Utah @ Washington St. preview

Utah at Washington St.

Last Meeting ( Jan 12, 2019 ) Washington St. 70, Utah 88

Utah’s late-season push for a coveted top-four Pac-12 finish has hit some speed bumps with back-to-back losses to Arizona State and Washington. But the Runnin’ Utes will try to get back on track Saturday night when they visit Washington State.

In the 98-87 loss to the visiting Sun Devils on Feb. 16, Utah’s defense was AWOL in allowing 54-percent shooting and a season high in points. In Wednesday’s 62-45 defeat at Washington, the Utes faltered offensively, sinking to season lows in points and field-goal percentage (28.0) while committing 18 turnovers. “To stay in games, you’ve got to be able to make the open ones against this team because you don’t get many open ones,” Utah coach Larry Krystkowiak said of the first-place Huskies and their 2-3 zone defense. “When you aren’t making your open ones, free throws included, it’s going to be a long night.” Washington State, meanwhile, is gaining steam at the right time, having won three of its last four following Wednesday’s hard-fought, 76-74 victory over a hot Colorado team.

TV: 8 p.m. ET, Pac-12 Network

ABOUT UTAH (14-12, 8-6 Pac-12): Guard Sedrick Barefield, the Utes’ leading scorer at 16.1 points per game, was the only Utah player to reach double figures Wednesday with 12 points, but all of those came in the contest’s opening seven minutes and he didn’t score again after exiting with early foul trouble. Fellow guard Parker Van Dyke also was held in check with seven points after averaging 15 points and connecting on 15-of-27 3-point attempts over his previous three outings. Aside from Barefield, freshman forward Timmy Allen (11.8) is the only other Utah player with a double-digit scoring average while 7-footer Jayce Johnson (7.3 boards), forward Donnie Tillman (5.3) and Allen (5.2) are the leading rebounders.

ABOUT WASHINGTON STATE (11-15, 4-9): Leading scorers Robert Franks and freshman forward C.J. Elleby (15.2) combined for 37 points and 14 rebounds Wednesday in the win over the Buffaloes. Franks finished with 19 points despite an off night shooting (6-of-19) but still leads the Pac-12 at 22.1 points per outing while shooting 51.4 percent from the field and 40.3 from 3-point range. Defense and rebounding, though, continue to rank as problem areas for the Cougars who are surrendering 77.3 points per game and own a minus-2.3 average margin on the glass – both of which rank ahead of only winless California in the conference.

TIP-INS

1. Utah’s 88-70 home win over Washington State on Jan. 12 was the Utes’ 10th straight victory in the series. Utah also has won six of eight and four straight in Pullman.

2. Paced by Marvin Cannon’s Pac-12-best 89.7 percentage, the Cougars pace the conference in free-throw accuracy with an overall percentage of 76.1.

3. After leading the conference for most of the season, Utah has slipped to second in field-goal percentage (46.7) and 3-point accuracy (37.6 percent).

PREDICTION: Utah 74, Washington State 70