Tyson Ewing. Of course, he is the play by play man of the hour for the Utah women's basketball program and a long time Jazz data analyst. And he's even been up in the booth a few times when I've been doing my duties. We all do our duties right broadcasting games. I'm the color analysts for Utah football and Tyson teaches me everything. He fills me in all the stats, everything I need to know. Tyson, Welcome to the program.
How you doing man, I'm impressed, but you know all that. I'm so excited to be here with you. How are you Scott?
Oh gosh, well, I love to talk about sports. I love, you know, being associated with the folks at Broadway Media and of course filling in for Spence today on the Drive and things are good. I'm at the Home and Garden Show. I don't know if you've you ever go to it. I'm here with the Cooligan Water people and they got some amazing stuff going on. Just just really fun. But it's it's a fun, fun environment out here.
That's awesome. Yes, I've never been myself, but definitely something that I'm sharing's extremely fun to be at. I'm just sorry. I can't be there with you in person.
It's all the gadgets and toys and things you need for your house that will you. Some of them maybe you don't need, but some of them, like Cooligan water, you definitely need it. But some other things, they're kind of they're kind of fun. So I have to ask you this question, how fun is it to call a buzzer beater from half court against your rival? I mean, did I hear some just insane passion come out of your voice?
Oh? My goodness, Yes, there was definitely a lot of passion, no doubt about that. I obviously it was.
Not expecting that, nor was anybody in the building expecting that to fall. But you know, I'm definitely in in my own excitement level and when that went through, but inness Craze, I think everybody in the building could have heard me with how hi I got with my vocal cords. Incredible, to be honest, I loved it, as you could tell from just how excited I got, but extremely excited for her, and then meeting with her afterward, I tell you what's
gott meeting with her afterwards. She was the most humble person on the planet.
Here. I am just trying to hype her up, say, Maddie, I can't believe he just hit that shot. How does that feel? And she's like, I'm just happy I can do it for my teammates. And I'm like, okay, just you're just just exude humility right here. Incredible stuff. But overall, Scott so so cool, great, great opportunity, and obviously doing it, like you said against the BYU Cougar is amazing.
Yeah, you know, it's it's fascinating to watch this rivalry for me, you know, it's been around a long time and it's never been at a level that it is now. You know, in Power four conferences, you you had, you know, you're competing against each other in all these different sports and and what's fast the most fascinating thing to me is it certainly it certainly makes victories seem greater and defeats seem worse. Excuse me, wow, I I had had
something go down the wrong tube Therehale. I'm getting so emotional about this rivalry thing, you know, it's just tearing up my eyes. But it's it's you know, it's so like the football season this last year was just it was it was just it was such a heartbreaking season. But it you know, if I'm being completely candid, it was worse because the folks down south were having such
a great year. And and I have to it brings out a different intensity, uh to to your you know, your association with a conference, to your rival, and I wonder if it brings out, you know, a desire to, hey, we don't want to lose to these guys, so we need to up our game.
I honestly believe all of that. And here's why you're seeing perfect examples of that all throughout sports this year. You think about the football game that you were calling. Utah was not having a good year. They did not have a good year. Buyu having a tremendous year, and they go and they have a chance to win that football game, and you know, some of us on the Utah side definitely thinks it should have gone one way.
Then it ended up not going that way, but Utah raised their game to play against EYU because of how badly they wanted to win that game. You then fast forward to the to the men's basketball game to where, in all honesty, Utah it's a little bit struggling. That's a severe understatement I'll say that, but struggling on the basketball floor.
B YU.
On the on the other hand, especially now winning seven eight straight games, Now, somehow Utah was able to to really focus in at the Huntsman Center and get the job done in overtime. Sure it was an ugly game with free throws and all that not dropping, but you think of how the the Utah men were able to raise their level of play. And even on the women's side, b YU is having a down year, I'll stay that very very softly. They're they're they're not very good this year.
But both times that the women's team played the YU this year, they were excellent games. Obviously the overtime game, the half court buzzer beater at the Huntsman Center. Utah struggled to shoot the basketball in that game. Then the one down at the Merriott Center, a game that at
the time Utah was playing very good basketball. BUYU was not playing very good basketball, and they brought everything to that game and to the point where what the lady for by you actually had a chance late in that game. And so just to kind of sum it all up, I mean, that's those are just some examples of sporting events.
Just this year to show that while you might not be having good seasons, everybody who plays those sports and plays against those you know, the BYU Cougars from Utah, everybody in that rivalry game brings it every single time they play that game. Again, just just perfect examples of it this year. I love the rivalry. So extremely excited that it's back in conference and that we can talk about it every single year rather than you know, talk about it out of conference, especially in the football ti
where we didn't play it for so many years. Just extremely happy to have it back. And you know, you definitely love love to hate each other is really the best way to word that. You obviously played in the rivalry game when you were playing at college, you played the YU, so I know you have a certain kind of hatred that for that program, so you obviously can speak to it a little bit more than I could. But goodness, I'm again just so happy that it's back.
