This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2015, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
San Juan, Puerto Rico • A 7-foot center had himself a career night. Just not the one Utah hoped would excel.
A thorn in Utah's side might not accurately represent Miami senior Tonye Jekiri's impact in the Hurricanes' 90-66 thrashing of the Utes — more like a whole tree in the side. He loomed large, scoring a career-best 20 points and grabbing 12 rebounds.
On the 2016 NBA Draft Express board, Utah center Jakob Poeltl has him beat by 65 spots. But at least in the Puerto Rico Tip-Off, the muscular Jekiri looked at least every bit Poeltl's equal, if not better.
"I thought the big kid did a nice job," Utah coach Larry Krystkowiak said. "He was ready, played Jakob really well. … It seems like those times when we got stops, he was there to clean up those."
Jekiri cleaned up five offensive boards, and finished with 12 rebounds, twice as many as any other player in the game (Poeltl had 6). He was especially devastating in the first half: As Utah's frontcourt swapped lineups furiously to stave off foul trouble, Jekiri slipped beneath the defense into the paint and caught passes or got rebounds for easy buckets right at the rim.
It's kind of a pattern for Jekiri: He often goes unnoticed. But his hard work definitely has drawn the praise of his coach, Jim Larranaga.
In all, Jekiri played 32 minutes to lead the Canes — Larranaga said he was afraid to take him out.
"For whatever reason with our schedule, in our first four games we've played against a really good big man who can score," he said. "Tonye's been very challenged, but he's done well."
Loveridge scores
With his fourth straight game of at least 18 points to start the season, senior guard Jordan Loveridge is on a scoring tear unmatched in his career.
Averaging 20.3 points per game and shooting 51 percent from beyond the arc, Loveridge has been Utah's leader on the offensive end. Even in defeat, he poured in 18 and was 6 for 8 from the field.
"That's one of the ones you want to just keep riding," Krystkowiak said. "I'm going to let him do his thing. I know there's not a player in America that puts in more time in the offseason. He's a senior that's had a lot of opportunity to get this program rolling again, and there's a sense of urgency from him."
If only some of that would rub off.
There's a host of Utes having difficult scoring starts to the year, but perhaps more surprising than most are seniors Brandon Taylor and Dakarai Tucker. A returning all-Pac-12 honoree, Taylor was 2 for 8 against Miami, and is now only shooting 25 percent for the year. Tucker was 0 for 2, adding to a season that's only seen him score one basket so far.
Krystkowiak acknowledged his veterans are struggling to shoot the ball, but said he takes a positive spin on the situation: Eventually, they'll break out of the slump.
"They're good shooters, they've been struggling," he said. "The fact that we've been able to win three games without great shooting from our backcourt, I'd rather think that's a positive and think, 'Man, when those guys start hitting some shots, maybe we can really improve.'"
Freshmen see action
In garbage minutes, many fans aren't paying attention. In that respect, the debut of freshmen Brandon Miller and Austin Montgomery went under the radar.
Both Miller and Montgomery, who returned from LDS Church missions in the past year, played a few minutes for the Utes. Montgomery came in during a more critical stretch, after Chris Reyes picked up his fourth foul, while Miller came in late as starters subbed out.
Also returning for Utah was junior guard Kenneth Ogbe, playing in his first game since February.
A notable DNP was Makol Mawien, a 6-foot-8 freshman who sat when the Utes were running out of size. Krystkowiak said he is "possibly" looking at a redshirt year for the Granger High alum, but is planning on meeting with him before a final decision.
TwitteR: @kylegoon —
Friday's Top 25 scores
• No. 2 Kentucky 78, Wright State 63
• No. 3 Maryland 65, Rider 58
• No. 5 Duke 79, VCU 71
• No. 6 Virginia 87, Long Beach State 52
• No. 6 Virginia 87, Long Beach State 52
• No. 8 Oklahoma 85, McNeese St.56
• No. 11 Villanova 86, ETSU 51
• No. 13 Michigan St. 92, Ark.-Pine Bluff 46
• No. 15 Cal vs. East Carolina, late
• No. 22 Butler 74, Temple 69
• Xavier 86, No. 24 Michigan 70
• No. 25 Oregon vs. Savannah State, late