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Despite slow half against Eastern Washington, Utes’ Tillman has been on a tear

(Scott Sommerdorf | The Salt Lake Tribune) Utah's Jayce Johnson is sandwiched between Eastern Washington defenders as he battles for a rebound during first half play. Utah held a 46-27 lead over Eastern Washington at the half, Friday, November 24, 2017.

(Scott Sommerdorf | The Salt Lake Tribune) Utah's Jayce Johnson is sandwiched between Eastern Washington defenders as he battles for a rebound during first half play. Utah held a 46-27 lead over Eastern Washington at the half, Friday, November 24, 2017.

Utes freshman forward Donnie Tillman hit a little bit of a speed bump in the first half after having strung together four consecutive strong performances, including two double-doubles in a three-game span.

Tillman tallied five first-half points in six minutes of play in Friday’s game against Eastern Washington. However, Tillman committed two fouls and two turnovers in that short stint on the court.

The 6-foot-7, 225-pound Tillman had come on of late. His surge came not long after a sit-down with Utes coach Larry Krystkowiak about Tillman’s role. Tillman said afterward that he’s not a big-time scorer and wants to provide energy, rebounding, defense and be aggressive on offense when he has openings.

“By big-time scorer, I mean I’m not a selfish player,” Tillman said after his 14-point, 11-rebound effort on Wednesday in a loss to UNLV. “You can always see that. I might get two buckets back-to-back, but I’m always going to look out for the right play.”

He entered Friday night leading the team in rebounding (7.4 per game) despite coming off the bench.

Tillman was coming off four straight double-digit scoring games, including both games in Las Vegas during the MGM Resorts Main Event. He also recorded his second career double-double in Wednesday night’s game.

Tillman, a native of Detroit, Mich., played high school basketball at Findlay Prep in Henderson, Nev. Several familiar faces were in attendance for the games in Las Vegas.

“There was a lot of family. Findlay coaches came.” Tillman said. “Plus, it was UNLV. I played at Findlay, and a lot of Findlay players go to UNLV. Everyone in the crowd was saying my name. ‘Tillman, Hey!’ ”

Part of the legacy

Utah will take part in next year’s Wooden Legacy event in Southern California on Nov. 22, 23 and 25. ESPN announced seven of the eight teams in the 2018 field Thursday. Utah will be joined by Fresno State, Hawaii, LaSalle, Miami, Northwestern and Seton Hall.

The Wooden Legacy event started in 2013 when the John R. Wooden Classic merged with the Anaheim Classic. The tournament is one of eight in-season bracket-style events operated by ESPN.

The Utes came into Friday having just competed in a four-team tournament in Las Vegas at T-Mobile Arena, the host site of the Pac-12 Conference’s postseason tournament.

Bugged out

The stomach bug, which has already struck junior guard Sedrick Barefield, Tillman and Krystkowiak, has found its latest victim. Redshirt freshman forward Chris Seeley was not available to play in Wednesday’s game in Las Vegas because of the stomach virus, and he did not dress for Friday’s game.