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Jakob Poeltl hears the same advice over and over: He's gotta dunk more.
"Not only my coaches," he said, laughing. "Also my teammates. Everybody."
"Everybody," Delon Wright echoed, rolling his eyes.
Everybody got what they wanted on Sunday evening, as the freshman center piled up 18 points and 8 rebounds to lead the No. 11 Runnin' Utes to a 76-61 victory over visiting Cal at the Huntsman Center.
More of a bit player since Pac-12 play began, Poeltl played up to his size against the Golden Bears. His 13 second-half points paced the Utes, as he forced his way into the paint with shots off the glass and - yes, everybody - dunks.
The announced crowd of 14,159 rose up from the seats as he cut past 7-foot-1 defender Kingsley Okoroh inside for a one-handed reverse slam, the unofficial sign that the rout was on for Utah's 17th straight home win.
"I had some easy ones at the beginning that kind of got me going," said Poeltl, who was 7 for 9 while putting up his highest scoring total since November. "Every shot felt great. It went in. I don't feel like I did anything different."
Poeltl's late domination put the skids on a scrappy Cal team that nearly baited Utah into a shootout. The Golden Bears led by as much as six in the first half, led by star guard Tyrone Wallace who finished with 26 points.
Utah's defense has earned a steely reputation, but Wallace made defenders look like mere traffic cones as he glided to the rim for 17 points in the first 13 minutes of the game.
The response from Utah was typical: They put Brandon Taylor on him. Going against the 5-foot-10 junior, Wallace went on a 17-minute scoring drought. In those 17 minutes, Utah went on a 19-point swing to go from down to up big - a position they've become accustomed to in Pac-12 play.
A 1-for-16 shooting stretch by Cal in the game's middle washed out any hopes for an upset, and the Golden Bears didn't score for the first six-and-a-half minutes after halftime. Afterward, Larry Krystkowiak was a bit fired up that the result was ever in question.
"We weren't doing a very good job of guarding them," he said of the first half. "They were playing a heck of a lot harder than we were. … Let's not fool ourselves, we need to play harder. And that made a difference."
Aside from Poeltl, three other Utes finished in double digits including Taylor (13), Dakarai Tucker (12) and Delon Wright (16).
Wright's aggressiveness in the second half helped pace Utah's effort, as he finished 8 for 8 at the free throw line and added 5 assists and 3 steals. Wright also provided the game's greatest scare when he stumbled on defense against Wallace and came up limping with 10 minutes to go.
All was well: Wright returned within a few minutes, and said post-game his right ankle was sore but OK. He was more concerned about his assertiveness, which improved as the game went on.
"I felt like they were giving me the jumper, but I wasn't aggressive enough," he said. "I felt I had to be more aggressive in the second half and get to the free throw line. Those are easy points for me."
Besides keeping the team paced with first-place Arizona, the win gives Utah its first winning Pac-12 record ever. Asked about the milestone, Krystkowiak gave a deadpan response, raising both fists in the air and delivering a line about "a big bonus in my contract."
But for the Utes, there is no celebration. There is no milestone. Only the next game, and a chance to continue what has been, so far, an especially memorable season.
"All those things are good," Krystkowiak said. "And it's going to be a lot of fun visiting about them when we don't have another game."
Twitter: @kylegoon —
No. 11 Utah 76, California 61
• Freshman center Jakob Poeltl has 18 points, 8 rebounds, 2 blocks.
• The Utes go on an 18-2 run, and Cal doesn't score for the first 6:32 of second half.
• Delon Wright finishes with 16 points, 5 assists, 3 steals.