Perhaps Utes coach Larry Krystkowiak’s previous gripes about playing so many consecutive Sunday games were in part because it cut into his book club time.
When asked during his weekly news conference about the improved dynamic among the players on this season’s team, Krystkowiak referenced a team discussion Monday about the book “The Four Agreements: A Practical Guide to Personal Freedom” by Don Miguel Ruiz. Krystkowiak asked the players to each read the book during the Christmas break.
Krystkowiak said the book struck a chord with him as well as players. The main tenets of the book dealt with being precise with your words, not making assumptions and always giving your best effort.
That discussion came on the heels of Sunday’s win against Washington State in which senior wing Gabe Bealer came off the bench to score 15 points and make three 3-pointers and junior guard Sedrick Barefield scored 14 points off the bench. Bealer and Barefield had been mainstays in the Utes’ starting lineup for most of this season, but they’d struggled offensively in recent games.
“It’s short term, but Gabe has responded [and] Sedrick has responded,” said Krystkowiak, who wore a “Kuzmania” T-shirt in support of former Utes standout and current Los Angeles Lakers forward Kyle Kuzma. “It’s not like I’m playing a game, but it’s cool because they both responded in the proper way. They faced it with an open mind and a lot of enthusiasm, and they’ve both played as hard as I’ve seen them play all season. Lo and behold, the so-called monkey is off their back. They scored a few points. That’s karma.”
Happy birthday, Bib
Senior guard Justin Bibbins celebrated his 22nd birthday Tuesday, one day after he earned the Pac-12 Conference’s player of the week honor. The native of Carson, Calif., posted back-to-back double-doubles, including a 13-point, 12-assist effort Sunday night. That game made him the first Utes player since Brandon Taylor in February 2016 to register 10 or more assists in a game. Bibbins also became the program’s first weekly conference honoree since Jakob Poeltl in February 2016.
Earning respect
The women’s basketball team notched a road win over No. 22 Arizona State on Friday and will welcome No. 17 Oregon State and No. 7 Oregon into the Huntsman Center for games Friday and Sunday, respectively.
“I don’t think that we are respected much, which is fine. We’ll earn it,” Utes coach Lynne Roberts said. “It’s just kind of eyebrow raising, I think, in the basketball community like, ‘Oh, wow. Utah beat them. Huh.’ The more we can do that, the more we’re going to earn that respect because as it is now, no one expects us to beat a ranked opponent. Our goal is to be those ranked opponents, not just beat them — to become one. We’ll get there.”
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