Allen leads Utah 98-67 blitz over C. Arkansas

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Timmy Allen had 19 first-half points, and 24 overall as Utah cruised past Central Arkansas for a 98-67 win Saturday afternoon.

The Utes (7-2) started strong, quickly grabbing a 23-11 lead by the 12:10 mark of the first half. Central Arkansas (1-8) closed that gap to 30-26 with eight minutes left in the half. Utah answered with an 18-6 run which gave them a 55-42 halftime lead over the Bears.

Utes freshman Rylan Jones suffered a rib contusion in the first half and didn’t return. He had two points and an assist in nine minutes.

Bears guard Rylan Bergersen had 13 points in the first half.

Utah didn’t let off the gas in the second half, reeling off a 31-6 run to go up 86-48 with 10:36 remaining. Allen continued stuffing the stat sheet in the final frame, but had plenty of help from his teammates in building the Utes’ big lead.

Alfonso Plummer pitched in 18 points, Booth Gach scored 13 with five assists and three rebounds. Allen added eight rebounds and five assists.

For Central Arkansas, their offensive output stagnated for much of the second half. Bergersen finished with 21 points, four rebounds, and three assists. Eddy Kayouloud was the only other Bears player to score in double figures, finishing with 13 points and eight rebounds.

BIG PICTURE

The Utes continue their promising play ahead of a big-ticket matchup against top-ranked Kentucky on December 18. With their only other game between now and then against Weber State, Utah has plenty of time to prepare for a potential upset.

UP NEXT

Central Arkansas: The Bears finish up a long three-game road trip against Pepperdine, its only West Coast Conference opponent of the year.

Utah: Utah has a week off before playing in-state rival Weber State as part of the Beehive Classic.