Meet The Opponent: Utah Has Tradition Of Success In Women's Basketball

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – Indiana women’s basketball coach Teri Moren was blunt when asked her assessment of the Hoosiers’ NCAA Tournament foe – Utah.

“I don't know a whole lot about Utah,” Moren said on Sunday after the field was selected. “I know this about them. There's tradition there. They're a winning program, and they've been very successful.”

Utah is a lot like Indiana in that the Utes have been regulars in the NCAA Tournament field without breaking through to the Final Four.

This is the fourth straight tournament appearance for Utah and 20th overall. Like Indiana, the furthest the Utes have gotten in the tournament is a regional final appearance.

That came in 2006 while Indiana’s regional final appearance came in 2021, but Utah has been very good in recent seasons. In 2023, Utah reached a peak of No. 3 in the women’s basketball poll, their highest-ever ranking. In 2024, Utah got as high as No. 4 in the poll.

Utah’s success created a unique situation. Lynne Roberts, the architect of Utah’s recent success, was wooed by the WNBA’s Los Angeles Sparks as head coach just four games into Utah’s season. She was replaced by Gavin Petersen in November, but Utah wasn’t too adversely affected. Utah was 13-5 in the Big 12 Conference.

Here's a further breakdown of the Utes.

Key players

• G Gianna Kneepkens: 19.2 ppg, 5.1 rpg.
• F Maye Toure: 13 ppg, 6.8 rpg.
• G Kennady McQueen: 10.5 ppg, 3.5 rpg.
• G Maty Wilke: 9.3 ppg.
• F Jenna Johnson: 8.1 ppg, 4.5 rpg.
• F Reese Ross: 8 ppg.
• G Ines Vieira.: 5.2 ppg.
• G Brooke Walker: 1.8 ppg.

2024-25 Schedule (22-8)

• W, 105-52, Southern Utah, Nov. 4.
• W, 86-46, Weber State, Nov. 7.
• L, 71-69, at Northwestern, Nov. 14.
• W, 118-50, McNeese State, Nov. 18.
• W, 72-71, OT, Saint Joseph’s, Nov. 22.
• W, 72-53, Montana State, Nov. 24.
• L, 66-62, Mississippi State, Nov. 28 – Cayman Islands.
• W, 78-67, Notre Dame, Nov. 30 – Cayman Islands.
• W, 87-34, Utah State, Dec. 4.
• W, 79-76, Princeton, Dec. 8.
• W, 67-57, at Washington, Dec. 14.
• W, 102-82, Arizona State, Dec. 21.
• W, 69-48, at Arizona, Dec. 31.
• W, 75-67, at Iowa State, Jan. 5.
• L, 71-47, Kansas State, Jan. 8.
• W, 69-42, Houston, Jan. 11.
• L, 70-61, at Baylor, Jan. 14.
• L, 81-73, at TCU, Jan. 17.
• W, 79-61, Kansas, Jan. 22.
• W, 81-76, at BYU, Jan. 25.
• W, 67-58, Arizona, Jan. 31.
• W, 70-64, at Texas Tech, Feb. 5.
• W, 95-51, Central Florida, Feb. 8.
• W, 77-60, Colorado, Feb. 12.
• W, 98-62, at Arizona State, Feb. 15.
• L, 68-64, Oklahoma State, Feb. 18.
• W, 92-65, at Cincinnati, Feb. 23.
• L, 75-46, at West Virginia, Feb. 26.
• W, 76-73, OT, BYU, March 1.
• L, 75-64, Texas Tech, March 6 – Big 12 Tournament.

Series history

• The two teams have never met.

Head coach: Gavin Petersen

Petersen is in his first season at Utah and has a record of 19-7. Petersen was hired on Nov. 22, 2024, after coach Lynne Roberts left Utah four games into the season to take the head coaching job with the WNBA’s Los Angeles Sparks. Petersen has been an assistant coach since 2002. His stops include Hawaii (2002-04, 2011-13), Idaho State (2004-08), Idaho (2008-11), Pacific (2013-15) and Utah (2015-24).

Strengths

Utah is one of the best 3-point shooting teams in the country, both in terms of volume and accuracy. Utah ranks in the top 20 nationally in 3-pointers made (10 per game, ranked 6th), 3-pointers attempted (26.9, ranked 11th) and 3-point percentage (37.1%, ranked 14th).

Utah’s perimeter attack is balanced, too. Leading scorer Gianna Kneepkens (45% 3-point) is one of three Utes over 40% from beyond the arc. Fellow guards Maty Wilke (43.1%) and Kennady McQueen (42.7%) are also sharpshooters.

Utah also ranks eighth nationally in assists. Guard Ines Vieira leads the way at 4.8 assists per game, but Kneepkens (3.1 apg) and forward Jenna Johnson (2.8 apg) can also dish. In fact, none of the seven leading Utes in minutes average less than a single assist per game.

Utah also does a good job of limiting second chances. The Utes rank 15th nationally in opposing offensive rebounds at 8.6 per game. Utah generally does a good job on limiting opposing teams from hurting them on the glass. Utah ranks 25th nationally as opponents average 31.2 rebounds per game.

Utah is deep scoring-wise. Six different Utes average at least eight points per game, led by Kneepkens at 19.2 points per game. Part of Kneepkens’ effectiveness comes at the line. She led the Big 12 with an 89.5% success rate on free throws.

Weaknesses

Naturally, if Utah is hoisting threes at a prodigious rate, it isn’t going to be as strong in the paint. Utah only attempts 31.9 two-point shots per game, one of the lowest rates in the nation.

Utah isn’t going to overwhelm a team with disruptive play. They average 7.8 steals and three blocks per game – both averages near the middle of the pack nationally.

Utah fouls a lot. The Utes average 18.2 fouls per game, though opponents only average 13.2 free throw attempts per contest.

As good as Utah is at making threes, they also give them up at a high rate, too. Opponents average 33.4% from 3-point range, ranked 308th nationally.

The matchup

Indiana and Utah are similar in their approaches. Both are guard-oriented teams that include the 3-point shot as an important part of their offensive attack. Indiana makes 36.7% of its 3-point shots.

Neither team is very big, though Utah doesn’t really have an equivalent for Yarden Garzon, a larger guard who can play multiple positions. Nor is there a big in the regular part of the rotation for Utah who will tower over Karoline Striplin or Lilly Meister. Utah has 6-foot-8 Nene Sow, but she rarely plays.

Both teams also employ a relatively short rotation. If anything, Indiana goes a little deeper than Utah. The Hoosiers have nine players averaging 10 minutes or more; Utah has eight.

For Indiana to have success, it will obviously need to guard the 3-point line well. Indiana had a mixed season in that department. Hoosiers’ opponents made 31.8% from long range, which ranked Indiana in the lower half of Division I.

Neither team is coming into the tournament on a roll. Indiana and Utah have each lost three of their last five games. The Utes have had higher highs – a win over then-No. 3 Notre Dame in the Cayman Islands – but lower lows, such as a loss at Northwestern.

As you’d expect in a matchup of the No. 8-seeded Utes and No. 9-seeded Hoosiers, it’s a very evenly matched game.