Deivon Smith Goes Off in Utah's Statement Win Over Oregon
The Huntsman Center hosted some more exhilarating Pac-12 action as the Oregon Ducks came to town to face off against the Utes.
The Ducks have dominated the Utes in recent memory, so much so that going into this game Oregon had won 23 out of the last 25 matchups against Utah.
However, going into matchup number 26, Deivon Smith and the Runnin' Utes were determined to change the course and they did just that, winning a nail-biter 80-77 in front of the hometown faithful.
Deivon Smith dominated the stat sheet leading the Utes in points, assists, and rebounds in a breakout performance for him. Smith went 9/17 from the field and 3/5 from the line for a career-high 24 points accompanied by 9 boards and 9 assists in 38 minutes of play. Despite the near triple-double, the win was a true team effort as Keba Keita, Branden Carlson, Cole Bajema, and Ben Carlson all put up double-digit points.
For the Ducks, Jermaine Couisnard led the team in points with 26 going 9/15 from the field and 1/2 from the line. N'Faly Dante led Oregon in rebounds with 10 and assists with 6 while also bagging 23 points himself.
Despite losing the turnover battle 14-8, the Runnin' Utes kept themselves in contention throughout and in the end, were propelled by Deivon Smith's 15 second-half points, moving to 14-5 on the year and 5-3 in the conference. Meanwhile, with the loss the Ducks dropped to 13-5 on the year and 5-2 in the conference. Next up, Utah will look to continue their stride in Pullman, Washington on January 24th where they will face the Washington State Cougars.