With Big 12 play looming just around the corner, Utah head coach Alex Jensen is looking for one thing from his Runnin’ Utes: consistency. And with two games left before conference play begins - starting with Saturday’s home matchup against Eastern Washington - the clock is ticking for Utah to tighten things up.
So far, it’s been a season of highs and head-scratchers for the Utes (7-4). They’ve shown flashes of what this team could be - stretches of strong, confident basketball against power conference opponents - but those moments have often been followed by lapses that cost them games.
The most recent example? An 82-74 loss to Mississippi State at the Delta Center where Utah built a 17-point lead only to watch it unravel in the second half.
“We put together a good 20-25 minutes,” Jensen said. “And then we kind of imploded.”
That collapse wasn’t just about Mississippi State making plays - Utah beat itself with turnovers, defensive breakdowns, and missed opportunities. And with the Big 12 schedule on deck - a gauntlet of ranked teams, elite athletes, and physical basketball - those mistakes are going to get punished even more.
Saturday’s game against Eastern Washington (2-9) offers Utah a chance to recalibrate. The Eagles are struggling, sitting at No. 280 in the NET rankings, and analytics across the board - from KenPom to Haslametrics to Bart Torvik - have the Utes as double-digit favorites. It’s also, according to those same models, Utah’s last projected win of the season unless something changes.
That might sound harsh, but it’s a reflection of just how tough the Big 12 is. ESPN’s Joe Lunardi recently bumped the conference back to No. 1 in his power rankings, overtaking the Big Ten and SEC.
And once Utah enters league play, it’ll be facing Quad 1 or Quad 2 opponents every night. Right now, the Utes are 0-1 against Quad 1 teams, 1-0 vs.
Quad 2, 2-2 vs. Quad 3, and 4-1 against Quad 4.
The margin for error? Practically nonexistent.
That’s why Saturday’s game matters more than the records might suggest. It’s a chance to clean up the miscues, build momentum, and show they’ve learned from what went wrong against Mississippi State.
“They’re going to post up more than we’ve seen this year,” Jensen said of Eastern Washington. “They’ll throw different defensive looks at us - some zone, some press - and I’m sure they saw the Mississippi State film and how we struggled with that.”
Eastern Washington also brings experience to the table. “They’re old,” Jensen added.
“Most of them are seniors. That makes a difference.”
The Utes will need to counter that with energy, execution, and - yes - consistency. Because after Saturday, things ramp up fast.
Utah hits the road to face Washington on Dec. 29, a 7-3 team that just knocked off then-No. 24 USC on its home floor.
That game is a Quad 1 opportunity, and the kind of test Utah will see night after night in the Big 12.
To their credit, Jensen says his team has responded well in practice this week after the Mississippi State loss. There’s been no sulking, just a focus on getting better.
“It’s kind of good and bad that you have a week between games,” Jensen said. “It’s nice to get back on the court and just do it.
But I think they’ve responded well all year. The real test is how they come out Saturday night.”
That test starts at 5 p.m. MST at the Huntsman Center.
And while it may not carry the weight of a conference showdown, don’t mistake this game for a throwaway. For Utah, this is about setting the tone - not just for Saturday night, but for the battles ahead in the nation’s toughest basketball conference.