2014-15 Pac-12 Conference Preview: #4 Utah Utes
Utah Utes 2014-15 Season Preview
2013 Season Results: 21-12, 9-9 conference record, 8th place in the Pac-12, 71-39 loss to Arizona in 2nd Round of Pac-12 Tournament, 70-58 loss to St. Mary’s in First Round of NIT
Key Losses: Renan Lenz (graduated), Princeton Onwas (transferred), Ahmad Fields (transferred to Drexel)
Key Returners: Delon Wright, Jordan Loveridge, Brandon Taylor, Dallin Bachynski, Dakarai Tucker, Jeremy Olsen, Kenneth Ogbe
2014 Recruiting Class: Brekkott Chapman (#49 overall, #13 PF according to ESPN), Kyle Kuzma (4 stars, #27 SF), Isaiah Wright (2 stars, #64 PG), Chris Reyes (JUCO SF), Jakob Poeltl (unrated 7′ Austrian Center)
Larry Kyrstowiak has proven he can win at the mid-major level, and that he can exceed meager expectations at Utah. Now he has a chance to prove he can win big at a major program.
Utah closed out the 2013-14 campaign by winning 6 of their last 9 conference games, with the only losses coming to teams on their way to the Sweet 16 or better (Arizona, UCLA, Stanford).
Their 21-11 record didn’t come with enough quality wins to make the Utes a serious at-large contender, and they weren’t helped by their soft non-conference slate, which featured just one opponent that would finish in the RPI Top 50 (Brigham Young).
There will be no such problem this year, as Utah will prepare itself for the Pac-12 schedule with a four-game gauntlet of Wichita State, BYU, Kansas, and UNLV.
Such a tough stretch right before the start of play in one of the nation’s toughest conferences may have seemed daunting to recent Utah teams, but this year’s squad has the players to not just fight for an NCAA Tournament bid, but to make a run once they get there.
Leading the way will be Delon Wright. There are many, myself included, who believe Wright will be the best player in the conference this year. He nearly was last year, earning First Team All-Pac 12 and First Team All-Pac 12 Defensive honors.
Wright averaged 15.5, 7, and 5.5 while shooting an obscene 56% from the field last season, just his first after transferring from San Francisco City College. Wright will be an All-Conference performer again if he just maintains those numbers.
Should Wright add a dangerous three-point shot to his arsenal (he shot 22% on just 54 attempts from deep last season), or show up for his second Pac-12 campaign just slightly improved across the board, he won’t just be a Pac-12 Player of the Year candidate, but a National Player of the Year candidate as well.
Though Wright is this team’s general, they bring back a lot of scoring and rebounding from last season. In fact, they bring back over 80% of their production in each of those categories from last season.
Among the stellar returning Utes is Jordan Loveridge. Loveridge averaged a solid 15 and 7 last season, but outshot Wright by almost 70 attempts on his way to a 42% clip for the season. Loveridge will have to improve his shot selection for Utah to make the next step.
If Loveridge can make that improvement, and if he can continue to improve as a defender and rebounder, he will challenge for All-Conference honors along with Wright.
Also in the frontcourt is Dallin Bachynski. The seven-foot center scored 6.8 points per game last year despite averaging just 18 minutes, and did so by shooting an eye-popping 62% from the field.
If Bachynski can remain even remotely as efficient as he was last year while playing a bigger role, it will go a long way towards taking Utah up near the top of the conference.
The Utes will also heavily count on Bachynski to use his size to protect the rim alongside the slightly undersized Loveridge against the league’s many dangerous post players.
Jeremy Olsen is another option at Center, and he provides a little more defensive bite than Bachynski. The two could go back and forth as the starter during the season due to matchups or performance.
Playing next to Delon Wright in the backcourt is Brandon Taylor, who shot very well last season. Taylor hit nearly 40% of his 161 three-point attempts, and his ability to stretch the defense and let Wright go to work or knock down spot-up threes of his own is invaluable to this Utah team.
Taylor was second on the team in assists last year, but averaged just over three per contest. Taylor will be asked to shoulder more of a creative burden this season, but the shooter probably has enough point guard skills to do so.
Rounding out the backcourt will be Dakarai Tucker and Kenneth Ogbe, two shooting guards who also looked very good shooting from deep last season. Tucker hit 39% of his 120 attempts, and is just as dangerous a floor spacer as Taylor, giving the Utes shooting at both guard spots.
The freshmen may contribute for Utah this season at some point. Brekkott Chapman is one of the most talented players to commit to Utah in years, but may not be ready to crack the frontcourt rotation. Kyle Kuzma will likely get a chance to earn some minutes at small forward.
If Utah can’t get consistent point guard play from Brandon Taylor, we may also see a small role for Isaiah Wright.
Larry Krystowiak returns a roster that should make the NCAA Tournament fairly easily, and could make some noise once they got there. The Utes’ ceiling this year is probably second in the conference after Arizona, though I figure they probably settle somewhere slightly below that spot. They really can beat anyone in the country if they have a good shooting night.
The time is now for Larry Krystowiak’s program, and Utah fans should enjoy the show while they can. If his Utes play to their potential and the three-point shooters get hot, he won’t be in town for long.
Prediction: 4th Place