University of Utah

Utah Steamrolls Idaho State, 102-72

It took a few minutes for the Thanksgiving turkey dinner to wear off, but the Utes cruised to a dominating 102-72 over overmatched Idaho State at the Huntsman Center.

SALT LAKE CITY—It took a few minutes for the Thanksgiving turkey dinner to wear off, but the Utes cruised to a 102-72 win over overmatched Idaho State at the Huntsman Center.

Jakob Poeltl put on a show, scoring 12 points in the first half for Utah, including a coast-to-coast stanchion-shaking slam after his own steal. Utah forced 16 turnovers from Idaho State, scoring 20 points off those turnovers.

The Bengals were forced to pick their poison defending Poeltl with a size and athletic disadvantage. Defending Poeltl one-on-one resulted in quick scores, while a double-team resulted in a kick-out pass to the perimeter for an open Utah shot. Poeltl finished the game with a team-leading 19 points and 11 rebounds.

Kyle Kuzma got a double-double as well, finishing with 17 points on 5-11 shooting, as well as 7-8 from the free throw line. Gabe Bealer got in on the action with 12 points of his own, including 2 three-pointers.

Brekkott Chapman limped off the court with an apparent ankle injury early in the first half. Larry Krystkowiak said after the game he hadn’t talked with the training staff yet, but didn’t think it was serious.

Idaho State started with a 13-11 lead, as well as making 8 of their first 14 shots from the floor. Utah turned up the defensive effort, ending on a 32-8 run, holding the Bengals to just 1-of-14 shooting to close the half.

Utah hit cruise control in the second half, maintaining a 25-30 point lead for most of the half. All 15 players on Utah’s active roster played at least 2 minutes in the game.

The next time the Utes hit the hardwood will be next Wednesday night against rival BYU. The Utes beat BYU in Provo last year, 65-61. Tipoff at the Huntsman Center at 8:00 on ESPN700. Pregame coverage will begin at 6:00.

Larry Krystkowiak Postgame:


Jakob Poeltl, Kyle Kuzma Postgame:

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