Utah dominates Cal for 77-43 win
SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — David Collette scored 18 points on 9-of-10 shooting in a dominant performance around the paint and led Utah to a 77-43 win over California on Saturday night.
Justin Bibbins chipped in 15 and Sedrick Barefield added 13 for the Utes. Utah (15-9, 7-6 Pac-12) won its fourth straight at home against Pac-12 opponents.
Darius McNeill scored 10 points to lead California. The Bears (8-18, 2-11) lost their sixth straight road game after going 3-0 away from home to start the season.
California struggled to adjust to Utah’s defensive pressure in the first half and quickly coughed up several turnovers. The Bears totaled six turnovers in the first 8 ½ minutes and racked up 11 turnovers by halftime. Utah scored 17 points off those turnovers.
It opened the door for the Utes to gradually pull away as the first half progressed.
California initially seized an 8-4 lead behind back-to-back baskets from McNeill. Bibbins evened the score with a 4-point play that also sparked a 10-0 run. The senior point guard finished off the run with a layup that gave Utah a 14-8 lead.
The Utes carved out their first double digit lead behind an 11-2 run later in the half. Barefield and Collette combined to score baskets over three straight possessions to get things going. Then Collette finished off the run with back-to-back layups, giving Utah a 30-18 advantage.
California scored one field goal — a buzzer-beating 3-pointer from Don Coleman — over the final five minutes of the first half. The Utes took advantage, pushing their lead to 40-21. Collette and Bibbins fueled the run with a pair of baskets apiece.
Utah led by as many as 34 points in the second half. The Utes took their largest lead in the final minute on back-to-back baskets from Parker Van Dyke and Jayce Johnson.
California: Scoring droughts and turnovers doomed the Bears. California endured a five-minute stretch in the first half and a six-minute stretch in the second half where it scored a single basket.
Utah: The Utes are clicking on offense again at the right time. One reason for it is Utah’s dominance around the basket. The Utes averaged 32 points in the paint in their victories over Stanford and California this week.
Utah honored its team that reached the 1998 Final Four at halftime. The Utes, led then by point guard Andre Miller and coached by the late Rick Majerus, raced off to an 18-0 start that season and eventually beat No. 1 seeds Arizona and North Carolina to earn a shot at winning a national title. Utah eventually fell to Kentucky 7869 in the national championship game.