First-Half Struggles Too Much to Overcome as Utah Falls To Arizona State
Feb 4, 2026, 9:10 PM | Updated: Feb 5, 2026, 11:12 am
Feb 4, 2026; Salt Lake City, Utah, USA; Arizona State Sun Devils guard Maurice Odum (5) goes to the basket against Utah Utes forward James Okonkwo (32) during the first half at Jon M. Huntsman Center. Mandatory Credit: Rob Gray-Imagn Images
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SALT LAKE CITY— Utah spent 20 minutes digging a hole. It spent the next 20 minutes clawing out of it. Unfortunately, the deficit was too much, as the Utes fell to Arizona State 71-63.
Arizona State controlled nearly the entire night, leading for 38:33. The Utes trailed 41–25 at halftime after an opening stretch defined by turnovers, missed layups and a complete offensive disconnect against ASU’s length-heavy 2–3 zone.
After building an 18-point first-half cushion before surviving Utah’s furious second-half push.
Utah’s Hectic, Sloppy Opening
Utah controlled the tip — and immediately looked out of rhythm. McHenry missed a contested corner three. Okonkwo grabbed the offensive rebound but McHenry turned it over and fouled on the same sequence. Arizona State scored first at the line, then Maurice Odum drilled a transition three after stripping Brown to make it 4–0.
The first four minutes were chaos. Four Utah turnovers. Offensive fouls. Stripped rebounds. Zero flow. Dawes settled things briefly with a paint jumper. Traore knocked down a three to give Utah a 5–4 lead. But that was the last moment Utah controlled anything.
ASU answered immediately — layups, threes, second chances. Utah generated decent looks out of the first media timeout, including a clean wing three for Brown, but nothing dropped.
And when Utah didn’t score, Arizona State punished them. By the midway point of the half, the Sun Devils had stretched the lead to 22–14. By the next media timeout, it was 29–14. Utah had no answers for the zone.
The Zone That Broke Utah
Arizona State packed the paint with length and made every driving lane feel like a hallway narrowing by the second. Utah shot just 9-of-27 in the first half (33%), turned it over nine times, and managed only 25 points .
Brown, Utah’s primary initiator, was scoreless at the break (0-for-4) and struggling to create space. McHenry was aggressive — he finished with 11 first-half points — but most possessions felt forced.
ASU, meanwhile, was efficient:
- 16-of-31 shooting (52%) in the first half
- 4-of-11 from three
- 16 paint points
- 9 points off turnovers
Arizona State went to the locker room up 41–25. It wasn’t just the deficit. It was the body language. Utah looked disconnected.
A Completely Different Second Half
Then something shifted. ASU opened in man defense after halftime, and Utah immediately attacked. Traore scored inside. He buried a corner three. McHenry found rhythm in transition. Okonkwo dominated the glass.
Utah shot 14-of-30 (47%) in the second half and 5-of-12 from three . The effort level changed. The pace changed. The energy changed.
At one point, Utah trimmed the lead to 43–36 after:
- A McHenry three
- A McHenry steal and fast-break layup
- Consecutive defensive stops
The Huntsman woke up. But every time Utah cut it to single digits, ASU answered — often at the free-throw line. Massamba Diop lived there. He finished 9-of-10 at the stripe and scored 15 points despite shooting just 3-of-11 from the field .
The math was brutal. Arizona State went 18-of-21 from the free-throw line. Utah went 8-of-13 . That’s a 10-point gap in a four-point game.
The Final Push
With just under eight minutes left, Brown finally made his first field goal of the night. It felt like the turning point. Traore drilled a three to make it 65–59 with two minutes remaining. McHenry scored in transition to cut it to 65–61 with 1:33 left.
The Huntsman Center was fully alive. Utah had 90 seconds and momentum. After the timeout, Odum hit a tough floater to push it to 67–61. Brown turned it over on the next possession.
Utah got a stop. Okonkwo scored inside with 20 seconds left to make it 71–63. But there wasn’t enough time or gas left in the tank to complete the comeback.
The Numbers That Matter
From the official box score :
Utah
- Don McHenry: 23 points (8-17 FG, 4-9 3FG)
- Seydou Traore: 16 points (4-8 from three)
- James Okonkwo: 14 rebounds (8 offensive)
- Terrence Brown: 6 points on 2-15 shooting
Arizona State
- Diop: 15 points, 8 rebounds
- Odum: 13 points, 3 assists, 3 steals
- Anthony Johnson: 12 points
Utah actually outscored ASU 38–26 in the second half . But the damage was done early.
The Bottom Line
Utah’s second-half performance showed connectivity, urgency, and offensive clarity. The first half showed what happens when possessions are careless and defensive focus wavers. The Jekyl & Hyde of Utah basketball.
Arizona State dictated tempo early. Utah reacted late. And in conference play, spotting a team an 18-point first-half lead is like starting the game down two possessions in football — you can recover, but you better be perfect.
This was a gut punch loss for Utah. An even slightly better first half showing and maybe the Utes have a win. Unfortunately, the Utes have given away too many games like this and it comes at a cost. As the fanbase finally started to get behind this team, the squad has provided two really disappointing lackluster efforts.
Coach Jensen has to figure what this team needs in order to finish the season on some kind of positive note.
