Utes put wraps on Cowboys' Ewing

With the game on the line, and less than 30 seconds remaining, the Mountain West Conference's leading scorer sat helplessly on the bench.

Wyoming guard Brandon Ewing fouled out with 35 seconds left and watched Utah earn a hard-fought 62-60 victory Saturday afternoon at the Huntsman Center.

For Ewing and the Cowboys (11-8 overall, 2-3 in the MWC), it was a tough day all the way around as the officials whistled Wyoming for 30 fouls.

"We had two starters foul out. That changed the whole game for us," said Ewing, who played a season-low 26 minutes and scored a season-low nine points. "(The officials) had a quick whistle tonight."

Not only did Ewing, who was averaging 21 points per game, foul out, but so did forward Daaron Brown, who scored seven points in 14 minutes of action.

"It was very frustrating," Brown said.

Three more Wyoming players, Joseph Taylor, Ike Okoye and Travis Nelson, each finished the game with four fouls.

"I got five fouls, but three of them definitely weren't fouls," said Ewing, who saw his 24-game streak of scoring in double figures come to an end against the Utes.

"There were a lot of whistles blown," said coach Steve McClain. "(Utah) spent a lot of time at the free-throw line. The game never had a lot of flow to it. When there was a flow, things went well for us."

Despite the foul trouble, the Cowboys led, 49-42, with 9:40 left before Utah went on an 8-0 run to take the lead. Wyoming knocked down only two field goals in the final nine minutes.

While disappointed with the outcome — it was the Cowboys' third consecutive loss — McClain was pleased with the play of his reserve players.

Okoye replaced Brown in the lineup and was 4-for-4 from the field, chipping in nine points, while freshman Eric Platt drilled a 3-pointer with 14 seconds left, then made three free throws after being fouled on a 3-point attempt with 4.4 seconds remaining to keep Wyoming alive.

"Our bench played really well," McClain said.

"They did a pretty good job without me," Ewing said of the backups. "I just wish I could have stayed out there longer."

Saturday's loss marked the second straight road game in which Wyoming had its chances to win. Last Tuesday in Provo, the Cowboys were up 10 on BYU in the first half before falling, 89-80. Wyoming has had 11 of its past 18 games decided by six points or less.

After the game, Ewing was resolved to help his team get back to winning. The Cowboys host Colorado State and TCU this week.

"I guarantee we'll win the next two games at home," Ewing said. He added that by season's end, "we're going to be in the top 3 (in the conference)."

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E-mail: jeffc@desnews.com