Abilene Christian
Utah
Wildcats open 2021-22 in Salt Lake City
11/8/2021 8:10:00 PM | Men's Basketball
SALT LAKE CITY - The Wildcats open the 2021-22 season with a marquee matchup on Tuesday night as they face the Runnin' Utes of the University of Utah. This is the first-ever matchup between the two programs and will feature two coaches in their first year at the helm of their respective programs. As the Wildcats move into the Brette Tanner era, the team returns their core backcourt and 10 total letterwinners. This is one of two Power 5 matchups on the season for ACU, the other coming later this week at Texas A&M.
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— ACU Basketball (@ACU_MBB) November 8, 2021
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SERIES HISTORY
This will be the the first meeting between the two programs.
ACU Storylines
- The Wildcats return their starting backcourt of Damien Daniels, Coryon Mason, and Reggie Miller.
- The team went to the JUCO ranks for recruiting once again, bringing in three JUCO transfers; Stevie Smith (College of Southern Idaho), Furaha Cadeaux de Dieu (New Mexico Military Institute), and Yuot Gai (South Plains College).
- ACU will rely heavily on it's defense once again and aims to improve on last season where the team ranked first in turnover margin and forced turnovers, second in steals per game, and fifth in scoring defense.
- Going back to last season, the team will face back-to-back Pac-12 teams after playing UCLA in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
Scouting the Utes
- Utah was voted to finish 10th in the Pac-12 preseason poll.
- The team will have several new faces with eight new players on the roster including six DI transfers.
- The Utes will also feature a new head coach, Craig Smith, who joins the program after several successful seasons just down the road at Utah State.
- The team is coming off of a 12-13 season and a second round exit in the Pac-12 Tournament, falling in double overtime to USC.
