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Denver

Brandon Taylor is Utah's renaissance man, its resuscitation man, its resurrection man, its return-to-glory man. And, now, as the point guard nears the end of his college run, he's at the center of the Utes' chances for doing something memorable in the NCAA Tournament.

That's what he said he wants: "I want to be remembered."

The senior bounces a basketball real well, he passes it, hits the 3, runs the offense and plays defense. At times, he does those things better than at others. He's played in 131 games during his four years with the Utes, and helped them — by way of hitting big last-moment shots — accomplish two things they had never before done as a member of the Pac-12: beat UCLA at Pauley Pavilion and beat Arizona.

But there's more.

He acts, like, in plays, on a stage, and looks forward to making acting his living in the years ahead. He's a comedian, a funnyman. He does impersonations. He sings. He loves mathematics. He studies people. He's majoring in psychology. He's the Pac-12's basketball scholar-athlete, a pretty decent accomplishment in a league that features some fairly smart players. It's an honor he takes pride in.

"There are a lot of good athletes out there," he said. "But if you want to be great in life, you have to rely on your mind, your ability to study. You have to be able to look at situations and think them through. One of my problems is, I think a little too much. But you have to learn."

On a team with Jakob Poeltl, a big man with big talent headed for the NBA's draft lottery, the diminutive Taylor's presence, as well as his career, might fall into a tall shadow at its conclusion. It shouldn't.

"For a little guy, he has a huge heart," said Utah assistant coach Tommy Connor. "It's no secret, when he plays well, takes care of the ball, shoots the ball well, we're pretty good. He's important, and he knows that. He knows he has to play well for us to win. He's played a large part in our program."

Look at the stats, heading into Thursday's first-round game against Fresno State: Taylor has scored 1,247 points, hit 242 triples, dished 418 assists, rebounded 287 balls, and won 88 games, a few on those last-minute shots. He is the quarterback who helped Utah absorb the early buffetings through brutal Pac-12 battles, back when it won just five conference games one season and nine the next. How's the song about little people from Les Miserables go?

"They laugh at me, these fellas, just because I am small. They laugh at me because I'm not hundred feet tall! I tell 'em there's a lot to learn down here on the ground. The world is big, but little people turn it around! … Be careful where you go, 'cos little people grow."

Maybe only a burgeoning thespian would appreciate those lyrics, but, put it like this, nobody's laughing at Taylor — or Utah basketball — anymore.

The senior hasn't grown, not in physical stature. He's still just 5-foot-nothing, and a buck-sixty-five. But he helped the Utes favorably turn their program in dramatic fashion as much as anyone before him. After stumbling and bumbling, then modestly improving over two seasons, last year, they made it to the NCAA Tournament's Sweet 16, losing to eventual champion Duke. This time around, they are a 3-seed, the highest Utah has been since 1999.

"When I came in, times were rough," he said. "It was dark. But I knew we were going to be a part of something special. We believed we could make this good."

Taylor has led that advance, if not in overall talent, in a steadying kind of thumping of the drum, always there, always on the floor, always enthusiastic, always competing, come what may.

"I've learned a lot about adversity," he said. "A lot about overcoming it."

His interests outside of basketball, his brains, will be useful in the near future. There will be no spot in the NBA for him. But what Taylor's achieved at Utah should be appreciated and remembered. He'd like nothing more than to make it more appreciated and better remembered with a run through the madness now.

"I'm proud of making a mark here," he said. "It's fulfilling. I hope fans will remember me. Hopefully, I'm a player they won't forget."

GORDON MONSON hosts "The Big Show" with Spence Checketts weekdays from 3-7 p.m. on 97.5 FM and 1280 AM The Zone. Twitter: @GordonMonson.