Utah Basketball Falls To No. 22 Arizona, 83-66
Feb 26, 2025, 9:06 PM
Feb 26, 2025; Tucson, Arizona, USA; Utah Utes head coach Josh Eilert watches from the sidelines during the first half against the Arizona Wildcats at McKale Center. Mandatory Credit: Aryanna Frank-Imagn Images
SALT LAKE CITY—Utah basketball has had a whirlwind of a few days, but they traveled south to Tucson to take on the No. 22 Arizona Wildcats.
In Josh Eilert’s first game as the interim head coach, the Utes kept pace but were never able to trim Arizona’s lead to single-digits, and the Wildcats won 83-66
Keanu Dawes was fantastic tonight, finishing with 18 points on 6-of-8 from the field, while adding 10 rebounds. Ezra Ausar battled hard and finished with 18 points on 6-of-17 from the field.
The story of the game was Utah’s turnover issues, which have been a constant on the road all season long. Today, the Utes gave it away 19 times, which led to 20 direct points, and allowed the Knights to attempt 16 more total shots in this one.
Starters for Utah against Arizona
Craig Smith stuck with the same starting five, which were as follows:
Mike Sharavjamts, Gabe Madsen, Jake Wahlin, Ezra Ausar, and Lawson Lovering.
First Half, Runnin’ Utes Vs. Wildcats
Utah started the game fairly well against Arizona. Lawson Lovering scored the first bucket of the game off of a strong post-up and Ezra Ausar threw down a dunk shortly thereafter. However, the Wildcats started much better as they opened up the first four minutes converting 4-of-7 shots from the field to take an 8-4 lead at the first media timeout.
15:58 – After the break, Gabe Madsen banked in a 3-pointer and Ausar added a free throw on the next possession. Unfortunately, Utah’s turnovers added up over the next couple of minutes and Arizona was able to build a 16-8 lead before Josh Eilert called a timeout.
On the ensuing possession, Utah created an open look for Miro Little and he knocked down a 3-pointer. Arizona responded with five quick points to extend the lead to 10 points at the second media timeout.
11:31 – The offensive struggles continued but the Utes were able to find some rhythm. Lovering added a strong finish at the rim, followed by a Mason Madsen 3-pointer. Arizona did answer on the other end but Keanu Dawes and Ezra Ausar scored on back-to-back possessions, which made it 28-20 by the third media timeout.
6:14 – After the timeout, Caleb Lover knocked down a corner 3-pointer off the inbound play. On the other end, Dawes finished at the rim in traffic. After a Utah turnover, Love then knocked down another 3-pointer. Then another turnover led to a bucket for Jaden Bradley and the biggest lead of the game. Fortunately, Dawes knocked down a 3-pointer to trim the lead. But another turnover led to a transition opportunity and foul on Utah.
3:39 – KJ Lewis knocked down a couple of free throws to give Arizona a 38-25 lead. Utah did cut the lead to 10 after a pair of Dawes’ free throws and a Gabe Madsen 3-pointer. However, the Wildcats responded with a flurry to return it to a 16-point cushion. After a poor shot selection by Arizona, Utah was able to take it the other way with :08 seconds left and Dawes threw down a dunk to make it 46-32 at the half.
Second Half – Utah 32, Arizona 46
Both teams started the second half really sluggishly; neither scored during the first two minutes. Eventually, Arizona broke through and scored six unanswered points before Utah got on the board with a pair of Madsen free throws. Unfortunately, those would be the only points Utah scored. On the other end, Arizona added a couple more buckets to take a 55-34 lead into the first media timeout of the half.
15:44 – After a pair of Arizona free throws, Ausar got it going with a dunk on Utah’s first possession. Then Dawes got a layup to foul plus the foul and sunk the free throw, which made it a 57-39 game. Unfortunately, Arizona maintained a 20-ish point cushion and went into the second media break up 63-41.
11:52 – Ausar continued to do the heavy lifting offensively for Utah. He knocked down two free throws and added a layup in traffic on the next possession. Mike Sharavjamts knocked down a 3-pointer for his first points of the game. Then Ausar finished another layup through contact and drew the foul, which sent the 69-50 game to the third media break.
7:50 – Ausar missed the free throw but after a defensive stop, Utah turned it loose in transition and Dawes threw down a big dunk. Ausar added another tough finish at the rim. Unfortunately, Arizona answered with a bucket of their own after each make. Then, both Lovering converted a pair of free throws and Ausar 1-of-2 on consecutive possessions. Sharavjamts added another pullup jumper, making it a 75-69 game.
3:32 – Before the break, G. Madsen was fouled and converted both free throws to make it 75-61. The Utes finished the final three minutes with five more points, while the Wildcats knocked down a few shots late to give them the 83-66 win.
UP NEXT – Arizona State vs Utah
Utah returns home to the friendly confines of the Jon M. Huntsman Center this weekend as it plays host a familiar face from the Valley of the Sun on Saturday, March 1, in Arizona State. Pete Sousa will once again have the call and will be joined by former Arizona Wildcat Corey Williams on the ESPN+ broadcast set to start at 5 p.m. (MST) as the two former Pac-12 programs battle it out as members of the Big 12 Conference.
