Takeaways From Utah’s Brutal 70-36 Loss To No. 7 Houston
Jan 22, 2025, 7:14 PM | Updated: Jan 23, 2025, 1:06 pm
SALT LAKE CITY—Despite having an extra day to prepare for the game, the Runnin’ Utes failed significantly against the Houston Cougars. The Utes fell to the No. 7 team in the country, 70-36, as they turned the ball over twice as many times as they scored a bucket.
Utah did not have a single player in double-figures, as Gabe Madsen’s 3-of-10 shooting led to a team-leading 8 points in the game. Keanu Dawes finished with 7, Miro Little with 6, and Jake Wahlin added 5 points.
The Utes will return home for the next two games, starting on Saturday with a tough matchup against the Baylor Bears. The Utes have a lot of work to do between now and then if they hope to get back into the win column against a team that beat them 81-56 just a few weeks ago.
Here are some takeaways from the game…
Utah struggles against Houston’s defensive pressure should also serve as a lesson for their own defense
In the opening nine minutes, the Utes turned the ball over eight times and went scoreless for five minutes. That allowed Houston to go on a 15-0 run and build a 23-5 lead. The rate of turnovers did not slow down much. Utah finished the first half with 14 turnovers, which resulted in just three more points than turnovers in the half.
Utah’s turnover rate slowed slightly in the second half, but not significantly. They still had double-digit turnovers and finished with 24 in the game. As a result, that led to 29 points off of turnovers for Houston, as well as a new season-high in steals with 19.
The Utes looked completely outmatched on the offensive end. They were unable to match Houston’s physicality inside or on the perimeter. The Cougars contested everything, making it particularly difficult for Utah’s interior offense.
Utah’s typical ball movement was incapable of creating good scoring opportunities. The Cougars rotated defensively with incredible urgency and either jumped passing lanes or took away any daylight they may have opened up.
Houston is the top defensive unit in the country for many reasons. It’s not just that they have tremendous athletes who play hard and pressure ball handlers. They are remarkably detailed as a defensive unit and rarely put themselves in costly situations.
Their rotations were precise, and Houston either closed out any openings or took the ball the other way by jumping passing lanes. Utah’s bigs could barely secure passes and turn to the rim before a Houston defender swiped at the ball.
Utah obviously needs to perform better offensively; 26 turnovers will not lead to many positive results. However, they should also take away from this game just how urgent Houston was on the defensive end of the floor.
Utah lacked detail in execution on both ends
The Utes have learned important lessons against some good programs in their opening league games. However, they met an entirely different beast in this one against Houston’s defense. This game highlighted how far Utah has to go to close the gap between them and the top of the conference.
Despite Utah’s size advantage, the Cougars finished the game with 28 points in the paint. They scored on 58% of their possessions and averaged 1.228 points per possession.
Their ball movement led to consistent scoring opportunities inside and out. When Houston moved the ball offensively, and Utah defenders reacted, the Cougars seemed to know exactly where to find teammates for open looks.
Meanwhile, Utah scored on just 25% of its possessions, averaging .571 points per possession. Utah was 13-of-43 from the field, 5-of-17 from 3-point range, and turned the ball over 26 times. Again, it looked completely out of sorts offensively.
In many ways, this game highlighted that Utah has only learned the basics of Big 12 play. Utah has adjusted to the effort level and toughness needed to compete in the league. However, they must significantly raise their level of execution to compete against the top of the conference.
The Utes were just too messy on both ends of the floor. They played hard but to play even harder. They need to be more secure with the ball and apply greater pressure on opponents. More importantly, they need to be more precise in their actions, offensively and defensively. That’s on Coach Smith and his staff to provide that clarity in practice as much as the players must execute it in games.
An emotional toll after a rivalry win?
We know there is an emotional and physical toll after the rivalry game in football; it certainly seemed like the basketball team experienced one in this game.
Maybe there is or isn’t, but without question, Utah just looked sluggish. This isn’t to excuse the performance at all though, because this is life in the Big 12. There are going to be tough opponents, night in and night out, whether you just played a bitter rival or not.
Utah not only has to raise its level of play in these types of matchups but also has to raise its level of consistency from game to game. Utah has to dig deep and find ways to at least be competitive in these games.
