SALT LAKE CITY — After a slow start to the beginning of conference play, Utah has won four straight games and made its way to the top half of the conference standings. The winning streak is due in large part to Utah's improved defensive performance and buy-in from the players.
In Wednesday's 73-64 win over Cal, Utah tempered the many scoring runs of the Golden Bears and locked down defensively late in the game to negate much of Cal's ability to cut into Utah's lead. Utah played a hybrid zone-man defense and smothered Cal's ability to get good looks for much of the second half.