Utes winning the close ones now

Just when it looked like the Utes were going to blow their Mountain West Conference title hopes and put a serious crimp in their NCAA Tournament hopes, they came through with a key overtime victory Wednesday night.
After countless close Ute losses over the three previous seasons, the Utes have finally turned the corner this year and are winning the close ones. Following four losses in the preseason by four points or less, all decided in the final 30 seconds, the Utes have won all the close games lately, including a one-point win over Gonzaga, an overtime win over BYU and a one-point win over New Mexico.
In Wednesday’s win, the Utes came back from a 7-point deficit in the second half and after losing a late 6-point lead, the Utes came out and totally dominated the overtime.
“I thought it was similar to the BYU game, there was a calmness and an understanding of what we were going to do,” said Boylen.
You could credit it to the Utes’ experience and the fact that they are playing with four seniors. Coach Jim Boylen gives some of the credit to the time the Utes have spent working on their “five-minute drill” and last-minute situations.
Whatever it is, it’s working and should lead to an NCAA berth next month and perhaps a MWC title.