MAUI INVITATIONAL : Jessie Helps Utes Upset Hoosiers

Rick Majerus thought his Utah team could beat No. 11 Indiana coming into the Maui Invitational. He still thought it when the Utes were saddled by foul trouble. He was really proud when they did.

“We rode some emotion. It was a very hard-fought game and our guys played especially hard,” Majerus said Monday night after the Utes defeated Indiana, 77-72, in the opening round of the eight-team tournament at Lahaina. “We had foul trouble and I tried some Mickey Mouse zones and things to stem the bleeding but I was just so proud of the way our guys stayed in there and played down the stretch.”

Brandon Jessie, the son of former Ram receiver Ron Jessie, led the Utes with 23 points. He is a transfer from Ventura Junior College, where the Lakers’ Cedric Ceballos was a JC All-American.

Utah never led until Alex Jensen made two free throws with 4:25 left to make the score 61-60.

The Utes trailed at halftime, 36-32, and pulled even at 55-55 with 8:23 left.

Down the stretch, Indiana tied the game twice but could never take the lead and Utah had it for good at 65-63 on a drive by Van Horn with 3:00 left. The closest the Hoosiers got the rest of the way was three points, but both times Jessie and Keith Van Horn made both ends of a one and one.

It was Van Horn, the Utes’ leading scorer last season, whom Indiana Coach Bob Knight praised the most after the game.

“I told our guys when we started talking about Utah that we might not see a forward that good for the rest of the year,” Knight said. “Utah played very well the last five minutes. Van Horn did what outstanding players do in a big game and that’s make big plays.”

Van Horn, who played only seven minutes in the first half because of foul trouble, finished with 15 points. He is a sophomore on a frontline that includes two freshmen, Ben Helmeth and Michael Doleac, who each scored 13.

“Those freshmen did some job,” Majerus said. “I’m just really proud of those kids.”

Alan Henderson led Indiana with 28 and accounted for 17 of the Hoosiers’ 36 points in the second half. Indiana made only 17 of 30 foul shots in the second half.

“I thought we would have a tough time with Utah but I didn’t necessarily think we would lose to them,” Knight said.

Utah will play No. 7 Maryland in the semifinals tonight. The Terrapins easily handled Chaminade, 95-67. Joe Smith scored 26 points to lead Maryland, which blew the game open with a 32-7 spurt midway through the second half.

In another first-round game, Mario Bennett was 12 for 13 from the field and scored 27 points to lead Arizona State to a 103-73 victory over Texas A&M.; The Sun Devils will play No. 13 Michigan, which defeated upset-minded Tulane, 75-73.