Utah Comfortably Tops Rival BYU 83-75

BYU made the scoreline look respectable, but the final score doesn’t tell the full story of the game. While the Cougars may have bulled within eight, they were comfortably dispatched by the Utah Utes 83-75.

The Utes went into halftime with a 23 point lead on the back of center Jakob Poeltl, who many consider to be a lottery pick in the NBA Draft. BYU started the second half with a 15 point flurry, but it wasn’t enough to close the gap.

The first half was a little disheartening,” BYU coach Dave Rose said. “I thought we had a good plan, but they were the aggressors from the very first. We had a hard time guarding the dribble penetration. When we did bring someone to help, they found an open shooter and they shot the ball well.”

On the other side of the ball, Poeltl’s dominance was the story as he converted 11 of his 16 shots. “We all know how good Jakob is,” Utah guard Kenneth Ogbe said. “He’s a NBA guy. That’s where the ball has to go. He opens up the floor for us. We get open threes because of him.

“He’s our most important player.”

Not only does the rivalry victory give the Utes a boost in morale, but it will prove a good non-conference road win when Selection Sunday rolls around.

Photo: Utah guard Jakob Poeltl, left, scores against Stephen F. Austin forward Clide Geffrard during the first half of an NCAA college basketball second-round game in Portland, Ore., Thursday, March 19, 2015. (AP Photo/Craig Mitchelldyer)

Article by Joe Kozlowski