MBB Livestream: Utah vs. Oregon State – Utes fall 71-69
PREGAME
Utah enters the matchup 16-14 overall and 7-11 in the Pac-12, earning the No. 9 seed in the Pac-12 tournament. Oregon State enters Saturday No. 8 in the Pac-12 tournament with a 7-11 record, and 17-13 overall.
The teams split the season series on the year, each winning at home.
Utah triumphed 81-69 on Jan. 2 in the Pac-13 opener, led by Timmy Allen's 25 points and 10 rebounds. Oregon State exacted revenge on Feb. 13 where Kylor Kelley's 16 points and nine rebounds led the Beavers to a 70-51 victory.
Utah will be without the services of its freshman point guard Rylan Jones, who suffered an injury in the Bay Area two weeks ago. Both Gach — who scored a career-high 28 points against Colorado on Saturday — will start in his place
Oregon State's Tres Tinkle was named to the all-Pac-12 first-team, his third consecutive year of receiving the honor while teammates Kelley was named to the all-Pac-12 defensive team.
Utah's Allen was named to the all-Pac-12 second-team
Starters:
Utah — Timmy Allen, Mikael Jantunen, Alphonso Plummer, Both Gach, Brendan Carlson
Oregon State — Ethan Thompson, Zach Reichle, Tres Tinkle, Alfred Hollins, Kylor Kelley
FIRST HALF
*Oregon State wins the tip and we are underway... which Tinkle hits a three-pointer on the opening possession for the Beavers...
*Great start for Allen, not only attacking and finishing, but Tinkle picked up the early foul. Potentially getting him into foul troubles would be massive for the Utes...
*Utah 8 — Oregon State 13
14:34 left 1H
Utah struggling on defense as lack of communication and rotation leading to some open and easy shots for the Beavers...
*Oregon State, one of the worst three-point shooting teams in the conference, already 3-for-5 from beyond the arc early...
*Utah needs to just settle down a bit and ride out this hot early start to begin the game... calm down and run the offense while playing tough defense...
*Utes already with 6 turnovers just six minutes into the game as Oregon State’s length in the zone causing some issues... still struggling to settle down...
*Utah 13 — Oregon State 15
11:53 left 1H
Utah starting to settle down and get more into the flow of the game, on a quick 5-0 run and will have the ball coming out of the timeout...
*Plummer already with two three-pointers to keep the Utes in. His outside shooting will be key if the Beavers choose to stay in the zone on defense...
*Likewise, I worry about Gach and Allen. With Kelley down low and Oregon State packing the lane, it might be tough for either one of them to really get going today...
*Tempo of the game really slowing down as neither team is finding much success on offense… which isn’t exactly a benefit to either squad...
*Plummer keeping the Utes in this game with three three-pointers on the game thus far...
*Utah 17 — Oregon State 17
7:56 left 1H
Plummer with a game-high 9 points (3-6 from deep) as the Utes are slowly crawling back after trailing by 7 early on...
*If I’m Krystkowiak, I’m continuing to play tough defense and rebound while relying on Plummer to knock down three’s. The better he shoots, the more spread out the Beavers get and the more Gach and Allen can attack the rim...
*Plummer, who just hit No. 4 from deep, will undoubtedly take some bad shots, but that’s something you’re willing to live with if your Utah...
*Carlson just picked up his second foul of the half with 5:40 left in the opening 20 minutes. Carlson will have to sit and Battin checks in...
*Allen, 7 points, with another strong drive to give Utah its first lead of the game with 5 to go in the opening half...
*Allen now just picked up his second foul with 4:34 remaining in the opening half... and he'll head to the bench. Huge minutes upcoming for Gach and Plummer...
*Utah 29 — Oregon State 28
3:07 left 1H
Utes taking the lead after stunning play from Plummer. But final 3 minutes are big with Carlson and Allen on the bench in foul trouble...
*Krystkowiak also nearly lost his mind prior to the timeout — livid at officials for the incredibly soft calls being made against the Utes...
*Plummer has shot the Beavers out of the zone defense, which is huge because now Gach can go to work and attack the rim...
*THIS IS A JOKE NOW!!! Plummer just knocked down another deep three-pointer but was fouled at the same time — giving the Utes a 6-pt lead. Plummer has 20...
*Utes have four players with two fouls in this half... nobody can afford to get another in the final minute...
