Three Takeaways From Utah’s Win Over Minnesota

SALT LAKE CITY, Utah – The University of Utah men’s basketball team won their third straight game to start the season after knocking off Minnesota 73-69 at the Jon M. Huntsman Center.

Both Gach and Timmy Allen combined for 38 points, scoring 19 points apiece to lead the Utes to victory.

Here is the Crimson Corner’s “three man weave” with three takeaways from the win.

Utes Stay Poised When Facing Adversity

It’s the second game in the first three that the Utes faced adversity and was able to overcome it. Against Minnesota, Utah got off to a hot 12-0 start before turnovers became a factor for the Utes and allowed the Golden Gophers to get back into the game. Utah committed 7 turnovers in the first half and had a 39-33 lead.

In the second half, the Utes stretched the lead back to 10 points but turnovers became an issue once again. Utah turned the ball over 9 times in the second half and the Gophers tied the game. But they made some key stops and had some big buckets down the stretch and then made their free throws to clinch the win. The Utes shot 16-of-24 from the free throw line and made 12-for-17 in the second half. It’s impressive that his young team is getting wins when they very well could have lost due to the amount of young players on the team.

That 3️⃣-0️⃣ feeling❗️ #GoUtes🏀🔴 pic.twitter.com/Q929TwEayW

— Utah Basketball🏀 (@UtahMBB) November 16, 2019

No Hangover From 94-Point Win

Utah’s last game before Minnesota was a 94-point win over Mississippi Valley State, which set the Division I record the largest margin of victory between two D-I schools. The focus could’ve changed with the mindset that Utah could have maybe been over confident against a good Minnesota team. That wasn’t the case on Friday night as Utah played their game and ran their offense and also played very well defensively.

They limited Minnesota to 35 percent shooting from the field and 36 percent from downtown. The Golden Gophers also struggled at the free-throw line, knocking down just 5 of their 12 attempts for 41 percent.

Rylan Jones Is A Special Player

After becoming just the second freshman in Pac-12 history to record a triple-double, Rylan Jones continued to show that he is going to be a special player for this Utah program. He recorded 10 points, 2 rebounds, 6 assists and 2 steals in 35 minutes. But, his defense and on-court leadership won’t show up on the stat sheet other than whether Utah wins or not.

After a good run of point guards coming into the program under Larry Krystkowiak, including Delon Wright, Lorenzo Bonam and Sedrick Barefield, Jones is on pace to be even more special than those three players.

It's very early but the Runnin' Utes have already exceeded expectations. This is a fun team to watch. They play together. Timmy Allen and Both Gach are stars. Rylan Jones doesn't play the point like a freshman and this team has size inside. pic.twitter.com/dH2qszWT0s

— Jeremiah Jensen (@JJSportsBeat) November 16, 2019

Utah will begin the Myrtle Beach Invitational on Thursday in Conway, South Carolina and will face Coastal Carolina at 5 p.m. The game will be broadcast on ESPNU or ESPNNews.

The Crimson Corner podcast is the one-stop for all things University of Utah Athletics hosted by Utah insider Trevor Allen. Ute fans will find interviews with current players, coaches, and staff alongside expert analysis of every game, story and angle coming out of the University of Utah.