Stefanovic scores 20, Utah holds off Stanford in stretch

Updated Dec. 31, 2022 6:41 p.m. ET

Associated Press

STANFORD, Calif. (AP) — Backup guard Lazar Stefanovic matched his season- and career-high with 20 points, Branden Carlson added 18 points and Utah defeated Stanford 71-66 on Saturday.

Stefanovic, a sophomore from Belgrade, Serbia, made 6 of 7 shots, all three of his 3-point tries and 5 of 6 from the line. Gabe Madsen and Marco Anthony scored 10 points each.

The Utes led 60-48 near the four-minute mark of the second half before two 3-pointers by Max Murrell ignited a 12-2 Stanford run that was capped by a Murrell layup with 2:15 remaining. The Utes maintained their lead by making 10 consecutive free throws and 13 of 14 in the final five minutes. They went the final 5:16 without a field goal, missing their only two attempts. Utah made 19 of 23 free throws for the game.

Still, Stanford was within 69-66 after a driving layup by Isa Silva with 12 seconds remaining. Madsen added two free throws to give Utah a five-point lead, then Stanford's Spencer Jones missed a 3-pointer and teammate Harrison Ingram was fouled on a 3-pointer and missed all three free-throw attempts.

Jones, No. 6 in the Pac-12 in scoring at 18.7 ppg coming in, had 16 for the Cardinal (5-9, 0-3 Pac-12). Silva added 11 points and Murrell 10. Stanford had only six turnovers but made just 9 of 28 3-pointers.

The Utes (11-4, 4-0) led for the last 14 minutes of the first half and their lead peaked at 10 with about seven minutes to go before halftime. Michael Jones scored five points in a 7-0 run that got Stanford within 25-22 with 5:10 remaining before Utah recovered to build a 30-23 lead at the break.

Two 3-pointers by Madsen in the first 10 minutes of the second half helped the Utes push their lead to 16.

Utah's next two games are at home. Oregon State visits on Thursday and Oregon on Saturday.

Stanford plays at California on Friday.

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