Runnin’ Utes Grab Fourth Straight Win With Second Half Surge Against UTSA
Dec 13, 2022, 8:58 PM
Utah Utes center Branden Carlson (35) lays it up over UTSA Roadrunners forward Jacob Germany (24) during the game at the Huntsman Center in Salt Lake City on Tuesday, Dec. 13, 2022. (Spenser Heaps, Deseret News)
(Spenser Heaps, Deseret News)
SALT LAKE CITY – The University of Utah Runnin’ Utes picked up their fourth straight win as they beat UTSA 91-70 on Tuesday night at the Huntsman Center.
The Runnin’ Utes outscored UTSA 39-34 in the first half before opening up the game in the second half with 52 points and allowing the Roadrunners to score just 36 points.
Branden Carlson led the way with 27 points and eight rebounds. Marco Anthony notched a double-double with 16 points and 10 rebounds. Gabe Madsen chipped in 16 points on 6-of-13 shooting from the field. Lazar Stefanovic added 10 points.
Final here at the Huntsman! pic.twitter.com/6gsN8cJbfu
— Utah Basketball (@UtahMBB) December 14, 2022
First Half
After jumping out to an 18-6 lead, the Runnin’ Utes allowed the Roadrunners to go on an 11-2 run to pull within three, 20-17 with 8:47 remaining in the first half. That run eventually extended to 15-2 and a 25-22 lead for UTSA at the under-eight media timeout.
After that run ended, Utah went on a 17-3 run to bring their lead to 39-31 with under two minutes left in the opening half. The Utes took a 39-34 lead at the halftime break. Branden Carlson was the only Utah player to score in double figures in the first 20 minutes with 10 points to go with four rebounds. Marco Anthony added six points, five rebounds, and three assists. Rollie Worster chipped in five points, three rebounds, and three assists.
The Runnin’ Utes shot 53% from the field and 33% from the three-point line. UTSA was led by Japhet Medor with 15 points, along with 10 points from DJ Richards. The duo combined for 25 of UTSA’s 34 first-half points.
Second Half
Utah decided in the second half to not let UTSA stick around and have a chance to get an upset road win. The Runnin’ Utes outscored the Roadrunners 32-14 in the first 12 minutes of the second half and held a 71-48 lead.
Utah never looked back at that point.
The Runnin’ Utes improved its record to 9-2 overall with wins over Westminster, Long Island, CSU Bakersfield, Idaho State, Georgia Tech, St. Thomas, Arizona, Washington State, Jacksonville State, and UTSA. Their losses came against Sam Houston State and Mississippi State.
Utah has two more games left in their non-conference schedule. They will head to Provo to face rival BYU on Saturday, December 17 at 4:00 p.m. MT on CBS Sports Network and KSL Sports Zone will have the BYU broadcast with the New Mexico Bowl airing on KSL Newsradio. Then the Runnin’ Utes will wrap up non-conference play with a game against TCU at Vivint Arena on Wednesday, December 21 at 7:00 p.m. MT on Pac-12 Mountain.
