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Utah coach Larry Krystkowiak's postgame analysis that it takes at least a "B" effort to win Pac-12 basketball games made sense.
His description that the Utes "kind of got punched" by Oregon in Thursday's first half probably was not the best choice of phrases, in the current context.
Krystkowiak's pointing to the Utes' offensive problems, as opposed to defensive issues, actually was refreshing.
No matter how any of it was explained, though, the Utes' 77-59 loss was disturbing. And the Pac-12 standings tell the story of a season that could crumble, if this team fails to respond immediately.
Utah is 1-3, in a three-way tie for 10th in the conference. Yes, that's last place. The Utes have 14 games to alter that outlook, but this is a little bit frightening. The Pac-12 is not loaded with overwhelming teams, but is deeper than ever. Some decent teams are going to finish in the bottom tier of the conference — and the Utes might be one of them.
Sunday's home game with Oregon State is an opportunity for Utah to right itself, but it is apparent that this season is different than last season. Thursday's showing drove home that point, if I had not recognized it yet.
The Utes exploited a down year in the Pac-12 in 2014-15 by going 13-5 in league play, including 8-1 at home. Their defense kept them in every game and they throttled visiting teams in the Huntsman Center all year, right up until Arizona earned a tough win in late February — the same night when BYU won at Gonzaga, coincidentally enough.
Same story Thursday, only different. BYU beat Gonzaga again and the Utes lost a second straight Pac-12 home game, dating to last season.
The Utes miss point guard Delon Wright; that's obvious. Yet it was natural to figure that with center Jakob Poeltl returning for his sophomore season, surrounded by other core players, that Utah would maintain some consistency this season. And it's not as if everything has collapsed, judging by the Utes' wins over BYU and Duke in December.
The Pac-12 is much tougher this year, though. "We have to grind. There's nothing going to be easy," Krystkowiak said. "You certainly have to bring your 'B' game to have a chance. You may not always have to bring your 'A' game. … Man, if you come in with a 'D,' I don't care if you play home, Alaska, road, wherever it is, you're going to get your butt kicked in this league."
That's exactly what happened Thursday, when the Utes were tentative offensively and gave up 46 first-half points. After they stabilized things early in the second half, cutting Oregon's lead to 50-44, the Utes struggled. They missed 13 shots in a row, failing to score for nearly eight minutes. The worst part is that the game remained there for the taking in that stretch, as Oregon scored only six points.
Krystkowiak cited Poeltl's ankle injury in practice as a distraction leading up to the game, but not a factor in his play. Poeltl attempted only four shots from the field. Passing out of double-teams is good strategy, but Poeltl must be more assertive for the Utes to succeed.
Asked how his team should deal with the defeat, senior guard Brandon Taylor said, "Accept it and do something about it."
That process starts Sunday night.
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