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Stanford, Calif. • On a straighter path, Josh Watkins' wayward 3-pointer would have sent it to overtime. A few three throws would have made all the difference. An unkind loss would have been an unimaginable win.
The Utes were alternately their best and their worst in a 68-65 loss to Stanford in front of 4,981 at Maples Pavilion. They were their hottest and coldest and, after the game, their most delighted and most depressed.
This is the new threshold for the Utes (4-12, 1-3), now just bad enough to lose. The team whose average loss away from home was by 26 points can no longer stomach losing by three on the road to an upper-echelon Pac-12 team.
"We know we can compete with anybody," Watkins said, "but now it's time to get the wins."
The Utes' focus turns to California on Saturday, but a victory was within reach on Thursday against Stanford (14-4, 4-1) as the Utes were a study in counteracting forces.
They opened the game 1 of 11 from the field and scored only two points through the first 10:13.
In the second half, they scored 22 points on 10 baskets before they missed, and led 47-46 with 8:28 remaining.
The Cardinal opened up leads of 14, 10 and nine points; each time the Utes rallied.
With four seconds left Chris Hines, who led the Utes with 21 points, missed a 3-point attempt to improbably send the game to overtime.
With 1.9 left, Watkins missed a 3, too.
And that, unfortunately for the upset-minded Utes, was where they found their consistency.
The Utes have now lost consecutive Pac-12 games to Washington and Stanford by seven combined points, a vast improvement from a 73-33 thrashing at Colorado on New Year's Eve.
Larry Krystkowiak praised his team's effort. Every starter played more than 30 minutes, while, the first-year coach stuck to a tight seven-man rotation for the second time in three games.
But while the Utes were significantly better on the whole, it was the details of the game that eluded them and, ultimately, could be blamed for the loss.
Utah shot 1 of 9 from the free-throw line. Stanford grabbed 11 offensive rebounds and outscored the Utes on second-chance points 18-2.
"We haven't had a lot of time to talk about little things," Krystkoiak said, "because it's been kind of a big-picture situation."
While the Utes were atrocious from the line, Stanford was abysmal. The Cardinal were 5 of 17 on free throws, and made just 3 of 6 in the final minute.
That is where the Utes made their last charge.
Josh Huestis led the Cardinal with 14 points. He scored with 1:04 remaining to put Stanford up 65-54.
But Cedric Martin made a 3-pointer with 16 seconds remaining to close the gap to 66-63 and, after a pair of made free throws by Stanford, Dijon Farr scored for the Utes. He missed a free throw that would have cut the lead to two, and the rebound was tapped out to Hines.
Hines finished the game 9 of 17 from the field, and he thought his top-of-the-key 3 was in.
"I shot it just like I shoot every shot," Hines later said. "It just didn't go in."
Twitter: @oramb —
Stanford 68, Utah 65
R Utah erases a 14-point first-half deficit, but falls at Stanford.