- Utah's men open Nov. 2 against Long Beach State with an almost entirely new roster led by all-conference transfers Jackson Holcombe, TJ Burch and Trey Campbell. Utah's women, back from a fifth straight postseason, open Nov. 3 against Eastern Washington.
- Utah Women's Basketball, Utah Men's Basketball connect back to University of Utah and the wider basketball picture.
- The story is backed by 34 sources and a visible last-verified date.
October 17, 2026
October 17, 2026
5 min / 1,097 words
34 official links
Both University of Utah basketball programs begin their third Big 12 seasons in the first week of November, and both start at home in the Jon M. Huntsman Center. The men open on Monday, November 2, against Long Beach State at 7 p.m. MT on ESPN+. The women open on Tuesday, November 3, against Eastern Washington at 6 p.m. MT, also on ESPN+. This preview covers Utah men's basketball and Utah women's basketball, from the official 2026-27 rosters, schedules and releases read on October 16.
Who coaches Utah basketball in 2026-27?
Alex Jensen coaches the men. Utah named him the 17th head coach in program history on March 6, 2025, and its October 13 release calls him a second-year head coach. Jensen came home from the NBA, where he spent 10 seasons on the Utah Jazz staff and two with the Dallas Mavericks. His Utah biography also notes that he was Utah's Mr. Basketball at Viewmont High School in 1994 and won the first Mountain West Player of the Year award as a Ute in 2000.
Gavin Petersen coaches the women. Utah's October 16 release says he enters his third season as head coach and his 12th at Utah overall, after being named head coach on November 19, 2024. His staff adds a familiar name: former Ute Maty Wilke is listed as an assistant coach in her first year on staff.
Men: a roster built on all-conference transfers
Utah went 10-22 and 2-16 in the Big 12 last season, ending with a 73-66 loss to Cincinnati in the first round of the Big 12 tournament on March 10. Jensen's answer was a near-total rebuild. Only three players return from the 2025-26 roster: sophomore guards Obomate Abbey of Finland and Lucas Langarita of Spain, and forward Babacar Faye, who redshirted last season through injury.
The newcomers arrive with honors. Jackson Holcombe comes from Utah Valley, where his Utah biography says he was First Team All-WAC, made the WAC All-Defensive and All-Tournament teams, led the Wolverines in scoring (16.0 points), rebounds (7.0) and steals (2.2) a game, and broke UVU's single-season record with 75 steals. TJ Burch comes from Wright State as the 2026 Horizon League Defensive Player of the Year and Newcomer of the Year, a First Team All-Horizon pick whose 88 steals ranked third in the NCAA. Trey Campbell, a fifth-year guard from Northern Iowa, was the 2026 Missouri Valley Conference Tournament Most Outstanding Player and a two-time All-MVC selection.
The frontcourt includes center Malek Gomma, who played all 32 games for Weber State last season, and Faye, who averaged 15.2 points at Western Kentucky in 2024-25 before his injury redshirt at Utah. Utah has already seen the guards together: in a 79-69 exhibition win at UNLV on October 7, Campbell scored 17 and Burch had 16 points, five rebounds and four steals, per Utah's release. Holcombe and freshman forward Alec Anigbata, who helped Ratiopharm Ulm reach the German BBL final, travel with Jensen to Big 12 Media Days in Kansas City on October 20.
Women: Chyra Evans and a fifth straight postseason
Utah's women went 19-13 and 10-8 in the Big 12 last season. They lost to BYU in the Big 12 tournament on March 5 and to Eastern Kentucky in the first round of the WBIT on March 19, which Utah's release counts as the program's fifth consecutive postseason appearance.
Senior forward Chyra Evans, a Michigan transfer from Newcastle, Australia, is the anchor. She started all 31 games she played, averaged 8.2 points and 5.1 rebounds, and led the Utes with a .502 field-goal percentage and 26 blocks, per the official statistics. Her biography adds a career-high 13 rebounds in the WBIT game. Sophomore forward Evelina Otto of Latvia also returns after scoring 15 points in her college debut, along with Kamryn Mafua and Ella Todd, who both missed time through injury.
The incoming group is experienced. Filipa Barros, a redshirt senior guard from Portugal, was First Team All-WAC and the WAC Tournament Most Outstanding Player at California Baptist. Olivia Bradley averaged 13.2 points and 5.7 rebounds at UC Santa Barbara. Lena Girardi shot 39.8 percent from three at Oklahoma State, and Elise Livingston of Millville, Utah, started 27 games at Utah State. Evans, Girardi and Barros represent Utah with Petersen at Big 12 Media Day on October 20.
Preseason dates and the opening stretch
The men play two more exhibitions: at Nevada on October 17 at 2 p.m. on MW+, and at home against Oregon on October 21 at 6:30 p.m. on ESPN+, which Utah's release calls the lone home exhibition. The Long Beach State opener is the first of a five-game homestand and Long Beach State's first visit to Utah since 2001, per Utah's schedule releases. Twelve of the 14 non-conference games are at home; the other two are neutral-site games at the Charleston Classic against Dayton (November 20) and Minnesota (November 22), both on ESPN2.
The women host Idaho in an exhibition on October 18 at 2 p.m. After the Eastern Washington opener they host Colorado State (November 6) and Bethune-Cookman (November 9), and later travel to the Baha Mar Pink Flamingo Championship in Nassau to play Iowa on November 23 and Miami on November 25.
How to watch Utah basketball
Most men's games stream on ESPN+, and Utah's October 13 release says 10 of the 18 Big 12 games are on a linear network, including the game at BYU on January 16 on TNT. As of Oct. 16, BYU visits the Huntsman Center on February 6. Men's radio is on ESPN 700. Every women's home game streams on ESPN+, and women's radio is on ESPN 700 and 92.1 FM with new play-by-play voice Spencer McLaughlin. Single-game tickets are on Utah's official ticket site, and women's season tickets cost $100, per Utah's October 16 release. Every game day, the Utah sports schedule lists who is playing.
Key facts:
- Men's opener: vs. Long Beach State, Mon., Nov. 2, 7 p.m. MT, Huntsman Center, ESPN+
- Women's opener: vs. Eastern Washington, Tue., Nov. 3, 6 p.m. MT, Huntsman Center, ESPN+
- Coaches: Alex Jensen (men, second season); Gavin Petersen (women, third season)
- Conference: Big 12, third season for both programs
- 2025-26 records: men 10-22 (2-16 Big 12); women 19-13 (10-8 Big 12), WBIT first round
- Men's newcomers: Jackson Holcombe (First Team All-WAC), TJ Burch (Horizon League Defensive Player of the Year), Trey Campbell (MVC Tournament Most Outstanding Player)
- Women's returner to know: Chyra Evans, team-high .502 field-goal percentage and 26 blocks in 2025-26
- Rivalry dates: men at BYU Jan. 16 (TNT), BYU at Utah Feb. 6
