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Show THE DAILY UTAH CHRONiCLE MONDAY, 17 US A JANUARY 10, 2000 IS SO ME MEN'S BASKETBALL STANDINGS Finnish Star Leads Utes in Title Hunt STERLING CLIFFORD Chronicle Sports Writer As a freshman, Mottola played in every game but one, averaged six Mottola is good really good. You can count off the awards, the point totals, the career highlights and all the counting will bring you to Hanno three words. He is good. Good enough that the question isn't will he go to the NBA, but how high will he be drafted. Sports Illustrated coverboy, Wooden and Naismith award candidate, Playand boy athlete, Mottola is in his first year as Utah's premier player. two-tim- e All-WA- C JJM hi game The injury could have come at a worse time, maybe the end of this season instead of the beginning, but the timing was still pretty poor. When Mottola went out, Utes Trent Whiting, Nate Althoff and Adam Sharp were already recovering from injuries. Utah had a second round preseason NIT game with Kentucky just three : days after the injury. The draft that will make Mottola a millionaire approaches, and scouts, tend to remember things like a serious injury (an injury that, despite reports to the contrary, did not require , surgery). What Mottola would probably like the scouts to remember is how hard he points per game and was the most accurate shooter on the team. Not bad for a first-yeplayer slotted behind Utah legend Keith Van Horn. As a sophomore, Mottola started every game and was named to die West Region Team after the NCAA Tournament One year ago, Mottola led the team in scoring during the conference seaand led the son, was named "conference in percentage. Mottola's success has come with such consistency it barely gets men tioned as news. In each of the previous three seasons, Utah had someone else carrying the burden of meeting the team's expectations. First it was Van Horn, then Mike Doleac, then Andre Miller, This year, it is Mottola's turn. He is the man to lead Utah to its sixth straight conference title. Nominated for a slew of preseason awards, it was clear from the start that Utah needs V Mottola. "He's the next best "thing to having Andre in there," teammate Tony Harvey said. "He can do a lot of things for us and he's a great leader." In three years, Mottola missed only one game during his freshman year and that because of a commitment to the Finnish national team So in some cosmic." way it almost made seme when the senior went down with a knee injury hi the first ar All-WA- free-thro- of the season. C w worked to get back in the game. "Every day he was working on that knee," Phil Cullen said. "It's a real tribute to him." The work Mottola put into his rehabilitation brought him back two weeks earlier than originally anticipated. Mottola has sat out seven games this season during which time the Utes suffered two of their three losses. Would the Utes have won those games if Mottola had been healthy? "Only God would know that " Utah coach Rick Majerus said. They certainly would have, had a see M6TT6LA, page W L W I BYU 0 0 11 2 Utah 0 0 11 3 UKLV 0 0 9 3 Colorado St. 0 0 10 4 Wyoming New Mexico 0 0 9 4 0 0 8 7 San Diego St. 0 Air Force 0 0 5 7 0 4 7 Tonight's Games Utah at San Diego Slate, 10 p.m. BYU at returned Wyoming 16 Utes Are Easy Pick But Who's Second? n that Hanno is better, Jeremy is better,, but every year it's a Kil-lio- STERLING CLIFFORD Chronicle Sports Columnist Rick Majerus never wants people to think his Utes are that good especially at the beginning of the season. "We always start slow," the head coach said early in the season, "but we are always there at tournament time, so we must be doing something right." True to form, Utah began the 1999-0- 0 season losing two of its first four games. It didn't help that Hanno Mottola went down in the first game of the season with a knee injury. Without the 24 points per game Mottola has averaged since his return, the Utes lost the second game of the year to their nemesis Kentucky, and the fourth game to an excited Weber State team in Ogden. Mottola returned to the Utes' lineup against Chicago State, but had his biggest game of the season four nights later against the Texas xi Longhoms, scoring a career-hig- h points. The Utes have won nine of their last :o games going into tonight's conference season opener at San Diego State, but the question remains: Can Utah run through the first season of the MWC the way it did through the last season of the WAC? Don't ask Majerus. e . He won't last year's team to his newest version. "I never do that; every year is different," Majerus said. Til tell you con-par- different team." It can be hard to get a handle on how good the Utes are. An 3 record is impressive, as was the Utah win over Texas. What is unimpressive is the Utes' losses to Kentucky and Louisville. The Utes appeared overmatched during both games. The Utes are not, however, likely to be overmatched in the conference season. The MVC landscape looks different than it did at the start of the season. Wyoming looks worse, BYU looks better, but the Utes are still the overwhelming favorite to win the conference. The bottom line is, struggling or not, Utah is head and shoulders above the rest of the MWC. 11-- Literals-Assum- ing everyone is healthy, Nate Mottola, and Utah starts Althoff, Alex Jensen. That's a front court no team in the conference can match. Mottola is without question the top player in the conference, and while he couldn't carry the Utes past Louisville, he could probably beat much of the MWC with The Daily Utah Chronicle sports staff filling the other four spots on the 1 floor. There are seven other teams in the conference, and one of them will have to place second, though. Want to know who it is? You're in luck. I'll tell you, but first, everyone else. Last place in the MWC goes to Air see CLiFFORP, page 16 POOR COPY The Utes 1 an the favorites to win the first MWC UNLV. Colorado St., 7 p.m. 8 p.m. Denver at Air force, 7 p.m. - Hanno Mottola is recently from a knee injury. at New Mexico title, largely bc?'jse cf Hanno Mottola. at Wichita St., 7:30 p.m. |
