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You know how big this is. You know how tough this is.
http://bit.ly/2iu05MV";>No. 4 UCLA is the best offensive team to visit the Huntsman Center in the Pac-12 era. And short of doing what no team has done — find a defensive solution — the Utes will have to be primed to keep pace.
There's actually some interesting similarities: Both Utah and UCLA are barely ever blocked at the rim. Both have six players who average 10 points or more. But UCLA's talent is heralded as future NBA stars. Utah doesn't have that so far.
It'll likely take another gritty effort from the Utes, http://bit.ly/2ij3hMR";>who showed both their offensive and defensive energy on Thursday night. While there's a talent gap between the programs, can Utah find an edge at home? Senior Lorenzo Bonam seemed to play down the idea of UCLA as Goliath this weekend.
"They are good, so it will be another test," he said. "But they came from high school just like us. They may have four or five starts to us with two or three stars, so from an athletic perspective they may have that over us. But we're gonna see if they've got more heart."
Time, Place and [radio waves in] Space • Set your watch, your phone, your sundial — whatever needs to be set. It goes off at the Huntsman Center on Saturday at 4 p.m. TV is the Pac-12 Network. Radio is ESPN 700 AM with Bill and Jimmy.
The Line • As of Friday evening, UCLA is favored by three points, according to Vegas Insider. Utah is 7-6-1 against the spread so far this year, with three wins and a push in Pac-12 play so far.
Pregame Quotable • Sedrick Barefield went to high school with UCLA freshman Ike (pronounced "EK") Anigbogu, and the two are close. He also played on the same club as T.J. Leaf, and had a few rounds with Lonzo Ball in high school and AAU. But Barefield added this: "I know a lot of those guys pretty well, and it will be fun playing against them. But at the same time, I don't think any of us are trying to make friends out there."
Opposing coach • The hot seat talk that plagued Steve Alford at the end of last season andhttp://www.espn.com/mens-college-basketball/story/_/id/17963639/ucla-bruins-coach-steve-alford-make-break-season";> the beginning of this one has dried up. https://www.facebook.com/FireSteveAlford/";>The "Fire Steve Alford" Facebook page is under 400 "likes." And maybe the fourth-year coach, whose tenure before this year has been marked by fan grumbling, hasn't even gotten enough credit for his team's 17-1 start. Now with 467 overall wins, Alford has won twice as many games as he's lost at UCLA, gone to the Sweet 16 twice and appears on track to go past that benchmark this year with a team many think can compete for a championship. He's 2-3 against Larry Krystkowiak since taking over UCLA.
Telling Stat • How about the leap from last year? Not only have the Bruins surpassed last year's win total (17 this year to 15 all of last season), the team has jumped from http://kenpom.com/";>KenPom's No. 51 offense to No. 1. After totaling the No. 147 effective field goal percentage last year (50.3), UCLA is now leading the country (62.1) with four of the top 100 individuals in that category.
Bruins Roster Overview • Most understand that the pace, passing and efficiency is structured around Lonzo Ball. The 6-foot-6 guard is one of the nation's leaders in assists (8.0), but also can shoot it — albeit with an unconventional stroke — from deep or take it to the rim. When he's double-teamed, he'll more often than not find the open man. http://www.cbssports.com/college-basketball/news/even-in-the-shadow-of-lonzo-ball-ucla-freshman-tj-leaf-is-impressing-nba-scouts/";>Much of the time, that man has been Leaf: He's one of the most efficient offensive executors in the country, shooting 65.1 percent (No. 6 nationally) with a couple 3-pointers to his stats as well. He and fellow frontcourt mate Thomas Welsh are a handful on the boards (combined 17.5 rpg) and can clean up misses. The backcourt will have a lot of more familiar names: With Ball handling most of the point duties, senior Bryce Alford has become deadly as a spot up shooter, leading the Pac-12 in both 3-point percentage and made 3-pointers per game. Fellow senior Isaac Hamilton is one of the league's most dangerous penetrators, while sophomore Aaron Holiday would start for most Pac-12 teams, but is satisfied coming off the bench and dominating in isolation. The third of the star freshmen, Ike Anigbogu only adds five points per game but has the highest block rate (10.6 percent) on the team. UCLA runs fast: It has the No. 7 quickest offensive possessions (14.2 second average) and it finishes efficiently. The Bruins are just as capable of throwing down lay-ups as they are at hitting a barrage of 3-pointers. While defense is a weakness (allows 74.9 ppg, No. 10 in the Pac-12), with as many points as UCLA puts up, it barely matters. Sometimes a good offense is a good defense.