Yeah, I am too, And I think rivalries are such a great part of college sports and in sports in general. You know, it just it does, it brings out the best it you really, you know, you just don't want to lose, and so you figure out you figure out how to get it done. The women, of course, had an early exit from the Big Twelve Championship. Surprising, you know what went on there and what does this mean moving forward for the NCAA tournament.
So I would definitely say surprising in the sense that you know, Texas Tech came into that game fourteen seed in the Big Twelve tournament, a team that only won four games total in conference play. We did play them in love it and it was a tough game, a game that Utah kind of had to crawl and scrape
just to get the victory down there. So we knew that it was going to be at least a tougher game than it probably would have been had Kansas and won that game in their first round matchup, So we came in at least out broadcasters Miley and myself came
in expecting it to be a tough game. Utah historically has struggled with pressure with ball pressure, especially in the full court, and while they didn't turn the ball over in the full court grass, it felt as though Utah when they crossed half court, we're just completely out of sorts. The entire game against Texas Tech yesterday to where it took them a long time to get into their offense, and this is a team that wants to get moving quickly and they just for some reason couldn't do it.
A lot of stagnation where the ball was just being moved around the horn, not a lot of attacking the basket, especially in the second half. And the best way I could word it is that Texas Tech dictated every single part of that game yesterday, especially the second quarter where Utah couldn't hit anything with Texas Tech kind of found some rhythm. Then in the second half, Utah was starting
to find their offense but couldn't get stops. Texas Tech went seven to ten and a third quarter and by it was a little bit too late for Utaha crawl back. They made some efforts late, but things just didn't go their way. And in alhan Ste I believe now, at least in my opinion, with this loss to a team that should have beaten, I believe that Utah was kind of flirting with that ex potential seven line on the
NTA Tournament. I believe that with that loss, they're probably going to drop to an eight to nine slot, which means that in the women's side, the way that it works is the the post sixteen seeds host the first and second round of the Incative Way tournament. So what that would mean is if they're in that eighth slot, Utah would get an eight nine matchup and then they would then play the potential number one seed at their
own place. So the way you could look at this is which is hypothetically say u c l A is the team that hosts, we go to u c LA. We would then have to play the Ruins at poly Pavilion for a chance to advance to the sweet sixteen. Well you could look at that and say, you know that that might be a little unfair because they're already you know, they're they're already the better team and getting any opportunity to host their own, you know, postseason tournament matchup.
We learned that last year with Nzaga at the home court advantage four. Againzaga the four seed definitely helped them last year. But you know what, that's just the way that the women's game happens. And you know, you went again with that lot. I feel that we fall into that eight ninth spot to potentially having to play number one seed, We're not going to find out those selection Sunday,
which is in about nine days from now. The n WA tournament for the women starts up exactly two weeks from today, So you thought it a nice long break to where they need to kind of get things right because they have lost through their last five games. Their last three games have not been good for them, especially on the offensive of the basketball, all three games shooting
below forty percent. So a lot to work on as they gear up for, you know, for a hopeful postseason tournament NTAA tournament run in starting up the two weeks.
So, Gavin Peterson your assessment, you know, new coach, first year, what do you think?
So, Gavin obviously kind of came into a situation to where I would pull a good situation in the sense.
That he was already part of the program, had been a part of the program for the last ten years with Lynn Roberts, and when Lynn got the opportunity to go to the WNBA, obviously she took that because she gets to a coach at.
The high left for her.
Do you like that move?
I believe it has. It has been yet. I've actually talked to her a few times ever since that took place, and in her own words, how can you not take it right? So it's been a good transition for her. Obviously, there's not a lot going on other than her trying to go out, not really recruit, but try to find players to bring into the franchise and try to get things running for when May kicks around and then when
they start their training camp and everything like that. So I feel that she's in a tremendous job so far and kind of indompreting herself. In fact, the GM for the LA Sports is actually at the game on Saturday against BYU, so she's obviously trying to show her how great Utah Athletics is as well.
So from that.
Standpoint, awesome. But then from the Gavin standpoint, these players were already bought in. These players were already ready to play for a coach, and when Davin Peterson stepped in, it felt super seamless. And I feel as though it's gone extramely well. Obviously, these last you know, five games haven't been haven't been great, but have an overall season,
I would absolutely say that it's been very successful. In Utah should be extremely happy to have Devin at the Helm for the foreseeable future.
So what does a fourteen million dollar gift mean for the women's sports program up on the hill.
I think what that means. I mean, I'm definitely no expert in kind of you know where the money will be dispersed. What that means is it gives it gives women the opportunity to be able to use that fundage and hopefully grow their sports, because this is obviously the
women's sports are continually growing. Gymnastics has been massive at the University of Utah for so many years, but that's been really the only program that has been consistently attracting fans, and so I believe that the gift will be an opportunity for the women's programs to hopefully bring more eyes to them. And you know, again not not quite an next be excited to see, you know, where that fourteen million will be dispersed and how the women's programs can continue to grow at Utah.
Hey, Tyson, really appreciate you tuning in and joining us today. It's always fun to catch up and talk to you. And I have a feeling that maybe this longer break here, Mike, get a reset and that these women go on a long old run through the through the NCAA tournament. So have a great rest here Friday, and thanks for thanks for coming on.
Wonderful. Thank you, Scott, appreciate your brother,