Utah Utes basketball notebook: Team will 'adjust' if David Foster is out

SALT LAKE CITY — At Monday's press conference, Utah coach Jim Boylen said the key to the two Ute victories over UNLV this year was the inside presence of center David Foster.

Considering Foster has been out for five days with a sprained ankle and is questionable for Thursday's first-round matchup with UNLV in the MWC Tournament, that doesn't bode well for the Utes' chances.

"David Foster has been a big factor in those games," Boylen said. "He has impacted games and our size and length has impacted games."

Foster didn't practice again Monday, but when asked how his left ankle was feeling he replied, "It feels great."

However, that doesn't necessarily mean he'll be playing on it Thursday night.

Foster said the sprain didn't turn out as bad as he and everyone else first thought and that it has been responding well to treatment. So it's "great," relatively speaking.

"Any time you have a main guy out, the guy who is the defensive player of the year ... you have to adjust," Boylen said. "And we'll adjust, we've been doing it all year."

The Utes may also be without senior Kim Tillie, who sprained an ankle the day before the Colorado State game. Like Foster he will be a game-time decision. Freshman Jason Washburn will have to play more minutes than usual this week.

DEFENSIVE POY: Foster was named the MWC defensive player of the year Monday, beating out BYU's Jackson Emery and others for the award. It marks the second straight year a Ute center has won the award, following up on Luke Nevill's honor last year.

Boylen was thrilled for his young center, who just came off an LDS mission in May.

"He deserves it. Nobody impacts the defense in the league more than him," Boylen said. "David's toughness, competitiveness and willingness to protect the basket have been a big key for the defensive success of our team." I feel overall the combination of our 3-point shooting defense and our halfcourt defense is the best since we've been here and he's a big part of that. The fact that he is only a sophomore is very exciting for the future of our young and developing team."

Foster credited his teammates for helping him win the award and said, "I'm excited for the honor."