All Utes

Utah basketball comes up short in exhibition game vs. Nevada

Utes fall to the Wolf Pack in tightly-contested affair from Salt Lake City
Cole Forsman|
Utah Runnin' Utes head coach Alex Jensen enters his first season at the helm of his alma-mater.
Utah Runnin' Utes head coach Alex Jensen enters his first season at the helm of his alma-mater. | Rob Gray-Imagn Images

In this story:

Utah Runnin' Utes

The first look at the Utah men's basketball team saw new head coach Alex Jensen's squad compete for 40 minutes against a tough Nevada squad in an exhibition game at the Jon M. Huntsman Center.

But despite a big night from Terrence Brown and a cold stretch from the Wolf Pack offense down the stretch, the Runnin' Utes couldn't complete their comeback bid in an 80-77 loss on Friday.

Brown, a transfer from Fairleigh Dickinson, dropped a game-high 27 points on 8-of-13 shooting from the field, in addition to dishing out six assists in 33 minutes of action. He also knocked down two of his team's nine 3-pointers on the night, though the turnover column on Utah's stat sheet stood out even more; 18 turnovers, including 11 in the second half, led to 20 points the other way for Nevada.

Still, Utah found itself in a close ballgame as the visitors' offense stalled down the stretch. Offense was also hard to come by for the Runnin' Utes, and the Wolf Pack was able to sneak out a 3-point win despite not making a field goal for the final 5 minutes of regulation.

Jacob Patrick was the only other Utah player to score in double-digits, finishing with 14 points off 4-of-7 shooting from downtown. Keanu Dawes nearly had himself a double-double with nine points and 13 rebounds.

Notably, Utah was without Don McHenry and Ibrahima Traore for Friday's friendly.

Here are live updates recap and highlights from Utah's exhibition game against Nevada:

(Refresh this page for the latest update)

2ND HALF RECAP

Nevada 80, Utah 77 (0:00): Jahki Howard nearly tied the game at the buzzer with a halfcourt heave, but his attempt struck the back of the rim and Nevada escaped with a 3-point win despite not making a field goal for the final 5 minutes of regulation.

Nevada 79, Utah 77 (0:05): Following a pair of free throws from Chuck Bailey III, Kendyl Sanders drilled a 3-pointer for Utah to make it a 2-point game.

Nevada 77, Utah 74 (0:22): Down by five, Terrence Brown gave the Runnin' Utes some hope as he drove right and threw down a one-handed dunk to make it a 3-point game with under 30 seconds remaining.

Nevada 73, Utah 67 (0:57): Obomate Abbey attempted one free throw but couldn't shoot the second as he limped off the court, sending Josh Hayes to the charity stripe to finish the job.

Nevada 71, Utah 67 (1:24): As both offenses dried up late in the second half, Utah looked to claw its way out of a deficit at the free-throw line, where Terrence Brown knocked down a pair of foul shots amid a 3-minute stretch without a field goal by either side.

Nevada 70, Utah 63 (4:10): Utah couldn't beat Nevada's full-court press in under 10 seconds, resulting in the fifth turnover committed by the Runnin' Utes since the 7-minute mark of the second half.

Nevada 68, Utah 60 (5:04): Utah's 16th turnover of the night turned into a coast-to-coast opportunity for Tyler Rolison, extending Nevada's lead to eight with just over 5 minutes remaining.

Nevada 62, Utah 58 (7:30): Keanu Dawes attacked the lane and finished with a strong two-hand flush, cutting the deficit to four points.

Nevada 62, Utah 56: Utah continued to look for open 3s in the corner, as Obomate Abbey set up Terrence Brown for his second triple of the night to cut into his team's deficit. That bucket also improved the Runnin' Utes to 2-of-12 from downtown in the second half and increased Brown's total to a team-high 19 points.

Nevada 60, Utah 51 (8:29): Tayshawn Comer had a wide open lane to his left thanks to a solid clear out underneath from his teammates, extending Nevada's lead to nine with just over 8 minutes left in regulation.

Nevada 54, Utah 49 (10:27): JUCO product Josh Hayes rose up and stuffed an attempt at the rim by Chuck Bailey III, continuing a strong second half performance for the 6-foot-9 forward from Northwest Florida State.

