am happy for our guys. Our guys put the time in. We have a great group. They work at it. These guys work at it. … You see them doing it together. It is not an accident when you get better like that.”
Utah is now among the “Last Four In” in Joe Lunardi’s Bracketology for ESPN, a projected No. 10 seed along with Utah State.
The Utes moved to No. 30 in the NET rankings with the win over OSU, while Oregon dropped from No. 72 to No. 81 with the big loss at Colorado.
“We have talked enough about last year, but (it was) tough and these guys showed a lot of resolve and said, ‘Hey, we are going to do this.’ And they believe in each other, and they believe in this school,” Smith said. “And so I am excited for them. It is early. It is still really, really early, but we are in a good place. We are 5–0, and it beats every other alternative.”
Just ask the Oregon Ducks.