Holding the nation's top-scoring team 33 points below its average helped offset a 7-minute scoring drought.
Outscored 20-6 to finish the first half, No. 13 Utah beat Brigham Young 65-61 on Wednesday night by holding the Cougars to a season-low 32 percent shooting in the second half.
"I think we're one of the better defensive teams in the nation and for sure one of the better in our league," Utah coach Larry Krystkowiak said.
Delon Wright had 16 points and 11 rebounds for the Utes (7-1). He scored nine points in the second half and sparked a 10-0 run that helped the Utes overcome a 31-30 halftime deficit. Wright also had two steals and was 6 of 7 on free throws.
Kenneth Ogbe added nine points and freshman forward Brekkott Chapman had eight first-half points.
"Coach has confidence in me and I just let the game come to me and took the shots when they were there," Chapman said.
Tyler Haws led BYU (7-3) with 23 points, and Kyle Collinsworth added 17.
Utah was 19 of 30 from the line, while BYU was 6 of 10. Utah also outrebounded BYU 43-31.
The Cougars (7-3) trailed by 11 points in the second half before pulling to 62-59 in the final minute. After Brandon Taylor missed two free throws for Utah, Haws missed a 3-pointer with 30 seconds left that would have tied it.
"They did a good job of taking us out of things," BYU coach Dave Rose said. "They got us scattered a little bit."
Dallin Bachynski made two free throws on the other end to make it a two-possession game. Utah hit 3 of 4 free throws in the final 27 seconds.
"We scrapped, got a lot of loose ball and hit some big 3-pointers," Krystkowiak said.
The victory was Utah's first at BYU since 2005.
A COLORFUL RIVALRY
The Cougars wore sky blue uniforms for the first time since Danny Ainge played 33 years ago ... Krystkowiak wore a red corduroy jacket for the first time. He won't wear it again until Utah plays BYU next year.
CASHING IN
BYU student Chelsee Willardson made a half-court shot during a media timeout to win $5,000.
NO START OR SLOW START
BYU center Nate Austin pulled a hamstring just before the opening tip but was unable to get the officials' attention. He limped to the locker room 18 seconds into the game.
TIP INS
Utah: Junior forward Jordan Loveridge missed his second straight game after having surgery last week to clean up some loose material under his kneecap. Loveridge, Utah's leading rebounder and second-leading scorer last season, is expected to be out until early January. Ogbe started in place of Loveridge and scored Utah's first five points. ... Utah has outrebounded every opponent this season.
BYU: The Cougars had their lowest scoring total of the season. ... Looking for a more athletic lineup, coach Dave Rose started sophomore guard Frank Bartley IV in the second half. Bartley is averaging only six minutes and 1.8 points. He made 1 of 3 shots in 10 minutes.
UP NEXT
Utah visits No. 10 Kansas on Saturday.
BYU travels up I-15 to Ogden to face Weber State on Saturday night.