Utah 49, Nevada 49 (11:53): Elijah "Choppa" Moore broke Utah's cold streak from downtown with an open 3 from the corner to tie things up at 49 apiece. The Runnin' Utes missed their previous 13 looks from long range.

Nevada 48, Utah 46 (12:24): Salt Lake City Community College transfer Alvin Jackson III put the Utes out in front with a smooth left-handed layup in transition, only for Joel Armotrading to respond with a nice drop step down low and finish through contact from James Okonkwo for a 3-point play.

Nevada 45, Utah 42 (14:09): Despite more struggles from deep, the Runnin' Utes continued to find success inside the arc with a 4-for-4 start from 2-point range to start the second half. However, Utah missed its first five 3-pointers coming out of the break, extending its streak to 12 consecutive misses from downtown.

Utah 42, Nevada 41 (15:41): Freshman wing Kendyl Sanders helped create a turnover in Nevada's backcourt, leading to another big-time slam for Keanu Dawes.

HALF — Nevada 34, Utah 32: Runnin' Utes headed into the locker down two after missing nine of their final 11 field goal attempts in the first half, including seven consecutive misfires from 3-point range. Utah shot 12-of-33 overall and 5-of-20 from 3. Nevada led by as many as six following an 11-2 scoring run toward the end of the first half.

1ST HALF RECAP

Nevada 34, Utah 30 (1:54): Keanu Dawes snapped Utah's field goal drought with an emphatic two-hand dunk off a feed from Jahki Howard. The Runnin' Utes missed their previous six looks from the floor prior to that big-time finish from Dawes.

Nevada 32, Utah 27 (3:03): Corey Camper Jr. knocked down the Wolf Pack's first 3 of the night while coming off a screen, fueling a 7-0 spurt from the visitors as Utah's offense stalled down the stretch of the first half.

Utah 22, Nevada 21 (6:31): Utah came out of the media timeout with a bang, as Terrence Brown lobbed it up for Jakhi Howard to finish off with two hands along the baseline.

Utah 20, Nevada 19 (6:58): Terrence Brown showed off the balance and quickness as he used a couple of spin moves to get by his defender before converting a tough finish at the rim, bringing his total to nine points in the first half. Jacob Patrick and Seydou Traore scored the other 11 points for Utah.

Utah 16, Nevada 14 (10:16): James Okonkwo made a solid read after receiving the pick-and-roll pass, skipping the rock to the corner for an open 3 from Jacob Patrick.

Utah 13, Nevada 12 (11:28): Utah's drive-and-kick offense saw the Runnin' Utes attempt nine 3-pointers in the first 10 minutes of action. Keanu Dawes knocked down the team's third triple of the night courtesy of an assist from Elijah "Choppa" Moore. Nevada's hot start fizzled, as the Wolf Pack missed nine of their ensuing 11 shot attempts following their 4-for-4 start.

Utah 10, Nevada 8 (15:22): Brown continued his hot start with a 3-pointer moments after his two-hand dunk. Patrick gave the Runnin' Utes their first lead with a 3-ball of his own, capping off an 8-0 scoring run for Utah.

Nevada 8, Utah 4 (16:43): The Wolf Pack started 4-of-4 from the field to jump out to an early lead, but Brown got Utah's defense going by jumping the passing lanes and finishing off a breakaway opportunity with a dunk.

Nevada 4, Utah 2 (18:42): Terrence Brown scored Utah's first points of the night on a great cut to the basket and feed from Seydou Traore.

PREGAME

Starting lineup: Terrence Brown, Jacob Patrick, Seydou Traore, Keanu Dawes and James Okonkwo made up Utah's starting five. Nevada trotted out Chuck Bailey III, Tyler Rolison, Tayshawn Comer, Elijah Price and Joel Armotrading

MORE UTAH NEWS & ANALYSIS

Published | Modified
Cole Forsman
COLE FORSMAN

Cole Forsman has been a contributor with On SI for the past three years, covering college athletics. He holds a degree in Journalism and Sports Management from Gonzaga University.

Home/Basketball