After a rough year one, Alex Jensen and Utah basketball start fresh.
The tradition continues! It’s another year of our countdown of the top 100 preseason teams in college basketball until the start of the season. Each day, we will reveal the next team until we reach the team slotted at number one. Up next: Utah basketball.
In a surprise move, Utah basketball moved on from Craig Smith and replaced him with alum Alex Jensen. It’s still too early to tell if that was the right decision, but year one was ugly for the Utes. It started in the second game of the year, where they needed overtime to beat Weber State at home, then would lose back-to-back games in the non-conference against Cal Poly and Grand Canyon. Somehow it would get worse, starting 1-11 in conference play before finishing 2-16, last in the Big 12.
They clear house this year, returning just one player from last year’s roster. To replace them, they bring in several transfers and international players in hopes that they can succeed. Utah basketball started in-state, bringing in Utah Valley’s Jackson Holcombe to pair with another talented mid-major player in TJ Burch. They also get back Babacar Faye for his 6th year, who redshirted last year after suffering a season-ending injury.
Then, there’s Noam Yaacov, a guard from Israel who put up impressive numbers in Belgium last year. He’s a player who some consider a draft prospect, and he can turn this team around. They also add Alec Anigbata to improve their bench depth, something that was a major issue last year.
Is this a Big 12 caliber roster? I think many people would answer no, but it could be good enough to compete, and we’ll really get to see if Alex Jensen has what it takes to coach at this level.
Head coach: Alex Jensen (2nd season overall, both at Utah)
2024-25 record: 10-22 (2-16)
2025 postseason finish: No tournament
Notable departures:
- Terrence Brown (19.9 PPG, 2.4 RPG, 3.8 APG)
- Don McHenry (17.0 PPG, 2.8 RPG, 1.8 APG)
- Keanu Dawes (12.5 PPG, 8.8 RPG, 2.2 APG)
- Seydou Traore (9.0 PPG, 3.4 RPG, 2.0 APG)
Notable non-conference games:
- Charleston Classic (Nov. 20 & 22)
- vs. Cal (Dec. 2)
- vs. Washington (TBD)
Projected Rotation
PG: TJ Burch (6-1, Jr.)
2025-26 stats: 12.4 PPG, 2.4 RPG, 3.6 APG, 2.6 SPG, 45.7 FG%, 34.7 3P%, 73.3 FT% (Wright State)
SG: Noam Yaacov (6-1, Fr.)
2025-26 stats: 18.2 PPG, 4.1 RPG, 5.8 APG, 1.1 SPG, 50.3 FG%, 39.0 3P%, 77.7 FT% (Belgium)
SF: Taison Chatman (6-4, Jr.)
2025-26 stats: 4.3 PPG, 1.2 RPG, 0.8 APG, 0.4 SPG, 46.0 FG%, 47.1 3P%, 85.0 FT% (Ohio State)
PF: Jackson Holcombe (6-7, Jr.)
2025-26 stats: 16.0 PPG, 7.0 RPG, 3.6 APG, 2.2 SPG, 1.3 BPG, 53.0 FG%, 68.2 FT% (Utah Valley)
C: Babacar Faye (6-9, Sr.)
Missed 2025-26 season
2024-25 stats: 15.2 PPG, 7.8 RPG, 0.7 APG, 1.1 SPG, 0.7 BPG, 53.7 FG%, 38.5 3P%, 80.4 FT% (Western Kentucky)
6: Zati Loubaki (6-9, Jr.)
2025-26 stats: 11.4 PPG, 5.2 RPG, 1.4 APG, 52.0 FG%, 42.5 3P%, 77.0 FT% (Trinity Valley CC)
7: Malek Gomma (6-8, Sr.)
2025-26 stats: 8.0 PPG, 6.9 RPG, 1.4 APG, 0.6 SPG, 53.6 FG% (Weber State)
8: Obomate Abbey (6-0, So.)
2025-26 stats: 2.5 PPG, 1.6 RPG, 2.2 APG, 0.4 SPG, 81.0 FT%
9: Alec Anigbata (6-8, Fr.)
2025-26 stats: 5.6 PPG, 1.7 RPG, 0.6 APG, 0.8 SPG, 0.6 BPG, 45.4 FG%, 38.3 3P%, 65.0 FT% (Germany)
10: Styles Clemmons (6-1, Fr.)
Unranked Freshman
Utah Basketball team MVP: Jackson Holcombe
Holcombe is a great example of patience being rewarded in college basketball. His freshman year, he redshirted at Utah Valley. Then, he came back and played 15 minutes a game, averaging a modest 5.3 PPG and 3.5 RPG. Last year, he got the keys handed to him, and he thrived, averaging 16.0 PPG, 7.0 RPG, and 2.2 BPG. He led the team in all three categories, took his team to a regular season title, and earned All-WAC honors.
Now, he takes the leap to the Big 12, where he shouldn’t take a step back. We didn’t get to see him play any power conference-level teams last year, but he did score 22 points against Boise State and 17 points, 10 rebounds, and 5 assists against San Diego State.
He’s a terrific defender and knows his game very well offensively. Late in the season, he got to the line at an insanely high rate, shooting 10+ free throws in three of his last four games and shooting at a 73% rate. He’s a great player to raise Utah’s floor, something that they desperately need when they face the Big 12 18 times.
Utah Basketball make-or-break player: Noam Yaacov
Yaacov is a terrific basketball player and put together an impressive season for his team Oostende last year. He averaged 18-4-5, leading his team to the championship game and earning an MVP finalist selection. He had a ton of success previously playing in Israel, showing that no matter where he goes, he can win and hold his own.
Now, he enters college basketball, arguably his toughest test yet. He plays like a European; he’s very calculated and relies on basketball IQ more than sheer athleticism. Utah doesn’t have an obvious ball-dominant guard like Terrence Brown last year, so that could fall on Yaacov, where he can lead the offense and thrive. However, as we see with many Europeans and International recruits, it’s a whole different game, and sometimes it takes a year or more to succeed at this level.
Yaacov’s play doesn’t affect their floor too much, but it significantly impacts their ceiling for better or for worse. Keep an eye on him during non-conference play, because he can certainly be one to watch.
Stat to know: Opponent shooting percentage
Utah basketball was horrendous defensively last year. They allowed 79.1 PPG, 302nd in college basketball. A big reason why is because opponents rarely had any difficult shots. They shot 48.0% from the field, 332nd in college basketball, the worst in the Big 12, and the 2nd worst amongst Power 5 schools. While Don McHenry and Terrence Brown were great offensive players, they were essentially hopeless defensively, leading to high-scoring battles and ultimately a high number of losses.
This team should be much better defensively. Faye and Holcombe are both positive defenders, and TJ Burch finished 8th in college basketball in steals per game. This team isn’t going to finish anywhere near the top of the country in defensive efficiency, but they should be much improved from last year, which is a big step in the right direction.
Utah Basketball 2026-27 projections
Projected conference finish: 15th in Big 12
Projected postseason ceiling: NCAA Tournament Round of 64 exit / NIT appearance