Utah ends regular season with letdown loss to Oregon, and injury to Branden Carlson

The Runnin' Utes lost a close battle against Oregon to close out the regular season

The Utah Utes were viewed as on the outside looking in for the upcoming NCAA Tournament heading into their final road trip of the season, but back-to-back losses will certainly hurt their chances.

The latest, which concluded their regular season, was a brutal one-point loss to Oregon. The Ducks were able to fend off Utah, winning 66-65, but the loss may have impacted Utah's season more than people realize. 

Early in the second half, Utah big man and leading scorer Branden Carlson who was fresh off of scoring 40 points went down with an injury. While getting physical in the post with Oregon's center N'faly Dante, it appeared that Dante latched onto Carlson's arm and pulled with full force and appeared to hurt his elbow.

The refs took a look at the play after, but deemed there wasn't any intention.

Head coach Craig Smith called it a "basketball play" and didn't have any update about Carlson who didn't return to action, after the game.

“Obviously you know, got to talk to our athletic trainer and then see what the next step is, if he has to go in and see the doctor when we get back, or what have you,” Smith said.

Utah MBB :: Ben Lonergan/The Register-Guard / USA TODAY NETWORK

Losing Carlson took the wind of Utah's sails as they saw a 45-40 lead evaporate before their eyes. They went on a 10-0 run to take the lead, but Utah's tenacity on defense kept them in the game.

The Runnin' Utes had a chance at the end, but came up short. Despite playing just 22 minutes in a game where he likely would have played the whole game or close to it, Carlson finished with 19 points. Deivon Smith added 15 points, while Gabe Madsen added 14 of his own.

Dante had a double-double for Oregon, putting up 19 points and grabbing 12 boards as his strong surge in the second half made up for an uncharacteristic cold night from Jackson Shelstad and Jermaine Couisnard.

Utah ends the regular season as the No. 6 seed in the Pac-12 Tournament, and will open the tournament against No. 11 Arizona State on Wednesday. The winner plays No. 3 Colorado.