although both men showed signs of tiredness in their second mat

SALT LAKE CITY -- Utah has three players that hail from the state of Michigan and the trio made all the difference against UC Riverside.We just have a little grit to ourselves and we always try and play hard. We get after it, Kyle Kuzma (Flint, Michigan) said.Lorenzo Bonam (Inkster, Michigan) scored a career-high 21 points and Kuzma added 18 to help Utah run past the Highlanders 85-67 on Friday night.Even freshman wing Devon Daniels (Battle Creek, Michigan) got into the act with 14 points and 11 rebounds and sneaked a dig on Kuzma during the post-game press conference.Yep, me and `Zo are pretty tough but I dont know about Koozy, Daniels said with a laugh.Freshman center Jayce Johnson scored 12 points and grabbed nine rebounds for the Utes, who had a 32-point advantage in points scored in the paint.Chance Murray had 17 points and backcourt mate Dikymbe Martin added 15 for the Highlanders (1-3), who were tied with the Utes at 21 midway through the first half. The Highlanders converted 10 of their 21 3-point attempts.Our guards played incredible but Utahs length just really bothered us at the rim, UCR coach Dennis Cutts said.JoJo Zamora hit a 3-pointer to start an 11-0 run that ended shortly before halftime -- the Highlanders struggled to find the lanes that had been available earlier in the game while the Utes started following any misses with putbacks.We just got stops, that was the biggest thing, Kuzma said. Because then we can run and score in transition. That was our mindset for the rest of the game.Utah (4-0) used a 10-0 run that bridged the halves to extend its advantage to 54-34 and coasted from there. To cap the surge, Daniels took a pass from Parker Van Dyke and made a layup with 17:08 to play.Thats how I play. I just attack my opponent . I go hard to the rim, Daniels said.Though the Highlanders couldnt get closer than 15 points down the stretch, they kept Utahs starters in the game until the final minutes, much longer than they played previously this season.BIG PICTUREUC Riverside: Before the game, Cutts said he hopes these tough early games pay dividends in Big West Conference play, where the Highlanders are picked to finish seventh. Despite the lopsided results, he said his players are a confident bunch and are learning game by game.Utah: After the Utes won their first three games by an average of 43 points, the Highlanders provided more resistance and presented a bit more size. With just two returners with significant experience -- Kuzma and Bonam -- the Utes scheduled to avoid any heavyweights before facing Butler next Monday. Thats when Utah will test just how well its young team has gelled.STAT OF THE NIGHTThe Utes dominated the rebounding tally 49-32, including 17 offensive boards. Bonam had a career-best 10 rebounds.REFERENCE POINTTwo years ago, the Highlanders lost to Utah 88-42. We use this game as a reference point of how hard to play and how to play the right way. Well refer to this all year long, Cutts said.Murray added, We came with the right mindset and we played hard. Wed like to have played a bit better but I like the direction were headed.UP NEXTUC Riverside continues its road-heavy start to the season with a trip to UCLA on Wednesday.Utah will host Butler on Monday, essentially the Utes first formidable opponent of the season. The Bulldogs have won their first six games, including a 69-65 win over No. 8 Arizona on a neutral court Friday night. Cheap Jerseys From China . -- The Portland Timbers and Real Salt Lake played to a 0-0 tie Saturday night that left the top of the Western Conference standings unchanged. China Jerseys Wholesale . Spiller left Week 3s 27-20 loss to the New York Jets with a thigh injury, but fully practiced with the team all week and expects to be ready to go on Sunday. https://www.chinajerseyscheap.us/ . -- Nathan Pancel scored twice as the Sudbury Wolves defeated the North Bay Battalion 4-2 on Saturday in Ontario Hockey League action. China Jerseys Cheap . -- In a span of seven Washington Redskins offensive plays, Justin Tuck sacked Robert Griffin III four times. China Jerseys Stitched . The 26-year-old Ireland striker, who has four goals this season, has signed a three-and-a-half year contract with his new club.Phil Taylor moved three points clear at the top of the Premier League after starting the second phase with wins over Gary Anderson and James Wade in Sheffield. The Power kicked off the evening top of the standings with a one point advantage over Michael van Gerwen and made the most of playing twice to extend his lead with two strong victories. Premier League results - Night Ten James Wade 7-4 Raymond van Barnveld Gary Anderson 3-7 Phil Taylor Robert Thornton 5-7 Michael van Gerwen Adrian Lewis 6-6 Peter Wright Phil Taylor 7-4 James Wade Taylor said this week that he felt two wins would all but guarantee a return to the O2 for Finals Night in May after missing out last year and he delivered those victories on the opening night of the second phase of the tournament. First up for Taylor was defending Premier League champion and two-time defending world champion Gary Anderson and the Power clocked up an impressive 7-3 success after reeling off five successive legs after trailing 3-2.The Flying Scotsman missed chances to forge a 4-2 and that seemed to affect him as Taylor cruised through the remainder of the match to apply the pressure on Van Gerwen who was up next.The Dutchman responded by ending a run of three successive draws in a high-quality contest against a rejuvenated Robert Thornton. Michael van Gerwen was back to his best with a win over Robert Thornton (Pic: Lawrence Lustig) MVG recorded an average of 117.95 in his victory but was made to work hard by Thornton who fought back from 6-2 down to 6-5 and give himself a chance of an unlikely point - it was not to be for the Scot and Van Gerwen reduced the gap on Taylor back to just a point.However the Power was back in the final match of the evening to secure a valuable 7-4 victory over James Wade and a priceless lead aat the top of the table ahead of next weeks fixtures in Belfast.ddddddddddddTaylor was too strong for the Machine, although both men showed signs of tiredness in their second match of the evening.With scoring and finishing scrappy, Taylor looked to have done enough when he moved into a 5-1 lead as Wade wasted a string of chances. Premier League - Night 11 fixtures Robert Thornton v Peter Wright Raymond van Barneveld v Phil Taylor James Wade v Adrian Lewis Michael van Gerwen v Gary Anderson Raymond van Barneveld v Robert Thornton However the Machine fought back to 5-3 and 6-4 to remain in with a chance of a point before a ruthless Taylor closed out the match and a win that underlines the resurgence he has shown in an unbeaten run now stretching nine weeks.Im over the moon and its another four points and a step closer to getting into the play-offs, said Taylor.I think another one or two wins will put me through and thats what Im after.Gary Anderson was the first stepping point. At three-each it was a close match and then he let me in, and I took advantage of him. It was hard in the second match against James, its difficult but youve got to do it and to get the two points from that game is lovely.In the nights opening match, Wade had begun with a fine 7-4 victory over Raymond van Barneveld.Barney knew he needed victory to keep alive any slim hopes of a play-off place and the pair could not be separated until the 10th leg when Wade broke for the first time and a 6-4 advantage which he consolidated to win the match.Adrian Lewis and Peter Wright shared the points in a scrappy and disjointed affair. The first 10 legs went with throw before Snakebite looked to have secured a crucial break but somehow Jackpot managed to earn a share of the spoils. Also See: Premier League darts - as it happened When Mardle played Snakebite Fixtures/Results Premier League table ' ' '