Utes look for first win in Provo since 2005 season

As Utah's basketball program slid into irrelevancy the last decade, our bitter rivals to the south saw their rise to dominance - usurping the Utes as the most successful program in the state. It's clear, at the moment at least, BYU is seeing its best stretch against Utah in, well, a generation ... if not longer. They have absolutely controlled this series since the 2006 season - especially at home.

The last time the Utes went down to Provo and defeated the Cougars, Andrew Bogut was putting together one of the best seasons in Utah basketball history. It's been that long. In fact, that was three coaches ago - Ray Giacoletti's first season.

We've experienced quite a bit of lows since that victory and the hope is that Utah has finally turned the corner. I don't know if they have, but we certainly could get a good indication of their position tonight. While a win still might be too much to ask for, since Provo has always been a difficult place for the Runnin' Utes to play, a competitive game could prove the step in the right direction.

Here's to a victory against a beatable BYU team and the best start in nearly a decade.