The Runnin’ Utes made a rare trip to Rupp Arena to take on the Kentucky Wildcats on Saturday, and John Calipari’s bunch was in no mood to be gracious hosts. Utah never had a chance for most of the game, ultimately losing 88-61.

Here are the takeaways from the game:

The bigs need to step up inside

Successful Larry Krystowiak teams have been able to succeed in the paint. Whether it is from good guard play slashing into the lane to create offense or great passing from the bigs, Krystkowiak’s teams tend to work best when they start from the inside-out. Now a couple months into the season, this team is still struggling to consistently control the game inside the paint.

Despite getting mediocre production from the bigs in regards to points and rebounds from the centers (11 points, four rebounds), the Runnin’ Utes outrebounded Kentucky 31-23. Starting center, Jayce Johnson has improved, but still struggles to command the paint consistently, and Novak Topalovic is still adjusting to the Pac-12 level. The team overall needs to consistently improve, and while breakout nights from Both Gach will help, a reliable foundation down low, will help a lot. If the bigs for Utah can become a dependable force in the frontcourt, it can open up things on the outside. If not, it will be a long season.

Gach showed why he could be Utah’s next star

Throughout the season, Gach has flashed some tantalizing potential, but he’s really started to take off since he was placed into the starting lineup. In those five games, he’s averaging 11.6 points per game, while scoring double-figures in three of them. Against Kentucky, he was easily the Utes’ best player as the bright spotlight only seemed to make him better. He was near perfect from the field going 8-10 and 4-6 from three-point range. One negative, however, was his three turnovers. At the rate that the season is going, it wouldn’t hurt to run more and more plays through Gach, with him being the primary option. He’s bound to cause matchup problems and open things up for everyone else, and could be the spark that the Utes’ struggling offense needs.

Too many turnovers gave the Utes no chance against Kentucky

In their 27-point loss to Kentucky, the Runnin’ Utes struggled to keep up offensively with the Wildcats. Utah turned the ball over 18 times compared to Kentucky’s six. One of the biggest challenges going into this game was controlling the boards and the Utes did just that. But they kept shooting themselves in the foot and could not overcome it. With a lot of younger players now contributing, a learning curve is expected, but 18 turnovers were too many in Saturday’s loss. The disappointing part is that many upperclassmen are committing the same turnovers that the freshmen are. Specifically, Sedrick Barefield had three turnovers and made just one of his seven shots from the field. Charles Jones did not account for any points but committed two turnovers. The Utah offense needs to clean up their offensive production if they want to be able to compete in the Pac-12 this year.

Up next

The Runnin’ Utes return home for two game before the quick Christmas break. They will look to clean up their recent issues and build more confidence in some of their youngsters. Florida A&M will be in town on Monday, while the Utes will close out the week with Northern Arizona.