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Pullman, Wash. • Down six with 7:34 against a scrappy Pac-12 bottom feeder, the Utes faced as much adversity as they have all season in front of mostly empty bleachers at Beasley Coliseum.

The bench wasn't exactly radiating confidence as they took the court after a tense timeout.

But somehow, through some sudden grit, the Utes survived arguably their ugliest effort of the season, riding away from Washington State with a 67-59 win.

The mistakes at the heart of the game - no interior scoring, poor defense in the paint and passed-up shots among them - weren't erased by victory. The Cougars exposed some deep-seeded flaws in Utah's game.

But better to be exposed in a win than a loss.

"I was a little bit of a pessimist on the bench at the end of the game - I thought, 'I'm not sure if we deserve this one,'" Larry Krystkowiak said afterward. "Our assistants reminded me: It's March. It's hard. Things are a grind. It makes a difference to be able to close out a game like that."

The Utes preserved their shot at finishing second place outright in the Pac-12, and they maintained their edge on a No. 2 seed in the Pac-12 tournament. They also saved a potential backslide in NCAA tournament seeding. Most experts have Utah as a 4-seed, but most 4-seeds don't lose games to 12-16 teams in their conference.

Heroics were necessary in this one, and the heroics were provided by Jordan Loveridge and Brandon Taylor on offense. The two combined to hit 5 of 6 shots, including four 3-pointers in the final seven minutes, to flip a 6-point deficit into a 9-point lead with a minute to go.

Taylor's first 3-pointer - the tying basket at 48 points - was his first.

"We just kept shooting with confidence," Loveridge said. "Every guy believes in each other. When we get the ball swung to us, we know that they're believing in us to make that shot."

Utah's well-regarded defense emerged late to keep Washington State from getting back in the game. The Cougars missed four of their last five shots. By the time DaVonte Lacy made a dunk with 5.4 seconds left, it was too late.

The night also featured a standout performance from senior Delon Wright, who recorded a near triple-double with 18 points, 8 rebounds and 8 assists. His best efforts came on gritty blocks or scrambling into the post against bigger players.

Wright was all hustle Thursday night, and he was one of the few.

As a team, the Utes shot only 40 percent from the floor. While they won the rebounding battle resoundingly, they were throughly whipped in the paint, with WSU scoring 26 to Utah's 16 in the post. Utah's interior allowed several unguarded dunks throughout the game, adding fuel to Washington's State fire for an upset on its home court where Utah hadn't won since 1999.

It was already a late start, but the Utes took a few extra minutes to show up after the tip-off.

Washington State surged to an early 7-2 lead while Utah looked out of sync offensively with a game-opening shot clock violation, turnovers and throwing up bad shots. The bench was a turnstile as Krystkowiak went 10 deep within the first six minutes to find any combination that could get his team going.

"I told them after, it's nothing personal but what am I supposed to do as a coach?" he said. "There's a bunch of guys out there running around. You've got to figure it out. Let's go."

Something fired them up after the second timeout, as the Utes hammered out an 8-0 run to get its first lead of the game.

In many games, those runs have been the beginning of the end for Utah's competition. But the scrappy Cougars weren't so easily broken, sparring with the Utes for six first-half ties. Senior 7-footer Jordan Railey, who averaged 6 points per game entering the night, took advantage of a weak start from Utah's front court with 12 first-half points.

Twitter: @kylegoon —

Storylines

R Delon Wright leads Utes with 18 points, eight rebounds, eight assists

• Utes shoot 40 percent from the floor

• Jordan Loveridge adds 16 points, including 3 3-pointers