Behind Enemy Lines • The L.A. Times covered UCLA's win over Colorado on Thursday night, http://www.latimes.com/sports/ucla/la-sp-ucla-colorado-20170112-story.html";>with a special nod to Bryce Alford stealing away the "family record" for made 3-pointers in a game.
Something's Gotta Give • The most intriguing match-up on paper: Leaf versus Kyle Kuzma. UCLA's power forward is 6-foot-10 and 225 pounds to Kuzma's 6-foot-9 and 220 pounds. Kuzma is more perimeter oriented, while Leaf is a better overall finisher, particularly in the post. There's probably going to be a lot of possessions with these two matched up, and every rebound, shot and foul is really going to matter. Leaf establishes the bulk of the Bruins' inside presence, while Kuzma is a valuable inside-outside player who can create for others. Last match-up with a future first-rounder didn't go so well — Kuzma probably would like to play better than he did against Lauri Markkanen (8 points, 2 rebounds, 3 for 10).
UCLA's Edge • The No. 1 shooting team on 3-pointers will get their looks. UCLA is hitting 44.1 percent from deep, highlighted by a program-record 19 on Thursday against the Buffaloes. Alford hit nine all by himself. That is unlikely to repeat Saturday, but UCLA has logged double-digit 3-pointers as a team in two-thirds of its games. Utah had a great effort with its zone defense on Thursday against USC, limiting the top shooters' effectiveness from downtown. But the Utes are mediocre defending the perimeter on the season, ranking No. 184 (34.6 percent). It will take a focused defensive performance to keep UCLA's shooters quiet, particularly if it's a fast-paced game.
Utah's Edge • The best thing Utah can do on Saturday is gather up UCLA's misses. KenPom grades the Utes as the No. 25 defensive rebounding team in the country (75.2 percent of D-boards), and UCLA is an average offensive rebounding team (29 percent, No. 189). Kyle Kuzma, David Collette, Jayce Johnson, Tyler Rawson and Devon Daniels will need to be all over the defensive glass. It's hard enough guarding UCLA when they get one look at the basket per possession — giving second-chance opportunities would be costly.
Injury Watch • UCLA guard Prince Ali hasn't played yet this year, but the Bruins haven't missed him. Anigbogu missed a few games with a knee injury in November, but he's fine now. Utah figures to be healthy aside from Larry Krystkowiak's back, http://bit.ly/2jKNfM8";>which he said was improved in Thursday's game.
Watch Out For • How do the Utes dictate the pace? http://bit.ly/2iSBn9G";>Utah is moving as fast as it ever has under Krystkowiak, but is a track meet a recipe for disaster against the high-speed Bruins? It's hard to say for sure: Oregon State, Texas A&M and Nebraska were at least able to keep the scores relatively close with slower, more physical games. Then again, a close game over Kentucky at Rupp Arena had 83 possessions per team. It'll be up to the coaching staff to determine what suits Utah best: going at UCLA's tempo and trying to keep up, or slowing things down and maybe playing ugly like against Butler, Xavier and Arizona — and mind you that Utah didn't win any of those games. There's no easy answer, but the choice will flesh out how the game goes.
kgoon@sltrib.com
Twitter: @kylegoon