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Show BY GRIFFIN ADAMS /SPORTS EDITOR PHOTO BY CHRIS SAMUELS s the saying goes, "It's not about how hard you can hit. It's about how hard you can get hit and ke2fr moving forward." Last Saturday, No. 12 Utah was knocked down by Arizona, but it responded with a dominating win Wednesday night over Washington State 86-64. "Arizona really made me feel some type of way, I think it kind of woke us all up,' said Utah guard Brandon Taylor. "You hate to have them, but you need games like that ... I thought today, we took the fight to them opposed to Arizona when they took the fight to us." Taylor led the way for the Runnin' Utes with 18 points on 6-for-8 shooting, including four makes from behind the arc. Additionally, the guard registered seven assists. Helping Taylor out was starting backcourt mate Delon Wright, who finished with 17 points and eight assists. To the dismay of Utah fans, it became clear leading up to the game that freshman center A 4 { THECHRONY OPINION Jakob PoeItl was not going to suit up for the Utes against the Cougars. After the contest, Utah head coach Larry Krystkowiak said PoeItl was suffering from a sprained ankle, an injury he sustained in the game against the Wildcats last weekend. Adding insult to injury, Washington State had the opportunity to put points on the board without a second ticking off of the clock. During pre-game shootaround, a Utah player was caught dunking by one of the officials, which resulted in a technical foul. Washington State's Josh Hawkinson drained both free throws to give his team the lead before the start. The Utes then had a sluggish start. While Utah held the lead nearly the entire way in this game, the Cougars kept the game close for a majority of the first half. With 6:18 remaining in the slate, the Utes held just a two-point lead, 27-25. But a Jordan Loveridge three-pointer sparked a 19-2 Utah run to finish the half, giving the ARTS I SPORTS I THURSDAY, JANUARY 22, 2015 } Runnin' Utes a 46-27 halftime lead. The turnovers proved to be the deciding factor, as Utah turned the ball over just once in the first half compared to the Cougars' eight turnovers. In the second half, Washington State came out with the hot hand. The Cougars hit six threepoint attempts in the frame, leading to a comeback that saw them bring the game within 10 points with 10:18 left. With the lead slipping away, Krystkowiak inserted his go-to players back in the game to make sure that was the closest Washington State would get the rest of the night. Right after the break that saw the Cougars bring it to 10, Taylor splashed another shot from behind the arc to assure his coach the game was under control. Krystkowiak mentioned how Taylor has developed into one of his most trusted players on his roster, especially in late-game situations. "[Taylor's] an absolute little warrior," Krystkowiak said. "I, and our coaching staff, have an awful lot of faith in him. He's built up a great deal of trust ... Pound-for-pound, I think he'd kick the snot out of everyone on the basketball court" Leading the way for the Cougars was DaVont6 Lacy with 15 points, while Hawkinson and Jordan Railey each chipped in with 12 points apiece. The Runnin' Utes' next game will be on Sunday in the Huntsman Center against Washington, with tip-off at 6:30 p.m. g.adams@chronicle.utah.edu @GriffDoug |
