Giacoletti shakes up lineup

After seeing his team lose two games it figured to win, Utah coach Ray Giacoletti is shaking up his starting lineup for tonight's game against Colorado (8 p.m.) at the Huntsman Center.

Giacoletti hasn't been pleased with his team's defense in allowing both Southern Utah and Santa Clara to shoot better than 60 percent from the field.

Guard Johnnie Bryant and center Luke Nevill, the top two returning scorers from last year, will remain in the starting lineup.

However, sophomore Lawrence Borha will replace Chris Grant at a guard spot and freshmen Daniel Deane and Stephen Weigh will start at the forward spots in place of Shaun Green and Ricky Johns.

Giacoletti made the decision after watching his team practice the past two days.

"It's about us getting better defensively no matter who we play," Giacoletti said. "It goes back to effort and pride."

Colorado (1-2) defeated the Utes by 24 points in Boulder last year but has struggled so far this year. The Buffaloes are coming off back-to-back trouncings by Mountain West Conference teams. Under lame-duck coach Ricardo Patton, the Buffaloes lost to New Mexico 106-65 and Air Force 84-46 last week.

In Colorado, the Utes are playing a young team with just one senior. Richard Roby, a 6-6 junior, is an NBA prospect but off to a slow start this year. After averaging 17 points last year, he is averaging just 12.7 points on 29.9 percent shooting.

Sophomore forward Jermyl Jackson-Wilson averages 10.3 points and 10.7 rebounds per game, while senior guard Dominique Coleman averages 10 points per game.

Still, the Utes are more concerned about playing better themselves right now than about their opponent.

"The biggest thing is worrying about us right now," said Bryant. "We need to get a little more urgency and play tougher. We need to pay more attention to detail."

Tonight's game will be televised on The mtn. network, which is the reason for the later time.

After tonight, the Utes will take on Rice Saturday at 6 p.m., soon after the end of the Utah-BYU football game.

Utes on the air

Utah vs. Colorado

Tonight, Huntsman Center

TV: The mtn.

Radio: AM-700

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