Utah Rocks Stony Brook

Utah coach Rick Majerus told the No. 20 Utes that their opponent Monday wasn't Stony Brook but the Utes themselves.

"The best thing about a game like this is that we were able to play lots of guys and work on our own stuff. We were really competing against ourselves," Majerus said after Alex Jensen and Nate Althoff each scored 13 points to lead Utah to an easy 74-45 win over Stony Brook.

Jensen scored all of his points in the first half and played just 17 minutes.

The Utes (2-1) led by as many as 35 points and allowed their reserves and walk-ons to play the last 10 minutes of the game.

The 6-foot-11 Althoff, who has missed more than half of the fall practices with a strained back, was dominating against the smaller Seawolves, scoring all his points within five feet of the basket and blocking three shots.

"Nate really needed a game like this to work himself back into shape. He should dominate against a small team like this," Majerus said.

Utah's Jeremy Killion added 11 points, including three 3-pointers, and Tony Harvey handed out eight assists.

"Coach Majerus was kind to us to substitute so freely," Stony Brook coach Nick Macarchuk said. "Utah is one of the best teams in the country and they gave us a lesson of what a well-coached team looks like."

Josh Little scored a game-high 14 points and Francois Oloa had 11 for Stony Brook (0-5), which is playing its first year at the Division I level.

After a 5-5 tie early in the game, Utah took advantage of the Seawolves zone defense with three consecutive 3-pointers by Jensen.

"The coaches have really emphasized becoming more aggressive and nohesitating on my shot," Jensen said. "The shots were there early and I didn't think twice."

Josh Little made a long 3-pointer to cut Utah's lead to 22-14, but the Utes then closed the half with an 18-4 run.

Utah made 7-of-11 shots from beyond the arc in the first half with little defensive pressure to build the big 40-18 halftime cushion. The Utes, who totaled 21 assists on their 27 field goals, extended their home winning streak to 37 games.

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