No. 2 Arizona Basketball travels to Utah for showdown with Utes

Currently riding an eight-game win streak, No. 2 Arizona Basketball (24-2, 14-1) returns to action to take on Pac-12 foe, the Utah Utes (11-16, 4-13). 

Now up to No. 2 in the country and riding an eight-game winning streak, Arizona Basketball is back in action as they travel to Salt Lake City, UT to take on the Utes for the start of a daunting, three-game road trip.

As we all saw last week, the Wildcats were tested, but still come away with big wins, outlasting Oregon State, followed by a battle in which Arizona just eeked out a victory over the Oregon Ducks.

Against Utah, Arizona should have a bit of an easier challenge as the Utes are not a particularly great team and also may be without their star Center, Branden Carlson.

Now while Arizona is favored by double-digits in this one, this is a game that the Wildcats cannot afford to get complacent in. The Cats need to be sharp from the start if they are going to win, and hopefully, Tommy Lloyd will have the Wildcats ready to go and ready to start this road trip off on the right foot.

Getting to Know the details of Arizona Basketball’s opponent, the Utah Utes.

Team: Utah Utes

Conference: Pac-12 Conference

2020-21 Record: Finishing the year with a 12-13 (8-11) record in 2020-21, the Utes finished as the No. 7 team in the conference, ending their season with a Conference Tournament loss to USC in the quarterfinals.

Head Coach: Craig Smith enters his 1st season with the Utes after successful stints at Mayville State (2004-07), South Dakota (2014-18), and Utah State (2018-21). Compiling a 236-124 record as a head coach, Craig currently is 11-16 at Utah and looks to turn around a program that saw mediocrity for many years under Larry Krystkowiak.

Keys to the Game:

Protect the Basketball – As we are all too familiar with by now, it is that Arizona plays at a fast pace, and as a result, turnovers happen fairly often, and the Wildcats go through some rather rough stretches of basketball.

Against a Utah team that doesn’t steal the basketball much and is forcing teams to 10.3 turnovers per game, this is a matchup that should favor the Wildcats significantly. If Arizona can protect the basketball, they should come away with the big win here!

No Slow Starts – Arizona is notorious for having slow starts, and against Oregon, it happened once again. Against weaker opponents, that might be okay; however, against an opportunist team like Utah, that cannot happen if they expect to win, especially since they are playing on the road.

So as the Wildcats kick off their tough road trip, Arizona will need to be ready from the tip and avoid yet another slow start. Should the Wildcats take care of business from the tip, they are going to be tough to beat.

Staying Sharp – Aside from a few small rough stretches against the Oregon schools, Arizona looked rather sharp overall and proved why they are the best team in the Pac-12.

Against a Utah team that may not be particularly great, the Wildcats will need to stay sharp in this one if they are going to come away with the win. Arizona cannot afford to get complacent and let the Utes stay in this one.

Arizona Basketball versus the Utah Utes game information and details:

Date: Thursday, Feb. 24, 2022

Time: 9:00 P.M. MST / 8:00 P.M. PST

Location: Jon M. Huntsman Center, Salt Lake City, Utah (15,000)

Spread: -11.5 Arizona (Also, don’t forget to use WynnBet to enhance your overall betting experience)

Television: FS1

Radio: 107.5 FM (Tucson) / 1290AM (Tucson) | Arizona IMG Sports Network

Team Records:

No. 2 Arizona Wildcats (24-2, 14-1): After dominating Oregon State and escaping against Oregon, Arizona returns to action to take on Utah in what should be a tough challenge to kick off a daunting road trip for the Wildcats.

Utah Utes (11-16, 4-13): Entering this game fresh off a win over Cal, the Utes will have a tough battle on their hands as they welcome a talented and deep Arizona team that is now up to No. 2 in the country.

Head-to-Head Record (since 1949-50): Since 1949-50, Arizona has had a slight advantage here, owning a 36-31 lead over Utah. However, since joining the Pac-12, the Cats have dominated, winning 15 of the last 18 matchups.

Last Meeting vs. Arizona: The last time the Wildcats played the Utes was in Tucson as Arizona came away with the big, 18-point win, defeating the Utes 82-64.

My Prediction: Arizona 83 Utah 68 – Arizona looked dominant the last time these two teams met and once again, I see the Wildcats still coming away with a win here as they are far too deep and talented for the Utes. To make things more problematic, Utah may be without center Branden Carlson. Should that be the case, look for the Cats to win big!