Pac-12 Releases MBB Schedule; Utah Begins At Home Against Washington
When the Utah football program kicks off its season against Arizona on Nov. 7, it will signify the end of a long wait for Utes fans everywhere. They'll finally be able to watch their beloved Utes dominate the trenches and go for their third consecutive Pac-12 south division title.
But the excitement doesn't stop there.
Less than a month later, the Utah men's basketball team will kickoff its 2020-21 conference schedule when it hosts Washington on Dec. 3. It will be a battle of darkhorses as both teams have the players to make a run at the conference title and the NCAA tournament.
The Pac-12, which is moving to a 20-game conference schedule this season, dropped their conference schedule on Thursday morning. Utah will play single games against Washington (home, Dec. 3) and Arizona State (away, Dec. 22) before getting the rest of the conference play started on Dec. 30.
Utah will begin the season by taking part in the Bad Boy Mowers Crossover Classic, set to run from Nov. 25-27.
“It’s a big day for our basketball program, fans and league as a whole. Our team has been working tirelessly at home during this whole pandemic and I couldn’t be more proud of the hard work they’ve put in. It’s been great having them back on campus together and getting them connected for the upcoming season,” Utah men's coach Larry Krystkowiak said. “There hasn’t been a lot of good news since this whole thing started back in March, so this is definitely a win for everyone involved. I know the staff and our players are thrilled and eager to hit the court full swing and get ready for the upcoming season. There is still a lot of work to be done until then, but we’re just happy as everyone else in our conference to know we’ll be playing some basketball come Nov. 25.”
Utah is slated to open up the season with Creighton (a potential top-15 team), who should be ranked in the top-15 to begin the year. On Utah's side of the bracket will be Dayton and Wichita State in one quarterfinal matchup, while matchups between Texas A&M-West Virginia and Ohio State-Memphis make up the other eight teams.
Seven of the eight original teams from the Battle 4 Atlantis are expected participate with Duke as the lone holdout, being replaced by Dayton.
Utah is also scheduled to play non-conference games against BYU and Utah Valley, leaving two more open games available.
2020-21 Pac-12 Men's Basketball Schedule
In conference play, the Utes will have a four-game stretch at home early in the season, facing off with the Oregon and Bay Area programs. They'll the hit the road on back-to-back weekends to play the Washington schools and Colorado.
Utah will end the season with four games on the road before returning home to host the Washington programs and Colorado.
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