1. Who steps up?: What Wyoming players elevate their game now that sophomore forward and leading scorer Afam Muojeke is out for the season? And not just at the position Muojeke plays, but among the regular guys in the starting lineup. This has to be a group effort by the Cowboys. Not just in this game, but the rest of the season.
2. Speed up the game: Utah coach Jim Boylen said his team has struggled against teams that play fast and push the tempo. UW does that and will need to do that in this game. It needs to force turnovers, get some easy baskets in transition and also try and offset some of Utah’s size. UW does not match up well with some of Utah’s big men like 7-3 David Foster, 7-footer Jason Washburn and 6-11 Kim Tillie.
3. Get to the line: UW is second in the nation in free throws made (409), but it has missed 29 free throws during its three-game losing streak. The Cowboys need to get to the line and make their free throws. In this game it could be even more vital because Utah leads the Mountain West Conference in 3-point shooting defense (29.6 percent) and UW shoots only 27.1 percent from behind the arc.
4. Guard shooters: Utah true freshman Marshall Henderson can light it up from 3-point range. He scored 22 points in Utah’s win over Air Force last Saturday. The Cowboys can’t let Henderson or any of the other Utah shooters get hot, which then opens things up inside. UW must try and make Utah as one-dimensional as it can. Or at very least, don’t give the perimeter shooters a lot of open looks.
5. Fight or flee: From here on out it will be interesting to see how the Cowboys play. For good or bad the dynamic of any basketball team changes when its leading scorer is out. Will UW rise to the occasion, come together as a team and play good basketball the rest of the season — win or lose? Or will it go in the tank and chalk this season up as lost? It could go either way right now.
Still plan on live blogging from the game tonight, which is not televised. Join me at about 6:30 p.m. at http://wyomingcowboysblog.com/2010/01/25/wyoming-vs-utah-live-blog-2/
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