Tucson, Ariz. • Utah’s performance during the opening week of the Pac-12 basketball schedule may have said as much about the weakened state of the conference as about the Utes themselves.
By beating Arizona State and taking Arizona into overtime on the road, Utah looked far more competitive in the Pac-12 than any evidence from November or December would have suggested. The view of the Utes would be even more favorable if they had finished better in regulation or overtime at Arizona, but they looked like a different team.
Sophomore forward Donnie Tillman spoke of the “hunger” that emerged in Arizona, saying, “We’ve just got a little more confidence and aggression to us.