3 takeaways from Utah’s win over Oklahoma State

Utah’s first Big 12 Conference win came in blowout fashion.

The Runnin’ Utes took control early and used a strong effort on both ends of the floor to roll past Oklahoma State 83-62 at the Huntsman Center on Saturday.

That snapped Utah’s four-game losing streak and gives the Utes a 1-3 record in Big 12 action.

3 takeaways

Ezra Ausar and Keanu Dawes showed off their athleticism as Utah’s post dominated. The Utes owned the interior in beating the Cowboys, as they ended the night with a 46-24 edge in points in the paint.

Ezra Ausar and Keanu Dawes, along with solid nights from guys like Jake Wahlin and Lawson Lovering, led the charge.

Ausar scored 21 points while shooting 7 of 12 from the floor and 7 of 8 from the free-throw line. Dawes, meanwhile, had back-to-back-to-back dunks in the second half that pushed the Utah lead to 54-36.

He ended the night with 16 points, nine rebounds, two assists and a block.

Wahlin also poured in 16 points while also collecting four rebounds and three assists. Lovering showed some nice chemistry with Ausar offensively in the early going, and he finished with eight points, six assists and three rebounds.

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Big start sparks the Utes. Utah, which has found itself trailing big early in other Big 12 games so far, got the jump on Oklahoma State this time.

The Utes pushed out to a 12-0 lead and led by as many as 16 points before taking a 37-26 lead into halftime. Ausar scored half of those 12 points to start the game, while Lovering, Gabe Madsen and Mike Sharavjamts also added two points each.

Utah’s defense stifled the Cowboys, and the Utes’ offense was humming. Oklahoma State entered the game as one of the worst shooting teams in the Big 12 — the Cowboys are last in league play — and didn’t find much success at the Huntsman.

Still, after Utah gave up shooting percentages of 40.6%, 58.6% and 44.3% in losses to Baylor, Texas Tech and Iowa State, respectively, the Utes’ defensive efforts paying off was sweet.

Utah held the Cowboys to 33% shooting from the field, the lowest shooting percentage the Utes had given up since allowing Utah Tech to shoot 30.3% back on Nov. 22.

On the other end, Utah shot 55.6% for the game, including 66.7% in the second half.

The Utes made 17 of 24 free throws and had 23 assists while turning the ball over just 11 times.

What’s next

Utah (9-6, 1-3 Big 12) will go back on the road and will face TCU next Wednesday (6 p.m. MST, ESPN+). The Horned Frogs (9-6, 2-2) beat BYU 71-67 in Fort Worth, Texas, on Saturday.

After that, the Utes will host the Cougars on Jan. 18 (7 p.m. MST, ESPN+) in their next home game.