No. 16 Utah vs. Texas Tech Puerto Rico Tip-Off Open Thread

The No. 16 Utah Runnin' Utes (2-0) are set to take on the Texas Tech Red Raiders (1-0) tonight in the Puerto Rico Tip-Off at the Roberto Clemente Coliseum in San Juan, Puerto Rico. The game will be televised on ESPN2 at 5:30 p.m. MT. Utah has wins over Southern Utah and San Diego State (both at home). Texas Tech beat High Point at home. Texas Tech is led by shooting guard Devaugntah Williams, who led the team in points (26), rebounds (8) and assists (3) in the 77-73 win over High Point. Senior forward Jordan Loveridge is off to a hot start scoring for the Runnin' Utes, averaging 22.5 points in the first two games. Center Jakob Poeltl is also averaging over 20 points in the first two games for the Utes (with 20.5 points per game) and leads the team with 11.5 rebounds per game. Point guard Brandon Taylor is leading the team with 3.5 assists per game. This game is part of a grueling stretch for the Runnin' Utes where they play five games in 10 days.

Utah head coach Larry Krystkowiak is in his fifth year at Utah. Last year was his best year so far, when he took the Runnin' Utes to the Sweet 16 where they lost to the eventual national champion Duke Blue Devils. This is a prestigious tournament broadcast on an ESPN network, so it offers Utah a great opportunity to build up their tournament resume early in the season.

Join us here at BlockU for a discussion while this game is happening.