The Runnin’ Utes hit the road for the Washington portion of their road schedule, battling the Washington Cougars on Thursday night. Despite the return of their star, Branden Carlson, the Utes were outplayed from start to finish, losing their ninth in a row, 71-54.

Here are the takeaways from the game:

Wazzu’s Robert’s hot second half was key

Tyrell Robert’s only went 5-15 from the field with all of his makes coming in the second half, but it was that scoring spurt that allowed the Cougars to pull away. This is another result of the Utes letting their guard down, getting tired, and struggling in the second half.

The most difficult thing about when an opposing player gets hot, is that Utah lacks the sharpshooter to match that production. David Jenkins Jr. looked like he would be that guy, but his minutes and production have steadily plummeted and he hasn’t had many hot streaks to put himself back into the main rotation.

Simply put, when opponents like Robert’s get hot, the Utes are in trouble.

Lineup change will pay off, but not ASAP

The Utes went small against Washington State as they replaced Riley Battin in the starting lineup with freshman Gabe Madsen.

Battin has remained a starter, despite struggling all year, as it’s been statistically his least productive as a Ute. After battling a fluke injury most of the season, Madsen seems to be rounding into form. Therefore, Madsen was inserted into the starting lineup after his 20 point performance against No. 16 USC.

Madsen struggled in his 16+ minutes of action, going scoreless on 0-3 shooting. Battin only received seven minutes of action and went 1-2 for three points.

With the return of Branden Carlson, one big’s minutes are about to be reduced. With the emergence of Lazar Stefanovic—29 minutes and 11 points—Battin is the one whose game Stefanovic most closely resembles.

Out-hustled all around

The Runnin’ Utes couldn’t keep the momentum going on their recent improved play, as Washington State dominated the hustle play stat sheet. That being said, this still feels like a season-long topic. The Cougars owned the offensive glass, pulling down 18 offensive rebounds to Utah’s six, resulting in 15 second-chance points to Utah’s four. In addition to the 19 turnovers by Utah, Washington State converted those opportunities into 19 points.

There’s no denying that this Utah team plays hard, but these will be key areas of focus that can’t be fixed overnight.

Up next

The Runnin’ Utes head to Seattle on Saturday for a 3 PM MST matchup against the Washington Huskies. The Huskies currently find themselves in a three-way tie for fifth place in the conference and are one game behind fourth place Oregon.