National Basketball Association
BOXSCORE | RECAP
Utah 88, UC Riverside 42
When: 9:00 PM ET, Friday, November 21, 2014
Where: Jon M. Huntsman Center, Salt Lake City, Utah
Officials: # Daryl Gelinas, # Michael Greenstein, # David Hall
Attendance: 9645

Utah 88, UC Riverside 42: Freshman Kyle Kuzma scored a season-high 19 points off the bench to lead four Utes in double figures as Utah bounced back from a sluggish offensive outing by routing the visiting Highlanders.

Delon Wright scored 13 points, Jordan Loveridge had 12 and Brekkott Chapman added 11 off the bench for the Utes (2-1), who scored only 49 points and shot only 32 percent in a road loss to San Diego State on Tuesday. Utah enjoyed a 47-23 advantage on the boards and a 21-9 edge at the free-throw line Friday night.

Nick Gruninger had 14 points while reserves Robert Boezeman and Charles Standifer added seven apiece for UC Riverside (1-2), which lost its second straight game. Taylor Johns, who came into the contest averaging a team-high 18.5 points, scored only two on 1-of-11 shooting.

The Utes led 48-21 at the break and Loveridge’s 3-pointer capped an 8-2 Utah run to open the second half and squash any last hopes of a UC Riverside revival. The Utes’ largest lead was 88-40 following a Chapman free throw in the final minute.

It was tight early as Utah took a 9-7 edge into the first media timeout, but it was all Utes the rest of the half as they outscored UC Riverside 39-14 over the final 14:45. The Highlanders only connected on seven of their 24 field-goal attempts in the opening 20 minutes, including 0-for-6 from 3-point range.

GAME NOTEBOOK: Utah improved to 69-15 all-time against members of the Big West Conference in the first meeting between the programs. … UC Riverside shot only 29.1 percent (16-of-55), including a 1-of-13 showing from 3-point range. … The contest was the first of a five-game homestand for Utah.
Top Game Performances
 
UC Riverside   Utah
Nick Gruninger 14 Scoring Kyle Kuzma 19
Taylor Johns 2 Assists Isaiah Wright 8
Taylor Johns 5 Rebounds Chris Reyes 7
Nick Gruninger 6 Free Throws Made Brekkott Chapman 5
Nick Gruninger 1 Steals Delon Wright 2
Taylor Johns 1 Blocks Brekkott Chapman 3
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Points FG% 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA Assists Rebounds Blocks Steals Turnovers
UC Riverside 42 29.1 1-13 9-9 7 21 3 4 14
Utah 88 51.8 9-17 21-28 21 45 7 5 9