Utah Utes basketball notebook: Late Wyoming dunk aggravates Boylen

LARAMIE, Wyo. — This time there was no obscene gesture caught on tape to be replayed on national sports shows, but there was another angry confrontation between a Utah coach and a Wyoming coach, this time at the conclusion of the Cowboys' 72-64 victory Saturday afternoon.

All Ute and Cowboy fans remember what happened in November, when Wyoming football coach Joe Glenn was unhappy with Utah's Kyle Whittingham for trying an onsides kick with a 43-0 lead and responded with an obscene gesture.

This time, Utah coach Jim Boylen was the unhappy coach after the Cowboys' Joseph Taylor threw down a dunk off a lob pass with less than a second left in a game that was already decided.

In the post-game handshake line, Boylen had some angry words for Wyoming coach Heath Schroyer, and Schroyer appeared a little stunned. Then as Boylen circled back toward the locker room, he ran into Schroyer again and this time both coaches animatedly yelled at each other for a few seconds before going their separate ways.

Both coaches declined to reveal what they said afterward, but Boylen was still displeased some 20 minutes after the game.

"We wouldn't have done that, we don't do that," Boylen said of the last-second dunk. "You've seen us play, we pull the ball out, we respect our opponent."

Schroyer tried to explain that his player thought Utah was still playing defense and that it was an "instinctive" play between Brandon Ewing and Taylor. He also said the war of words wasn't a big deal.

"It's probably going to be brought up a little more than it should," he said. "We're both trying to build programs and change cultures. ... It's March ... sometimes those things happen."

He also said he and Boylen are friends and have talked on the phone several times this year.

"I have a lot of respect for Jim," he said. "He's a class act and a great guy. They're going to be a load for the next few years."

NEW LINEUP: For the first time since November, the Utes tried a different starting lineup Saturday afternoon.

Boylen has been hesitant to change his lineup, but after three straight losses, he decided to try something different for the first time in 22 games.

Luka Drca started in place of Tyler Kepkay, while Kim Tillie started in place of Luke Nevill. Carlon Brown, Shaun Green and Lawrence Borha kept their usual starting spots.