STANFORD, Calif. (AP) -- Stanford rallied to within two after trailing by double digits in the second half, but Utah held off a rapidly-charging Cardinal contingent, 71-66, on Saturday afternoon.
Spencer Jones led the team with 16 points while Isa Silva had a season-best 11 and Max Murrell 10. Nine different players were on the scoresheet, with the Cardinal scoring 31 of its 66 points from the bench.
The Utes led 60-48 near the four-minute mark of the second half before two 3-pointers by 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 Silva with 12 seconds remaining.
The Utes 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.
Stanford returns to action on Friday, Jan. 6 at rival California. The action begins at 6 p.m. on ESPNU.