Utah continued its march in Big 12 play Wednesday night, beating an old Pac-12 foe, Colorado, in relatively convincing fashion.
The Utes used a big early run to take control, led for all but 20 seconds and got contributions up and down the roster in beating the Buffaloes 77-60 at the Huntsman Center for Utah’s sixth straight win.
“A lot of people (stepped) up in the point column, but I think we also did a good job on the rebounding, especially on the offensive end, with 12 offensive boards creating second chances for our team, which is great,” Utah coach Gavin Petersen said.
“You know, I have a lot of respect for Colorado, their coaching staff, and I know they’ve been hit with the injury bug, but we knew they were going to give us everything that they had.”
3 takeaways
Big runs to start first and third quarters elevated the Utes. After giving up a jumper just 21 seconds into the game, Utah proceeded to go on a 17-0 run to take control of the game and never trailed again.
Maye Toure scored 11 of those points and Jenna Johnson had the other six.
Petersen pointed to his team’s defensive focus and rebounding that helped them get off to a strong start.
“(Colorado is) known for their relentless effort on the rebounding, especially on the offensive end. So we made it a point where we had to match that intensity, or rise above it, and limit them to one shot and out. And I think that was able to get us out and running,” Petersen said.
“(Our players) came in focused, ready to go, ready to defend the actions and a lot of the complex actions that they do run, and we were pretty locked in to start the game.”
Colorado ended up responding with a 10-0 run of its own, and the Buffaloes ended up fighting back within four points at 38-34 in the second quarter before the Utes ended the half on a 7-0 run to lead 45-34 at the break.
Though Colorado scored the first three points of the second half, Utah used another big run, this one 11-0, to push its lead out to 56-37. This time, Kennady McQueen had five points, Gianna Kneepkens four and Johnson two in the defining run.
While the Buffaloes continued to fight, they never seriously threatened the Utes down the stretch.
“We knew they were going to come in and play hard, so I was really excited to see our start in that first quarter, to really settle us in,” Petersen said. “And then, you know, as the game went, I think there were moments when we took our foot off the gas pedal, which shouldn’t happen, but it sometimes does.”
It was a balanced effort all the way around for Utah. Toure and Kneepkens led the way for the Utes in their sixth straight victory, with four of those coming at home.
Kneepkens had 16 points and made a team-high two 3-pointers, to go along with five assists, four rebounds and two blocks.
Toure scored 15 points, all in the first half, and added six rebounds, two assists, a block and a steal, though she turned it over four times.
There were key moments delivered from other Utah players as well, from Ines Vieira to Maty Wilke to Kennady McQueen, and even Samantha Crispe.
Vieira ended up with seven points, five rebounds, five assists and two steals. Her offensive rebound and subsequent 3-pointer early in the second quarter cut short Colorado’s momentum briefly and gave Utah a 36-28 lead.
In the final seconds of the first quarter after Kneepkens hit a jumper to make the score 27-17, Wilke stole the inbounds pass and hit a jumper before the first-quarter buzzer to give the Utes a 12-point lead thanks to a quick four points.
All five of McQueen’s points came in the third, but a 3-pointer helped sparked Utah’s 11-0 run and her acrobatic layup off a Kneepkens assist was arguably the highlight of the night.
The reserve Crispe also had a couple nice moments. Though she isn’t known for her 3-point shooting capabilities, she nailed a 3 in the first quarter to end Colorado’s 10-0 run and give Utah a 20-12 edge.
Outside of a couple late subs seeing their first action with just over a minute to play, every other Utah player that got in the game scored at least four points.
“I think we’re playing well right now,” Kneepkens said. “I still think there’s a little room for growth, but I think we’re at a good spot right now.”
The Utes also outrebounded Colorado 36-23, including a 12-7 edge on the offensive glass that led to a 13-2 advantage in second-chance points.
Six Utah players had four or more rebounds.
The Utes held a 36-24 advantage in points in the paint, including another solid night from Johnson (eight points, five rebounds, three assists).
“(Utah) just did the things that they do. They hit 3s, they offensive rebounded, shot 51% from the floor,” Colorado coach JR Payne said. “So they definitely beat us tonight. But Utah is a really good team, and I don’t think we did what we needed to do for the first three quarters.”
Give credit to Colorado — the Buffaloes made Utah work for this one. The Utes were coming off a 44-point blowout of UCF last Saturday, but at least in this one, Colorado at least made the Utes work harder.
Even after falling behind by 23 points in the third quarter, Colorado made it a 13-point game in the fourth and Payne expressed satisfaction in a young group she had on the floor in the final period.
The Buffaloes also had their moments in the first half, primarily when they cut the Utah lead to 38-34 in the second quarter and the 10-0 run in the first quarter.
Utah, though, had an answer each time the Buffaloes put something together, even if outside of that 17-0 run, the two teams played even the rest of the way.
“I mean, without that fourth quarter, I would have been pretty bummed, but I actually feel a little bit buoyed with the effort of that young group and sort of their tenacity and fight,” Payne said. “I actually feel pretty good right now.”
What’s next
After playing four of their last six games at home, the Utes will hit the road Saturday to face Arizona State (2 p.m. MST, ESPN+) for the second time this season.
Utah beat the Sun Devils 102-82 at the Huntsman Center on Dec. 21 in the Big 12 opener for both schools.
Arizona State (8-17, 2-11 Big 12) lost at UCF 85-76 Wednesday.