# 1996–97 Utah Utes men's basketball team

The 1996–97 Utah Utes men's basketball team represented the University of Utah as a member of the Western Athletic Conference during the 1996–97 men's basketball season. Led by head coach Rick Majerus, the Utes made a run through the NCAA tournament to the West regional final. The team finished with an overall record of 29–4 (15–1 WAC).

## Schedule and results

| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | Site city, state |
| Regular season ||||||
| Nov 23, 1996 | No. 4 | Azusa Pacific | W 83–50 | 1–0 | Jon M. Huntsman Center Salt Lake City, Utah |
| Nov 26, 1996* | No. 4 | at Utah State | W 60–41 | 2–0 | Dee Glen Smith Spectrum Logan, Utah |
| Nov 30, 1996* | No. 4 | at Cal State Fullerton | W 74–67 | 3–0 | Titan Gym Fullerton, California |
| Dec 4, 1996* | No. 3 | Southern Utah | W 60–40 | 4–0 | Jon M. Huntsman Center Salt Lake City, Utah |
| Dec 7, 1996* | No. 3 | vs. No. 15 Arizona John Wooden Classic | L 61–69 | 4–1 | Arrowhead Pond of Anaheim Anaheim, California |
| Dec 14, 1996* | No. 9 | Weber State | W 83–48 | 5–1 | Jon M. Huntsman Center Salt Lake City, Utah |
| Dec 21, 1996* | No. 9 | No. 14 Texas | W 80–68 | 6–1 | Jon M. Huntsman Center Salt Lake City, Utah |
| Dec 23, 1996* | No. 9 | Wisconsin-Milwaukee | W 77–63 | 7–1 | Jon M. Huntsman Center Salt Lake City, Utah |
| Dec 28, 1996* | No. 8 | at UC Irvine | W 77–50 | 8–1 | Bren Events Center Irvine, California |
| Dec 31, 1996* | No. 7 | No. 2 Wake Forest | L 59–70 | 8–2 | Jon M. Huntsman Center Salt Lake City, Utah |
| Jan 4, 1997 | No. 7 | Colorado State | W 84–63 | 9–2 (1–0) | Jon M. Huntsman Center Salt Lake City, Utah |
| Jan 11, 1997 | No. 9 | at BYU | W 61–51 | 10–2 (2–0) | Marriott Center Provo, Utah |
| Jan 16, 1997 | No. 9 | at SMU | W 74–57 | 11–2 (3–0) | Moody Coliseum Dallas, Texas |
| Jan 18, 1997 | No. 9 | at TCU | W 81–77 | 12–2 (4–0) | Daniel-Meyer Coliseum Fort Worth, Texas |
| Jan 25, 1997 | No. 5 | Rice | W 78–58 | 13–2 (5–0) | Jon M. Huntsman Center Salt Lake City, Utah |
| Jan 27, 1997* | No. 5 | No. 24 Tulsa | W 84–58 | 14–2 (6–0) | Jon M. Huntsman Center Salt Lake City, Utah |
| Jan 30, 1997 | No. 4 | at UTEP | W 74–51 | 15–2 (7–0) | Don Haskins Center El Paso, Texas |
| Feb 1, 1997 | No. 4 | at No. 13 New Mexico | L 71–87 | 15–3 (7–1) | The Pit Albuquerque, New Mexico |
| Feb 6, 1997 | No. 5 | BYU | W 85–49 | 16–3 (8–1) | Jon M. Huntsman Center Salt Lake City, Utah |
| Feb 8, 1997 | No. 5 | at Colorado State | W 82–67 | 17–3 (9–1) | Moby Arena Fort Collins, Colorado |
| Feb 13, 1997 | No. 5 | SMU | W 84–63 | 18–3 (10–1) | Jon M. Huntsman Center Salt Lake City, Utah |
| Feb 15, 1997 | No. 5 | TCU | W 94–91 | 19–3 (11–1) | Jon M. Huntsman Center Salt Lake City, Utah |
| Feb 22, 1997 | No. 5 | at Tulsa | W 56–54 | 20–3 (12–1) | Tulsa Convention Center Tulsa, Oklahoma |
| Feb 24, 1997 | No. 5 | at Rice | W 75–66 | 21–3 (13–1) | Tudor Fieldhouse Houston, Texas |
| Feb 27, 1997 | No. 4 | UTEP | W 68–55 | 22–3 (14–1) | Jon M. Huntsman Center Salt Lake City, Utah |
| Mar 1, 1997 | No. 4 | No. 11 New Mexico | W 78–58 | 23–3 (15–1) | Jon M. Huntsman Center Salt Lake City, Utah |
| WAC Tournament ||||||
| Mar 6, 1997* | No. 3 | vs. SMU WAC Tournament Quarterfinal | W 59–58 | 24–3 | Thomas & Mack Center Las Vegas, Nevada |
| Mar 7, 1997* | No. 3 | vs. No. 14 New Mexico WAC Tournament Semifinal | W 72–70 | 25–3 | Thomas & Mack Center Las Vegas, Nevada |
| Mar 8, 1997* | No. 3 | vs. TCU WAC tournament championship | W 89–68 | 26–3 | Thomas & Mack Center Las Vegas, Nevada |
| NCAA Tournament ||||||
| Mar 14, 1997* | (2 W) No. 2 | vs. (15 W) Navy First round | W 75–61 | 27–3 | McKale Center Tucson, Arizona |
| Mar 16, 1997* | (2 W) No. 2 | vs. (7 W) UNC Charlotte Second Round | W 77–58 | 28–3 | McKale Center Tucson, Arizona |
| Mar 20, 1997* | (2 W) No. 2 | vs. No. 21 Stanford West Regional semifinal – Sweet Sixteen | W 82–77 | 29–3 | San Jose Arena San Jose, California |
| Mar 22, 1997* | (2 W) No. 2 | vs. (1 W) No. 5 Kentucky West Regional final – Elite Eight | L 59–72 | 29–4 | San Jose Arena (18,543) San Jose, California |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. W=West. ||||||

## Awards and honors

* Keith Van Horn – Consensus First-team All-American, WAC Player of the Year (3x)
* Rick Majerus – WAC Coach of the Year

## Team players in the 1997 NBA draft

| Round | Pick | Player | NBA Club |
| 1 | 2 | Keith Van Horn | Philadelphia 76ers |