Utah was battered Wednesday, losing 70-36 to No. 7 Houston at the Fertitta Center in Houston in the most lopsided loss of the year for the Runnin’ Utes.
The game was moved back a day as a snowstorm swept through the Houston area on Tuesday.
3 takeaways
Turnover issues and shooting woes doomed the Utes. Houston is known for its stout defense, but that really showed against Utah.
The Cougars forced the Utes into a game-high 26 turnovers, and Houston turned them into 29 points.
Utah’s offense scored a season-high 36 points on 30.2 percent shooting, 20 points shy of the Utes’ previous total of 56 in a Big 12 opening loss at Baylor and the fewest points for Utah in a game since scoring 33 against Colorado. in December 2011.
Even after a frigid first half, Utah missed 12 of its first 13 field goals of the second half before getting a handful of shots to fall late against the Cougars’ substitutes.
No Utes finished in double figures — Gabe Madsen had a team-high eight points on 3-of-10 shooting.
Defensive problems and play from behind… again. Just like in its first three Big 12 games when the Utes went 0-3, things fell apart for Utah early in the game.
Houston was missing its best offensive player, Emanuel Sharp, due to an ankle injury. It didn’t matter, as the Cougars used an 18-0 run to take a 26-8 lead, as the Cougars made 9 of 11 from the field to start the contest.
This put the Utes in a gargantuan hole early on, and it only got worse.
After taking a 41-17 lead into the break, Houston scored the first 12 points of the second half and led by 37 points.
The Cougars ended up shooting 43.3% from the field, including 51.4% in the first half.
Milos Uzan led four Houston players in double figures, with 14 points and five assists.
Houston owned the painting. Although the Utes had a notable size advantage over Houston, the Cougars outmatched the Utes inside.
Houston ended up outscoring Utah 28-14 in points in the paint, something that had been a strength for the Utes during a three-game winning streak before Wednesday’s loss.
The Cougars also had 11 blocks, while the Utes had one.
What’s next
The Utes (11-7, 3-4 Big 12) return home to face Baylor at the Huntsman Center on Saturday (2:30 p.m. MST, ESPN2).
The Bears faced Kansas State on Wednesday night.
Baylor beat Utah by 25 in Waco, Texas, in the first Big 12 game for both schools.
