(Santa Clara, Calif. – Nov. 8, 2023) Utah Tech men's basketball played its opening game of the 2023-24 season on Wednesday, falling 77-69 to the Santa Clara Broncos at the Leavey Center. Wednesday's game was the Trailblazers' first of the 2023 regular season.
 
"I thought we came out really aggressive and created some wide-open looks, got out to that early lead, but they called a timeout and the game then turned physical," Head Coach Jon Judkins said. "The second half we played more physical, did the things we wanted to and went on that big run.
 
"I love how we fought – we were down almost 20 and cut it to six," Judkins added. "It's just one of those tough ones. A good test for us, we know we can play with anybody… I'm proud of our effort."
 
Utah Tech came out firing early, opening the game on a 7-0 run in the opening 70 seconds of action. After Tanner Christensen won the tip and finished a hook shot on the first possession, Noa Gonsalves drained an open wing three pointer at the 18:49 mark to cap the run which led to a SCU timeout.
 
The hosts fought back and regained the lead with a 13-2 run of their own, taking 13-9 advantage just after the 12-minute media timeout. Aric Demings quickly responded with his first collegiate triple but the Santa Clara momentum continued as the hosts built a lead as big as 19 with 3:39 remaining in the half – though Utah Tech would convert several Bronco turnovers into points late in the period to trail 41-29 at the break.
 
Both teams traded buckets early in the second half but it was Utah Tech who held a slight edge, cutting the lead down to single-digits with an emphatic dunk from Christensen, who put a rolling help defender on a poster with his two-handed flush, bringing the score to 43-34 with 14:04 remaining in the game.
 
Once again, Santa Clara had an answer and built a lead that grew back to 19 points after hitting a pair of free throws with 8:06 in the contest. Jaylen Searles converted an and-one on the ensuing possession to ignite a very quick Trailblazer run fueled by Searles and David Elliott, who combined to score all 11 points in an 11-0 run that lasted two minutes, bringing Utah Tech within six at 64-58 with 5:50 to go.
 
Santa Clara would push the lead back to as much as 11 but a pair of Gonsalves free throws late in the game cut the deficit to just seven with 1:26 to go. Despite the momentum, it was not enough as Santa Clara would hold on to take a 77-69 victory.
 
Elliott finished with a team-high 24 points across 28 minutes off the bench, shooting 9-18 from the field and grabbing six rebounds, also swiping a team-high four steals. Demings finished with 17 points and shot 2-4 from deep in his collegiate debut while Searles finished with a line of seven points, six rebounds, one assist and one steal.
 
Christensen's seven boards would lead the team as he also finished with six points, two assists and two steals, while Beon Riley was credited with the team's only block on his way to four points, six rebounds (four offensive), one block and one steal in 28 minutes; Gonsalves' 37 minutes played was a team-high.
 
Utah Tech shot 24-64 (37.5%) as a unit, hitting five shots from deep and making 16 of 24 free throw attempts. The Broncos held a slight rebounding advantage, grabbing 41 to UT's 34, while the Trailblazers combined for 10 steals that led to 12 fast break points and 17 off turnovers.
 
Next up for UT is another road contest against Jacksonville State. Tipoff in Jacksonville, Ala., is scheduled for 1 p.m. MT on Saturday.