Streaking Utes set sights on Sun Devils

Jan 15, 2015 - 3:24 PM Tempe, AZ (SportsNetwork.com) - The eighth-ranked team in the nation hits the road on Thursday, as the Runnin' Utes of Utah challenge the Arizona State Sun Devils in Pac-12 Conference action at Wells Fargo Arena.

Since losing to 10th-ranked Kansas by just three points a little over a month ago, the Runnin' Utes have rattled off six consecutive victories. Eight days ago, the Utes posted a commanding 74-49 win over Colorado at the Huntsman Center, moving the program to 3-0 in conference play.

Thanks to suffering just two defeats, the other coming against nationally- ranked and former Mountain West Conference foe San Diego State, the Utes find themselves with their highest ranking since finishing the 1998-99 campaign as the sixth-best team in the country.

Over on the other side, the Sun Devils have managed to break even after 16 games, but there have been some unexpected bumps in the road. When it comes to conference play, ASU is still waiting to break through, having lost all three Pac-12 decisions. The latest setback took place last Saturday as the team bowed to Oregon, 59-56, in the last of a three-game conference road trip.

Utah leads the overall series by a count of 28-20, but is just 9-13 in true road dates versus the Sun Devils. The most recent meeting took place last February with the Utes crushing ASU by a score of 86-63.

Somehow Colorado managed to move out to a four-point lead in the first few minutes against the Utes last week, but that was only a temporary setback for the hosts as they surged ahead by double figures at the break, and then crushed the Buffs in the second half of the 25-point decision. Brandon Taylor led three players in double figures with 14 points, followed by Delon Wright with 13, to go along with six assists and four steals. Off the bench, Dakarai Tucker checked in with 11 points for a squad that forced 18 turnovers and held Colorado to only 39.5 percent shooting from the floor.

Wright, who was recently named to the Wooden Award Midseason Top-25, leads the Utes in scoring with 14.9 ppg, stemming from his impressive 56.9 percent shooting from the floor overall, and not so much his 28.6 percent effort out on the perimeter. But more than just a shooter, Wright is also keen on getting his teammates involved at the offensive end, and his 85 assists are proof of that. He is also responsible for 4.7 rpg and 36 steals, which shows that he is willing to do whatever it takes to make Utah successful.

In a game that featured 12 ties and a staggering 18 lead changes, the Sun Devils didn't do themselves any favors by converting only eight field goals in the first half during the three-point setback at Oregon over the weekend. The visitors also made just 3-of-17 tries from 3-point range and turned the ball over 15 times, although leading scorer Shaquielle McKissc (18 points) was one of only two players not saddled with a miscue. Eric Jacobsen accounted for 13 points as he converted all six of his field goal tries.