Utah basketball's upset bid vs. Kansas falls short

Runnin' Utes came up short against the Jayhawks

Utah Runnin' Utes head coach Alex Jensen talks with guard Terrence Brown (2) during the first half against the Utah Utes at Allen Fieldhouse. | Jay Biggerstaff-Imagn Images

The Utah basketball team fought valiantly but ultimately came up short against Kansas, falling 71-59 in a Big 12 matchup from Allen Fieldhouse.

The Runnin' Utes (9-14, 1-9 Big 12) kept things close early on before the Jayhawks (18-5, 9-2 Big 12) began to impose their will on both ends of the floor down the stretch.

Here's how it all went down from Lawrence, Kansas.

Jayhawks Pull Away Late

Utah's ability to muck things up for Kansas' offense kept things close early on, though the Jayhawks found a way to break through down the stretch and pull out their seventh consecutive win.

A 10-0 run, including three consecutive dunks, put Kansas up by 16 with under 8 minutes left in regulation. The Jayhawks' pick-and-roll game led to several alley-oop opportunities in the halfcourt, to which Utah really didn't have an answer.

Kansas, which outscored Utah, 42-32, in the paint, was able to keep the Runnin' Utes off the scoreboard for lengthy periods thanks to some elite rim protection from Flory Bidunga. The 6-foot-10 center logged seven blocked shots in 30 minutes of action, on top of throwing down a couple of dunks to finish with 17 points, 10 rebounds and three assists.

Kansas star Darryn Peterson was quiet for the most part, though he did play a key role in turning the tide during that 10-0 second-half run. Peterson finished with 14 points on 5-of-12 shooting from the field.

Keanu Dawes Puts Versatility On Display

Keanu Dawes was everywhere for Utah, from running down rebounds to being in the right place at the right time on the offensive end.

In addition to his activity on the boards, the 6-foot-9 junior aggressively hunted for his shot on the other end, helping the Runnin' Utes stay afloat as they tangled with a Jayhawks squad that was giving up 67.7 points per game going into Saturday.

Utah Utes forward Keanu Dawes (8). | Rob Gray-Imagn Images

Dawes jumpstarted Utah with eight of its first 12 points. Despite a porous start shooting the ball, the Runnin' Utes never trailed by more than eight in the first half, even during an 8-0 scoring run from the Jayhawks.

Dawes continued to be a force on the boards in the second half and finished the game with 22 points and 12 rebounds in 31 minutes. Terrence Brown shouldered a lot offensively and made his mark on the other end as well, tallying 16 points and four steals in 33 minutes.

Where's The Help?

As impressive as Dawes and Brown were throughout, Utah needed everyone's "A" game if it was going to pull off a monumental upset on the road.

It became more evident as Saturday's contest wore on that the Runnin' Utes wouldn't be able to keep up with the Jayhawks without help from the rest of their cast members. Dawes and Brown combined for 23 of the team's 31 first-half points, keeping Utah within striking distance through 20 minutes of play, though Kansas' ability to pull away down the stretch was largely due to the fact that no one else stepped up offensively.

Just how much did Brown and Dawes shoulder collectively? They combined for 16 of 22 and 38 of their team's 59 points. Don McHenry, the team's second leading scorer on the season, went 3-of-14 from the field, while Seydou Traore was 1-of-5 with five points. All four of Utah's bench points were scored by Kendyl Sanders.