Utes primed for a successful second half

With the second half of the Mountain West Conference starting this afternoon, the question is how will the Utes do on their second go-around against everyone in the league?
The fact is, with just a few breaks, the Utes could very well be 8-0 right now. In all four losses, the outcome was up for grabs until the final 20 seconds with two games being determined in overtime and the other two, losses by 3 and 5 points. However, the Utes couldn’t find ways to win, whether it was because of a missed free throws or poor execution.
Today’s game at Air Force could determine whether the Utes finish in the top three in the conference.
If the Utes beat the Falcons, they have week to prepare for their next game against a San Diego State team they nearly defeated a month ago in San Diego. Then after what will be a tough game at league-leading BYU, the Utes will have four winnable games, against New Mexico at home, road games at TCU and Wyoming, a home game against Colorado State before a season finale at UNLV.
The Utes have the ability to go 6-2 the rest of the way, which would put them within striking distance of a postseason berth at 19-10. They also have shown they could go 2-6, as their home loss to Wyoming proved.
So what must they do to go 6-2 or at least win the mjority of their games from here out?
First of all, they need the kind of effort Luke Nevill gave in the second half of Wednesday night’s big win over UNLV all the time. Nevill showed as much passion as he has in his whole career in scoring 18 second-half points and making two key blocks late in the game.
They also need Johnnie Bryant’s hot hand. In the Utes’ four victories, Bryant has averaged 21 points a game and shot 54 percent from the field and 51 percent from 3-point range. Except for the New Mexico game when he shot well, Bryant has averaged just 9 points on 11 of 34 shooting from the field in the other three losses.
The Utes could also use more consistency from Carlon Brown, Lawrence Borha and Tyler Kepkay and more points from Shaun Green, who is three points below last year’s average.
It should be interesting to see how the Utes fare the rest of the way. It’s going to be tough making the NCAA Tournament, but the Utes could make it to the NIT, which would be a good building block for next year when nearly everyone on the team returns.