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Salt Lake City • It was a good night to be a Runnin' Utes starter, especially in the second half.

The most Delon Wright and Jordan Loveridge had to worry about in the tail end of an 85-48 win over Texas Pan American was how comfortable their seats were. A slow start soon gave way to another full-on home blowout, and Larry Krystkowiak's youngest players got plenty of run on the night before Thanksgiving.

What to be thankful for: a deep roster of athletic players that had plenty of highlights by night's end.

Kyle Kuzma was Utah's leading scorer with 14, by virtue of playing almost the whole second half with his teammates Isaiah Wright and Brekkott Chapman. Larry Krystkowiak fulfilled his promise of playing young when his team got a big lead, and still the Utes gradually pulled away.

Utah has now won its first three home games by an average of 37 points. A mellow Krystkowiak said postgame he's getting used to giving his bench players the reins.

"It hasn't been an unusual thing because it's been happening a little bit with our guys," he said. "Our young kids are gaining some confidence and playing pretty well. I think we've got a little depth and it's gonna pay off for us, certainly in this tournament, when you can play everybody about 20 minutes."

Indeed, 10 Utes played 11 minutes or more. Freshman Isaiah Wright led with 24, a measure of how in control Utah was.

The first half was essentially an exhibition: Delon Wright had his most efficient scoring night so far this year, going 4-for-4 with 12 points in 22 minutes. Jakob Poeltl cleaned the boards with 10 rebounds - seven on the offensive end - to go with eight points and three blocks in his 20 minutes. Kuzma shot from deep, but showed versatility with a pair of two-handed dunks from opposite sides of the rim.

It was a bit slow getting off the ground, but after a 13-all tie, Utah went on a 19-4 run, powered by Poeltl's second chances and hot shooting hands around the floor. Utah shot a blistering 63 percent in the first half, including 5 for 8 from deep.

"I just tried to bring energy, go to the glass every time, go for every rebound," he said. "Except for the beginning, I finished my looks, and then we got rolling."

Loveridge also had a double-digit scoring night, notching 11 points and going 3-for-4 from 3-point range on his 21st birthday.

What the starters could've done was only limited by Krystkowiak's desire for fresh legs when the Utes get to the end of their three-game tournament.

If Wednesday was any indication, Utah's prospects of going 3-0 this week are good.

kgoon@sltrib.com Twitter: @kylegoon —

Utah 85, UT Pan Am 48

R Utah rolls in tournament opener.

• Kyle Kuzma has a team-best 14 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists.

• Delon Wright has 12 points on 4-for-4 shooting.

• Utah shoots 8 for 13 from 3-point range, Jordan Loveridge hits three deep.