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Tucson, Ariz. • Just before Devon Daniels crossed the 3-point line, JoJo Zamora let the pass fly. It was still plenty of time for Daniels, the 6-foot-5 freshman, to close the gap at the hoop, rise to the rim and slam it home.

The first-half alley-oop was one of a few big play positives http://bit.ly/2iHTgrF";>Utah could take out of a 66-56 loss — and highlight the bucket of Daniels' 12-point performance against Arizona.

"JoJo has some great eyes," Daniels said. "I just said, 'Throw it up.' He put it in the right place."

Of course, a player's eyes naturally follow the teammate who is having a big night.

Daniels was a leader, particularly in the first half, going 4 for 4 from the field to start and finishing 6 for 11 as the Wildcats defense eventually closed in on him. He also led the team in rebounding (seven) and assists (five) while adding a block and only one turnover.

At this point, Larry Krystkowiak considers it a trend:http://bit.ly/2gNnkOV";> Daniels' career-best 19 points came on the road at Xavier, and he also had 16 points to close out the Diamondhead Classic with a win against Stephen F. Austin. The freshman, who is quickly becoming a fan favorite for his dunks, can bring it on the road.

"He was scrapping, physical, and he kind of looks the part and belongs from a strength point of view," Krystkowiak said. "Devon's proven to be able to come into a place like this. … He likes this, and it's a good sign for us."

Krystkowiak added that Daniels, who is listed at 190 pounds, "wasn't getting bounced around" like some other Utes, in part because he naturally possesses a mature build. His drives to the rim were harder for Arizona to stop because they couldn't outmuscle him.

A 2 for 7 second half indicates there's progress still to be made for Daniels. But as far as an introduction to one of the Pac-12's titans, it's a good place to start.

"I guess I like it way better, honestly, because you can hear the crowd screaming at you," Daniels said. "It just gets me going."

Foul discrepancy brushed off • On plenty of whistles on Thursday night, Utah fans cried foul.

Utah was called for 17 fouls and took all of four free throws. Arizona was called for 8 fouls, and took 17 free throws.

Rather than take issue with the officiating, Larry Krystkowiak said it was a product of conflicting styles: Utah took more threes (21 versus UA's 14) and jumpers, while Arizona drove more to the hoop. Utah also drew fouls trying to get rebounds as well.

"It's kind of to be expected when it's that nature," Krystkowiak said. "They're a big, physical team."

The Utes were particularly affected by fouls to David Collette (13 points, four fouls), who drove the interior scoring. Krystkowiak said at least two of the fouls were on Collette himself.

"Again, if he's just a little wiser with those fouls," Krystkowiak said, "we can keep him on the floor."

Turnovers down but still costly • Against Arizona, Utah tied a season-low that they wanted to meet: turnovers.

With only eight, it was only the second time this season that the Utes enjoyed single-digit turnovers and the first time since facing DII Concordia in November.

And yet, the turnovers were still problematic: Off of those eight, the Wildcats managed 14 points.

While coaches and players marked it as a dramatic improvement having coughed it up 18 times against Butler and 14 times against Xavier in previous ranked match-ups, they recognized there's still work to do.

"They took advantage of it. It's a start, keeping the turnovers low. Now we gotta get it back when we turn it over and keep them from scoring. That's the next phase."

kgoon@sltrib.com
Twitter: @kylegoon