Utah responds to challenge, routing Washington State in Pac-12 opener

Utah’s final run through Pac-12 play in men’s basketball appeared like it might begin with a game that would go down to the wire when visiting Washington State stole the momentum early in the second half and built a six-point lead at the Huntsman Center on Friday.

Seniors Gabe Madsen and Branden Carlson weren’t about to let that happen, though.

Madsen, after suffering through a scoreless first half, went off offensively in the second half in carrying the Utes to an 80-58 victory over the Cougars in the conference opener for both teams.

“(I’m) just proud of how we responded, getting down six and calling that timeout and how our guys reacted,” Utah coach Craig Smith said.

Utah, after shooting 38.9% in the first half against a Cougars team that entered the contest leading the league in field goal percentage defense, shot 60% after halftime.

Madsen had 20 points, and his four 3-pointers came during a four-minute stretch in which Utah went on a 14-2 run to take back control of the contest.

“It took a while to get going, but obviously as a good shooter, I’m going to take some more shots. It felt good to see them go in,” Madsen said.

Carlson and company kept that momentum going until the final whistle, as the Utes stretched their lead as the game wore on. Carlson finished with 19 points, eight rebounds, five assists and five blocks. 

As a team, Utah finished with nine blocks on a night in which it held the visitors to 31.3% shooting, including under 25% in the second half.

“I think in the first half, we were not good defensively. We picked that up in the second half. Coach kinda got into us,” sophomore Keba Keita said.

Keita, one of the team’s key bench contributors, also played a significant role in the win — his 10 first-half points helped the Utes overcome an offensive slump after they went ahead 22-12 in the game’s first 12 minutes. 

Keita ended the night with 18 points, 11 rebounds and three blocks in 22 minutes off the bench.

“I thought we competed hard defensively the whole night, but we didn’t play with the physicality we needed and Keba brings a lot of physicality,” Smith said.

The 6-foot-8 center brought an intensity to both ends of the floor in the latest chapter of what’s been a breakout season.

“Keba Keita I thought really impacted the game with his shot blocking, rim protection. He played with a lot of force and physicality. That’s what you’ve got to do when you play Washington State,” Smith said.

Washington State, which didn’t score its first point until 4 ½ minutes into the game, managed to make it a two-point contest at intermission by locking down defensively in the first half’s final minutes.

The Cougars, who had 24 offensive rebounds in the game, then used their ability to create second-chance opportunities to take the lead early in the second, as a 7-0 spurt over a minute was fueled by offensive boards.

That’s when Smith called a timeout, lit a…