Team rallys but finds way to lose to New Mexico

After playing three consecutive overtime games against each other, Utah and New Mexico appeared headed toward still another OT when the Lobos' Dairese Gary missed the second of two free throws with 8.8 seconds left Saturday afternoon.

The Utes, who had trailed by eight points with 45 seconds left, were down by just three points and still had enough time to get off a potential game-tying 3-pointer.

Following Gary's miss, Ute guard Tyler Kepkay got the ball and headed up the left side of the court and, after briefly hesitating near the 3-point line, drove in for a left-handed layup. The shot missed, Kepkay grabbed the rebound and scored to make it 72-71 New Mexico as the final buzzer sounded.

The victory was the first for the Lobos at the Huntsman Center in 19 years, since clear back in 1989 when the late Lynn Archibald was coaching the Utes.

Although it's hard to pin a loss on one play or player, the one question everyone had after the game was: "What was Kepkay thinking?"

Didn't he know what the score was? Didn't he know how much time was left?

Ute coach Jim Boylen tried to give his junior point guard the benefit of the doubt, saying, "I think he knew the score. I think he was going to pull up and it kind of opened up for him and he drove it and got so deep, I'm not sure he knew exactly what to do."

But the coach didn't let him off the hook entirely.

"When a guy misses a free throw when it could be a two-possession game and it goes to a one-possession game, now you've got to drive and pitch for a 3 or take a 3," he said. "A mistake was made."

Kepkay was distraught after the game and took nearly a half hour longer than his teammates to emerge from the locker room. Give him credit, though, for facing a roomful of reporters and cameramen to give his explanation of what happened.

"Coach told me to drive and pitch it off to someone for the 3," he said. "I got more open than I was planning on getting. I probably shouldn't have shot, but I got so open, I thought maybe I'd get it quick and we'd have enough time to foul them again. It's my fault."

Teammates Johnnie Bryant and Luke Nevill were supportive, Bryant saying he told Kepkay to "keep his head up" and Nevill kept saying it was "a group effort."

However, there were indications that some Utes weren't too happy with Kepkay, who has had the final shot in several other losses this year.

"Coach is frustrated with him, and some of the guys are taking their frustrations out on him," said Nevill. "A couple of guys didn't hit their foul shots in the last five minutes (including Nevill), and that's just as much to blame as the last play."