Utah honors the late Rick Majerus, Utes come away with 76-55 victory over Boise State

SALT LAKE CITY – Jarred DuBois scored 18 points and Utah cruised to a 76-55 win over Boise State in a game where the home team honored longtime Utah coach Rick Majerus, who died Saturday.

After struggling the past few seasons, Utah (6-2) made this contest feel more like the 1990s when Majerus roamed the Huntsman Center sidelines and the Utes rarely lost at home.

Jason Washburn had 13 points and Jordan Loveridge contributed 11 as the two players combined to make 11-of-14 shots. The Utes' 68 percent accuracy from the field was the best since a 71 percent mark against Air Force in 2007.

Derrick Marks had 18 points and Mikey Thompson added 16, but Boise State (6-2) couldn't recover from a slow start and saw its three-game win streak snapped.

Numerous video tributes of the glory days and a patch on Utah uniforms memorialized Majerus, who coached Utah from 1989 to 2004 and reached the NCAA National Championship game in 1998.

The coaching staff all wore sweaters in the memory of Majerus and they placed an empty chair courtside draped with one of his actual trademark cream sweaters.

The energy is the building immediately sparked the Utes to a blistering start as they connected on nine of their first 10 attempts. Aaron Dotson's 3-pointer lifted Utah to a 27-8 midway lead through the first half. The Utes were up 41-25 after shooting 75 percent in the first half.

Coming in, the Broncos were the hot team with three straight wins and they dominated Utah last year in Boise, 80-59. But the Utes' offense emphasized movement and the extra pass on its way to 20 assists on 27 baskets. The efficiency kept BSU from any transition baskets and the Utes continually pressured the Broncos off the 3-point line. Utah out-rebounded the Broncos 31-18.

The Utes have now matched their win total from their forgettable 6-25 record last season.

Majerus, who was the Wooden National Coach of the Year in 1998, coached the Utes to 11 NCAA Tournaments and a record of 323-95. Utah won 54 straight home games from 1997-2000 and the Utes looked similarly invincible in this one.