Runnin’ Utes’ confident offense turns away spirited Cal Baptist

The start of the Big 12 Conference men’s basketball season is just under a month away, and the Utah Runnin’ Utes are still trying to determine their spot in the popular and powerful league.

Saturday evening’s matchup against Cal Baptist wasn’t supposed to generate much additional knowledge, but head coach Alex Jensen was pleased that the Utes made enough plays down the stretch to earn a 91-85 victory in front of a sparse crowd – listed as 6,077 – at the Jon M. Huntsman Center.

Terrence Brown scored 27 points and Don McHenry added 21 as Utah led almost the entire game and improved its record to 7-3, including 6-1 at home.

The Utes could never pull way, however, and relied on eight straight made free throws by Brown and McHenry, as well as a 3-pointer by Jacob Patrick, to turn away the Lancers, who are predicted to win the Western Athletic Conference – the league that includes Southern Utah and Utah Tech.

“A lot of credit goes to Cal Baptist. They are a good team,” said Jensen. “They had 17 more shots than us, which makes it hard to win a game.”

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Certainly, wins will be tougher when the Utes start Big 12 play Jan. 3 against Arizona. Until then, Utah’s non-league schedule has matchups against the SEC’s Mississippi State (4-4) Saturday at the Delta Center, then the Big Sky’s Eastern Washington (2-7) and former Pac-12 mate Washington (6-3), now of the Big Ten.

Even if the Utes win those contests, they’ll likely have to win at least one-half of their league games and fare well in the Big 12 Tournament to have a chance to earn their first NCAA Tournament berth in 10 years, a tall task for a team predicted to finish 13th in the 16-team Big 12.

Saturday’s game was a reasonable reminder. McHenry’s 3-pointer just before halftime broke a 38-38 tie, and then he and Keanu Dawes followed with back-to-back jumpers to extend the Utes’ lead to 45-38 a minute into the second half.

Obomate Abbey’s three-point play gave Utah its largest lead, 59-49, with 14:41 left to play. However, Dominique Daniels Jr. scored four in an 8-0 spurt and Cal Baptist cut it to 59-57 three minutes later and the rest of the game remained close.

Daniels paced Cal Baptist’s offense. This year’s WAC preseason MVP showed he could play with anybody with 31 points and 11 rebounds. The Lancers also boasted a tall front line and frustrated the Utes with a 47-30 rebound advantage.

After starting the season with a program-best seven straight wins, Cal Baptist has endured a week-long road trip that has included a win at Oregon State and then three straight losses at Colorado, BYU and now Utah.

After BYU dismantled the Lancers 91-60 Wednesday, the Utes had to feel the pressure to follow their local rival and avoided the upset by shooting nearly 50% from the field (27 of 55) and 80% (29 of 37) from the free-throw line.

They also committed just nine turnovers.

“Our guards did a good job of not trying to force (passes),” said Jensen. “I’m happy for our guys. No win is easy.

“(Winning) is a mindset. There is a learning curve,” he added. “This is a different team and I’m trying to give everybody confidence. At times, we’re going to give up size, especially when we get into the Big 12. The hardest part is (player) rotation. Their job is to be ready.”

Patrick, a newcomer from Germany, found his niche with a deep corner jumper. He finished with 11 points and was 3 for 3 from 3-point range. Dawes had 10 points and seven assists.

Patrick said he was happy to contribute and happily expressed his confidence.

“I’m confident in my shooting and I believe every shot I take is going to fall,” he said. “If I miss a shot, I’ll make the next one.”