/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/70503479/AP22044121708164.7.jpg)
First-year Runnin’ Utes coach Craig Smith continues to apologize for sounding like a damaged report, and his crew continues to play like one thing wants fixing within the ultimate minutes of shut basketball video games.
That acquainted storyline to the 2021-22 season performed out once more Saturday night time in Boulder, Colorado, because the gritty and decided Utes gave all of it that they had for a lot of the sport however fell quick when it mattered most.
Overcoming 11-point deficits in each halves, Colorado escaped with an 81-76 win in entrance of an introduced crowd of seven,988 at CU Occasions Heart.
“We'll be taught from this and develop and get higher,” Smith stated.
Hassle is, the Utes are working out of video games. They're enhancing — that’s pretty simple to see — however with these guys, if it isn’t one factor, it’s one other.
They maintain repeating the identical expensive errors, significantly late in winnable video games.
Saturday night time, the issue, apart from not making performs within the ultimate couple of minutes, was free throws.
The Utes didn’t get to shoot sufficient of them to maintain tempo with Colorado, and when Utah did get them, it didn’t make them prefer it has been for a lot of the first 23 video games of the season.
“It's arduous,” Smith stated. “We're giving ourselves an opportunity to win a few of these video games in several methods, and I really like how arduous we're enjoying, however we missed two entrance ends in that first half.”
That’s 4 potential factors the Utes — with little or no margin for error — squandered away.
The Utes went 5 of 14 from the free-throw line within the first half, and 5 for five within the second half.
“I don’t suppose it's particularly one factor (conserving Utah from profitable shut video games),” stated junior heart Branden Carlson, who had a career-high 25 factors, however solely 4 within the second half.
“I simply suppose every sport there's a completely different facet that simply hurts us ultimately. Like tonight, considered one of them was we didn’t make our free throws, the place normally we're a superb free-throw taking pictures crew.”
Utah (9-16, 2-13) has now misplaced 12 of its final 13 video games, and this one was very like the final half-dozen or so.
As soon as once more, the Utes failed to complete. Add Colorado to the prolonged listing of groups which have defeated Utah by 5 factors or fewer this season.
Colorado (15-9, 7-7) outscored the Utes 32-17 within the final 10 minutes to get the much-needed win, its second in a row after three straight losses put it exterior the NCAA Event bubble.
“The second half particularly was a really, very bodily and rugged sport,” Smith stated.
Attempting to win a real street sport for the primary time this season, Utah jumped out to an 8-0 lead and was up 29-18 with six minutes remaining within the first half.
However the Utes missed two free throws and the Buffs ended the half on a 15-7 run to get again in it.
Seemingly unfazed, the Utes bought three 3-pointers from freshman Gabe Madsen within the first 5 minutes of the second half to take one other 11-point lead.
Nevertheless it slipped away, once more.
Colorado took its first lead of the sport, 66-65, with 4:29 left when Jabari Walker hit a pair of free throws, after which the Buffaloes progressively pulled away.
Walker had 16 of his team-high 22 factors within the second half.
“He is an effective participant, and I simply suppose he was getting sizzling for them on the finish,” Carlson stated. “He was making some robust performs, some robust finishes across the rim.
“So I imply, we simply gotta do a greater job of enjoying particular person protection on (good gamers), and enjoying crew protection.”
Carlson, who bought in a full week of follow for the primary time in months, based on Smith, was excellent within the first half with 21 factors on 9 of 12 taking pictures.
The remainder of the Utes have been 5 of 18 within the first half.
Within the second half, Colorado found out a option to decelerate Carlson, and he cooled off significantly.
He completed 11 of 19 and solely bought to the road as soon as, making 1 of two free throws.
“My teammates have been doing an incredible job of simply getting me the ball inside. I used to be sizzling within the first (half),” Carlson stated.
“Within the second half, yeah, I simply suppose I may need been working out of gasoline ultimately, simply not going up as sturdy as I ought to have, and a few of them simply weren’t falling for me, and there might have been extra contact than the refs have been letting on.”
Madsen (14 factors) and Utah State transfers Marco Anthony (15 factors, 12 rebounds) and Rollie Worster (12 factors earlier than fouling out) picked up the scoring slack within the second half, however the Utes suffered via a stretch with below 4 minutes left after they scored simply 4 factors — all on free throws — in six possessions.
Tristan da Silva’s 4 free throws with below 25 seconds remaining sealed it for the Buffs.
Utah was down by 4 with 22 seconds left, however didn’t get a superb look out of timeout. What occurred?
“It's a shot we have now seen (Madsen) make, actually,” Smith stated, noting that CU did a superb job jamming it up. “Nevertheless it was rushed, and the diploma of issue was excessive.”
Utah dedicated simply seven turnovers, however turnover No. 6 got here after Walker’s free throws with 4:08 left gave CU a 68-67 lead, and it was expensive.
Carlson missed closely defended pictures on back-to-back possessions, and the backbreaker was in all probability Walker’s 3-point play with 1:48 left that pushed CU out to a 73-67 lead.
The Utes entered the sport taking pictures 80% from the free-throw line, ok for sixth within the nation, however simply as in final Saturday’s 80-77 loss to Oregon after they have been 15 of 23, the misses have been expensive.
The Utes really made extra area objectives, 29 to 25, and extra 3-pointers, eight to seven, however couldn’t overcome the free-throw margin.
“The difficulty was we solely bought 5 free throws, and so they had 20 free throws, within the second half,” Smith stated. “… I imply, that could be a 14-point differential from the road, and clearly they shot 10 extra of them than us.”
The coach was additionally sad with Utah’s transition protection, as CU had 20 fast-break factors.
“The free-throw battle and the transition sport, we felt like these have been going to be two of the most important keys to the sport, to discover a option to win, and so they gained each of these, and therefore they gained by 5,” Smith stated.
Utah introduced an hour earlier than the sport that senior huge man Dusan Mahorcic is now not within the Runnin’ Utes’ program. Mahorcic was suspended indefinitely on Jan. 29 for a violation of crew guidelines.
Requested if one thing modified over the course of the final two weeks to take the self-discipline from suspension to dismissal, Smith declined additional remark aside from what was acknowledged within the information launch.