*Utah 39 — Oregon State 31
Halftime
*Plummer with an outstanding 23 points to lead the Utes in a massive comeback after trailing by 7 early…
HALFTIME
*Plummer has seven three-pointers, the most by a Ute this season and one off Klay Thompson's Pac-12 Tournament record...
*Not the best of halves by Allen and Gach, but it wasn't needed with Plummer going off. You can expect Oregon State to take Plummer out in the second half, which should open up lanes for Allen and Gach, and they have to be ready to take advantage of that...
Halftime Stats
*Should be noted that Utah is playing for something, as they're currently looked at as a team that could play in the NIT... which would be huge experience for the young squad...
*Second half keys to victory for Utah...
1.) Stay out of foul trouble
2.) Plummer shoots decent
3.) Attack the rim
4.) No offensive rebounds by Oregon State
5.) Stay composed in the final 7 minutes
SECOND HALF
*And we are underway… Utah gets the ball to start the second half...
*PLUMMER AGAIN. His first shot of the second half is a three-pointer that finds nothing but net...
*Utah 44 — Oregon State 31
18:13 left 2H
Utes begin the second half on a 5-0 run to take a 13-pt lead and prompt an Oregon State timeout...
*THATS THE RECORD — Plummer just knocked down his NINTH three-pointer of the game to break the Pac-12 Tournament and Utes' single-game record...
*Utah 47 — Oregon State 39
15:58 left 2H
Plummer has the record but the Beavers not going away, as a quick 6-0 run has the game a lot closer than the Utes would like...
*Oregon State went to a half-court 1-3-1 zone and it's giving the Utes some major issues the last minute or so...
*Oregon State had the deficit down to 6, but Plummer knocked down another three-pointer to make the lead 9 again...
*An EXTREMELY late call that negated a three-point play went in favor of Oregon State, and Krystkowiak got a T — lead now at just 6…
*It’s great what Plummer is doing, but no other Ute is finding ANY rhythm on offense which could hurt the team later on…
*Utah 52 — Oregon State 48
11:44 left 2H
Utah has somewhat weathered the Beaver storm, as Battin heads to lien to shoot two FT’s...
*Oregon State has come all the way back against the Utes, but for whatever reason Utah looks relatively calm out on the court right now...
*Allen with a great play, not forcing the issue and holding on to the ball to find the right pass to Carlson. Won't get noticed in scorebook but a great play nonetheless...
*With Oregon State face-guarding Plummer, there’s a lot of room to work for Gach and Allen to attack the rim, and more space for offensive rebounds. Starting to see that happen a bit...
*Utah 57 — Oregon State 50
7:52 left 2H
Allen just picked up his third foul, but as a team, they've calmed down and are now back to attacking the Beavers on offense...
*Utah still facing Oregon State in that zone, with mixed results. Some good and some bad... huge five minutes upcoming...
*Allen has four fouls, and he's the one person Utah can't go without — yes, I know Plummer has 32 points...
*Battin just picked up his fourth foul, and he has 7p and 8r for the Utes thus far. Now Allen and Battin, the second and third leading scorers, have four fouls with 5 to play while clinging to a 4-pt lead...
*Utah 62 — Oregon State 59
4:19 left 2H
Lucas just knocked down a three-pointer for the Beavers. Utah has to stay calm and composed as the Beavers are looking for turnovers. Stay composed and win, that simple...
*Here we go…
Just over 4 to to play and Utah clings to a 3-pt lead but doesn’t have the momentum. Being so young, Utes have struggled in these spots before. Curious to see what they have in the tank…???
*And just like that, Utah forces the issue and it leads a Utes TO and fast break layup by Oregon State — but Allen gets it back to a three-point game the following possession...
*Brenchley is fouled on a 3-point attempt with Utah leading by 1 with 2:05 to go… and he knocks down 2-of-3...
*Utah 66 — Oregon State 65
1:28 left 2H
Utah calls a TO to talk things over. Utes have the ball and in desperate need of a bucket…
PLUMMER WITH HIS PAC-12 RECORD 11TH THREE-POINTER...
*Utah 69 — Oregon State 68
16.8 seconds left 2H
Teams exchange three-pointers before a Gach turnover now gives Oregon State a chance to win it...
FINAL
*Plummer's 11 three-pointers is a Pac-12 single game, Pac-12 tournament and Utah single game record...
*Utes' season likely ends here... such a rough go of things after showing so much fight early in the game...
Final Stats
*Outside of Plummer and Allen, Utes shot 7-for-22 in the game...
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