Utah is no stranger to just how wild a matchup with Arizona can be.
The two former Pac-12 members have had their share of battles in recent years, and Friday night’s contest lived up to that kind of billing. The Utes, after leading by 18 early in the third quarter, briefly fell behind in the fourth before executing down the stretch in a 67-58 win at the Huntsman Center.
“I’m proud of our grit and our collective competitiveness down the stretch,” Utah coach Gavin Petersen said. “There was a point in that fourth quarter when I think our players got a little upset, and they took it upon themselves that we are going to do what it takes, whatever it takes, to get this win, and so super proud of that. We’ve got to just be able to settle in and handle that type of pressure, especially at home when the crowd is behind us.”
He continued: “But that’s a credit to Arizona. That’s how they play. That’s how they win at home. We were able to win down there to start Big 12 play in late December, and so we knew that that was going to be their calling card, and we just got to do a better job of handling it in the moment, but a good learning experience after a win, which is much better than a loss.”
3 takeaways
Runs dominate middle quarters before Utes take care of business down the stretch. There were long runs for both teams after they battled through a tight first quarter.
Even though Utah had seven turnovers in the second period, it shot 8 of 11 during the quarter. The Utes used an 11-0 run to push a 23-22 lead to 34-22 in just over a minute and a half of action, then took a 10-point lead into the half.
They then started the third quarter on an 8-0 run and went ahead 42-24, but over the next five minutes, Arizona cut into that lead thanks to an 11-0 run of its own.
The Wildcats were trapping Utah, and the Utes missed some open shots that allowed a bit of second-guessing to creep into their minds, Petersen said.
“It wasn’t so much (that) the press was bothering us initially. We missed some wide open 3s, and those were taken by some of our great and best shooters,” Petersen said.
“So you think those are going in when you miss them, though there’s a pause and there’s a, ‘Do I need to shoot that? Or should I have shot that?’ And then they go down and score again. Credit to them, but our missed shots got us to kind of second-guess, and we started to play on our heels.”
That set the stage for a back-and-forth finish between veteran Utah and young Arizona.
The Utes still led by seven going into the fourth quarter, but that quickly turned into a four-point deficit at 50-46 as the Wildcats went on an 11-0 run over the final period’s first three minutes.
That’s when Utah’s resolve shined through.
The Utes outscored the visiting Wildcats 21-8 over the game’s final 6:15, with no bigger shot than Jenna Johnson’s 3-pointer with 54.8 seconds to play that pushed Utah ahead 63-58.
Teammate Gianna Kneepkens found the wide-open Johnson for the game-clinching score, and from there the Utes put the game away at the free-throw line.
“I think that anytime I pass to someone or someone has an open look, I think it’s going in,” Kneepkens said of her assist to Johnson for the 3.
“So I think if we have that, Jenna needs to think that, and she was open, and I saw it in her eyes that she thought it was going in, and as a shooter, all you have to have is confidence and be consistent and it went in.”
Maty Wilke also came up big in the fourth. Her back-to-back buckets helped lift Utah from a three-point deficit to a 55-54 lead with 3:17 to play, then she nailed a 3-pointer — her second of the night — a minute later to make it a 60-54 game.
Wilke credited working with her head coach this week to help her find her confidence again.
“I’m just glad Maty shot the ball more than four times,” Petersen said.
Wilke added: “I was finally aggressive. I think the last couple of games, I haven’t played to the level that I know I can and that my teammates know I can, but having guards like (Kneepkens) and (Kennady McQueen) and Ines (Vieira) out there with me, that opens a lot for me.”
When Utah needed plays to overcome the major momentum swing that occurred in the third and early fourth quarters, veterans like Johnson (10 points, six rebounds, four assists) and Wilke (14 points on 6 of 8 shooting, two steals) answered the bell.
That helped Utah overcome big nights from Arizona sophomore Jada Williams, who scored 17 of her career-high 25 points after halftime, as well as an 11-point, three-assist, three-steal game from redshirt senior Isis Beh, who prepped at Murray High and had about 85 people in attendance to watch her play, her coach estimated.
“I’m really proud of Isis, because she’s been a leader for us this year. She is a player that’s had an amazing journey. … I’m really proud of the work she’s put in to be at this level, so I’m glad she was able to do that in front of all her family,” Arizona head coach Adia Barnes said.
“... Last night, I let her go. Our team had a team dinner, and she went with her family to games. She never gets to do those things. Her dad’s a high school coach and her brother was playing, so that was a special moment for her, too. She’s just a great kid and gives us everything she can.”
Nobody is stopping Gianna Kneepkens right now. Speaking of the game’s top performers, Kneepkens had another standout performance.
Utah’s junior guard set the pace early for her team against Arizona, scoring the Utes’ first seven points. Kneepkens ended up with 28 points on the night, her fourth game in a row with more than 25.
While Kneepkens was humble and showering her teammates with praise following her latest star game — “I honestly just am trying to win the games,” she said — Wilke was quick to point out Kneepkens’ work ethic and how it benefits her come game time.
“She is in the gym every day. I go in there and she’s already has a sweat going. She is working on her game every day,” Wilke said. “I know she’s confident in herself, but I think knowing that she’s doing what she has to do for the team, like everyone has confidence in her, but I don’t think people understand, yeah she’s really good, but she has worked so hard to be where she is.”
Kneepkens had 15 points in the first half, made the last of her three 3-pointers early in the third, then scored all six of her fourth-quarter points at the free-throw line.
Kneepkens shot 8 of 15 from the floor, 3 of 8 from 3 and a perfect 9 of 9 from the charity stripe.
She also had seven rebounds and three assists, with five turnovers, in helping Utah sweep two regular-season games from Arizona for the first time in seven years.
“Gianna is so good. She is a three level scorer — if you go under handoffs, she shoots. If not, if you stay tight on her, you go over, she drives it. She’s got good size, so she’s a really hard matchup,” Barnes said.
Turnovers continue to be an issue for Utah. While there were plenty of smiles for the Utah contingent following a third straight victory, one glaring weakness — turnovers — again plagued the Utes.
Utah finished with a season-high 22, and Arizona turned those takeaways into 20 points.
“I think I’m gonna give credit where credit’s due. With Arizona, they average forcing 20. They forced us two more than their average,” Petersen said.
The Wildcats had their turnover issues, too — Arizona had 13, and the Utes turned them into 14 points. The Wildcats had five turnovers in the fourth as they “wore down,” as their coach put it.
That was the third time Utah has turned the ball over 20 or more times in Big 12 play. When Utah and Arizona played on New Year’s Eve, the Wildcats forced 21 turnovers in Utah’s 21-point victory.
This time, those turnovers helped the Wildcats stick around and eventually take a lead as they utilized a trap defense in the second half.
With eight games left in the regular season, turnover issues continue to be a work in progress for the Utes.
“There are some things that we need to control and we need to settle in. It’s the casual turnovers that these guys, they’re going to be sick of that saying, like stop being casual,” Petersen said.
“Sooner than later, hopefully I don’t have to say it much more this season, but if I still say it, those are the turnovers you have to avoid. ... Let’s just sharpen things up. Be confident in our decision-making. Be crisp with our footwork, being in athletic stances. Those are the things we’ll clean up.”
What’s next
The Utes (16-5, 7-3) will hit the road next week for a game at Texas Tech on Wednesday (5 p.m. MST, ESPN+).
The Red Raiders (14-9, 3-7) play at Colorado on Sunday before hosting Utah.