I've been in Utah all week and caught a game at Utah Thursday (v. Central Arkansas) and BYU Friday (v. Cal-Riverside). Here's what we have to look forward to:
Utah:
20 of their first 24 shots were from 3. They had 2-3 sharpshooters, but UCA was hellabad and rarely rotated enough on defense to cover them. Didn't seem to have much of an inside presence but didn't need one. They won by 35, but BYU beat UCA by 38 2 nights earlier.
Miro Little is their starting PG (Caleb Lohner is listed on their roster but he's off playing football). Little had 9'abd half, but also sailed a couple of outlet passes into the stands on the fly.
Crowd was about like an early season crowd at Ferrell Center. Announced at 6700 but maybe 3500-4000 there. Huntsman Center is a bit dated (like pre-renovation Daniel Meyer at TCU, but twice as big) but very steep and decent sightlines. UU has a really pretty campus on the hillside overlooking SLC. Lots of new construction. They also took over the former Army cavalry post Fort Douglas (built in 1875 with lots of original buildings) next to campus when the Army decommissioned the post in 1991. UU now uses it for offices and honors student housing.
Hard to judge how good they are against low level competition, but I don't see them being able to stay with the likes of KU, UH, IowaSt and us.
BYU:
They were 22.5 point favorites and won by only 6. They had a Russian guard who could shoot and a big African inside (I remember from last year), but were sloppy with the ball and would fall asleep in stretches. They'd get a 15 point lead then a couple of minutes later UCR would cut it to 4 or 5. UCR had 3 gunners who frequently were left uncovered by lazy defense. BYU had a definite advantage inside but they seemed to forget to exploit it in stretches.
Crowd was everything I had heard it was there: 17000+ in attendance against a scrub opponent. Students were loud but not heckling. Students took up one entire end of the stands, so probably 3500-4000 or more. Friday night meant lots of families with little kids. Probably the best concessions I have ever had at a basketball arena, pro or college. Cougar Tail donuts are the real deal; we could only eat half of ours it was so big. Outside of the sports facilities, it's a rather nondescript campus.
We play Utah home and home, but I think BYU only in Provo.
Utah:
20 of their first 24 shots were from 3. They had 2-3 sharpshooters, but UCA was hellabad and rarely rotated enough on defense to cover them. Didn't seem to have much of an inside presence but didn't need one. They won by 35, but BYU beat UCA by 38 2 nights earlier.
Miro Little is their starting PG (Caleb Lohner is listed on their roster but he's off playing football). Little had 9'abd half, but also sailed a couple of outlet passes into the stands on the fly.
Crowd was about like an early season crowd at Ferrell Center. Announced at 6700 but maybe 3500-4000 there. Huntsman Center is a bit dated (like pre-renovation Daniel Meyer at TCU, but twice as big) but very steep and decent sightlines. UU has a really pretty campus on the hillside overlooking SLC. Lots of new construction. They also took over the former Army cavalry post Fort Douglas (built in 1875 with lots of original buildings) next to campus when the Army decommissioned the post in 1991. UU now uses it for offices and honors student housing.
Hard to judge how good they are against low level competition, but I don't see them being able to stay with the likes of KU, UH, IowaSt and us.
BYU:
They were 22.5 point favorites and won by only 6. They had a Russian guard who could shoot and a big African inside (I remember from last year), but were sloppy with the ball and would fall asleep in stretches. They'd get a 15 point lead then a couple of minutes later UCR would cut it to 4 or 5. UCR had 3 gunners who frequently were left uncovered by lazy defense. BYU had a definite advantage inside but they seemed to forget to exploit it in stretches.
Crowd was everything I had heard it was there: 17000+ in attendance against a scrub opponent. Students were loud but not heckling. Students took up one entire end of the stands, so probably 3500-4000 or more. Friday night meant lots of families with little kids. Probably the best concessions I have ever had at a basketball arena, pro or college. Cougar Tail donuts are the real deal; we could only eat half of ours it was so big. Outside of the sports facilities, it's a rather nondescript campus.
We play Utah home and home, but I think BYU only in Provo.