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Beginning Monday, June 21st,
2004 CHN began unveiling 144 Team previews in 144 Days. CHN ranked the
nations top 144 teams, and is unveiling one per day leading up until the
opening day of the 2004-05 Season.
Bookmark the
144 Teams in 144 Days home page, and check back
each day to see which team is previewed next.
#28 Utah Utes
Mountain West
2003-04: 24-9, 9-5, 3rd
2003-04 postseason: NCAA
By
Joel Welser
 Rick Majerus had to step down due
to health reasons, and after interim head coach Kerry Rupp led the Utes to
the NCAA Tournament, Ray Giacoletti steps in to try and take Utah to their
tenth big dance in 11 years. Due to graduation, Giacoletti will have some
holes to fill, but there are plenty of candidates to take over the starting
roles.
Who’s Out: Nick Jacobson
was the team leader on the floor. The 6-4 guard averaged a team high 16.5
points per game and will be greatly missed. Junior Richard Chaney will have
to increase his scoring to become a viable replacement for Jacobson. Guard
Josh Olsen walked on as a freshman and played in all 33 games, averaging
13.9 minutes. Olsen is going on an LDS Church mission for two years and
won’t be returning to Salt Lake City for the 2004-2005 campaign. The
graduation of center Tim Frost leaves a big hole up front next to Andrew
Bogut. Frost averaged 9.0 points and 4.6 rebounds per game. There are
quite a few returning candidates to replace Frost up front, including Chris
Jackson, Justin Hawkins, Bryant Markson and Jonas Langvad. None have proven
that they can be a formidable frontcourt threat, but at least there are
options.
Who’s In: Incoming freshman
Luke Nevill may be the best contender to join Bogut under the basket. That
would give the Utes a duo of 7-foot Australians. Even if Nevill doesn’t
earn the starting job, he’ll have to become a big contributor as a
freshman. He has good hands and feet for being 7-0, but is still a raw
talent who needs some work to reach his potential. Jake Schmidt can play
either forward position, but at 6-8 and 260 pounds is better suited as a
power forward. He’s another big body for the frontcourt off the bench, and
he’s a solid outside shooter which can give opposing big guys some trouble.
A few experienced backcourt players join the squad for the 2004-2005
season. Marc Jackson sat out last year and was voted the MWC’s sixth man of
the year in 2002-2003. Jackson will most likely share point guard duties
with Tim Drisdom. Junior guard Casey Iverson will walk-on after playing
last year at the College of Eastern Utah. Incoming freshman Jermaine Calvin
won’t see too much time at the point guard spot backing up Jackson and
Drisdom.
Who to Watch: As long as
Andrew Bogut stays in Salt Lake City, he’ll be the player to watch. The
7-footer averaged 12.5 points and 9.9 rebounds as a freshman last year and
will only improve with more experience. Bogut is a great low post scorer
and keeps defenses off balance with his multitude of low post moves. Even
though he’s a big guy, Bogut can run the floor quite well. The MWC Freshman
of the Year is a great rebounder as well. If he can get his hands on the
ball, he’ll catch it. Bogut should lead this team back to the big dance.
Projected Conference Rank:
Ray Giacoletti won’t have an easy time taking the Utes to the top of the
Mountain West, but with Andrew Bogut leading the way Utah can easily contend
for 1st place in the conference.
Projected Post-season
Tournament: NCAA
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Team #29 ,
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»
Email Joel Welser:
jwelser_chn@ameritech.net
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Ranking:
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