Offensive Rebounds Huge in Victory
Obviously, there was no shortage of heroes for the Utes in their 94-88 overtime victory over Brigham Young last night. But you could make a good argument that nobody was more important than Shaun Green.
The senior forward grabbed or tipped out three huge offensive rebounds in the final 2 1/2 minutes that allowed the Utes to hang on at the Huntsman Center.
"Coaches kept telling us to go to the glass consistently," Green said. "We kept trying, kept trying. They were blocking us out pretty good, all game. And then, I finally got my hand on a few that I could tip out to the guys, so we could get a new shot clock."
That was particularly important because the Utes could have coughed it up with uncharacteristically poor free-throw shooting in the clutch. The second-best free-throw shooting team in the country had made 21 of 25 through the first minute of overtime, and inched ahead 80-76 on guard Tyler Kepkay's lay-up with 2:23 remaining.
That's when Green arrived to the rescue.
When Kepkay missed his free-throw attempting to complete a three-point play, Green tipped the rebound out and allowed Kepkay to drive for another lay-up, scooping acrobatically toward the rim after taking about 20 seconds off the clock. When Kepkay missed a three-pointer about a minute later, Green tipped out another rebound, allowing guard Luka Drca to draw a foul and get to the line.
But Drca missed one of his two foul shots, continuing a stretch in which the Utes' three best foul shooters -- who entered the game making 86.2 percent, combined -- missed 4 of 7 from the line.
Meanwhile, the Cougars were throwing in lay-ups and three-pointers and keeping their threat alive. Only when Green corralled the rebound of guard Lawrence Borha's final miss with 27.6 seconds left and the Utes leading 87-83 did the Utes regain their foul-line composure and finally bury the Cougs. Kepkay made his last six free throws in the final 23 seconds, to contribute to a 7-for-8 finishing surge and a 31-for-40 total for the game.
"We won the free-throw game and the rebound game," coach Jim Boylen noted, "and that's what you have to do in these big games."
The senior forward grabbed or tipped out three huge offensive rebounds in the final 2 1/2 minutes that allowed the Utes to hang on at the Huntsman Center.
"Coaches kept telling us to go to the glass consistently," Green said. "We kept trying, kept trying. They were blocking us out pretty good, all game. And then, I finally got my hand on a few that I could tip out to the guys, so we could get a new shot clock."
That was particularly important because the Utes could have coughed it up with uncharacteristically poor free-throw shooting in the clutch. The second-best free-throw shooting team in the country had made 21 of 25 through the first minute of overtime, and inched ahead 80-76 on guard Tyler Kepkay's lay-up with 2:23 remaining.
That's when Green arrived to the rescue.
When Kepkay missed his free-throw attempting to complete a three-point play, Green tipped the rebound out and allowed Kepkay to drive for another lay-up, scooping acrobatically toward the rim after taking about 20 seconds off the clock. When Kepkay missed a three-pointer about a minute later, Green tipped out another rebound, allowing guard Luka Drca to draw a foul and get to the line.
But Drca missed one of his two foul shots, continuing a stretch in which the Utes' three best foul shooters -- who entered the game making 86.2 percent, combined -- missed 4 of 7 from the line.
Meanwhile, the Cougars were throwing in lay-ups and three-pointers and keeping their threat alive. Only when Green corralled the rebound of guard Lawrence Borha's final miss with 27.6 seconds left and the Utes leading 87-83 did the Utes regain their foul-line composure and finally bury the Cougs. Kepkay made his last six free throws in the final 23 seconds, to contribute to a 7-for-8 finishing surge and a 31-for-40 total for the game.
"We won the free-throw game and the rebound game," coach Jim Boylen noted, "and that's what you have to do in these big games."
posted by www.sltrib.com @ 3:55 PM |
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