Lynne Roberts: I’m Incredibly Proud Of My Team

GREENSVILLE, SC- All good things must come to an end, even Utah women’s basketball’s historic season. Despite a tough loss to LSU in the Sweet 16, head coach Lynne Roberts could only speak about how proud she is of the Utes and all they have accomplished.

Those who understand the sports culture in Salt Lake City, and specifically the University of Utah Athletics know most fans’ fandom of the Utes started with Utah basketball. However, Utah men’s basketball has been down for a while now.

Utah football certainly has helped fill the void by giving fans something (sort of) new to be excited for and dream about, and the Red Rocks are a steady force year in and year out. Still, for those who grew up with the Runnin’ Utes and their late March runs- despite all the greatness happening in many other Utah sports, something has been missing.

☑️Shattered attendance record in our PAC-12 era (9,611)
☑️Pac-12 Regular Season Champs
☑️ Undefeated at home
☑️ Sweet 16

Hard end to an unforgettable season, thank YOU Ute fans for an incredible ride! Counting down the days…❤️ pic.twitter.com/VWz5YmBY3A

— Utah Women’s Basketball (@UTAHWBB) March 25, 2023

Enter Utah women’s basketball and their meteoric rise over the past two seasons now not only internally as a team, but as a new sports staple for Ute fans to enjoy and cheer on- no wonder Roberts was beaming despite the sting of a close loss.

A Season Of Firsts But Not Onlys

Where does one even begin when talking about the 2023 Utah women’s basketball squad?

12 consecutive weeks in the AP Top 10- a program first. A program high No. 3 ranking. Beating Stanford for only the second time in program history. Going undefeated at home. Earning a share of the Pac-12 Title for the first time ever. Sweeping the Pac-12 postseason awards. Being up for numerous national postseason awards. Making the Sweet 16 for the first time since 2006. 

Maybe the most important one of all though was filling the Huntsman Center and giving fans the thrill of college basketball again while making new fans of college hoops along the way.

A great season comes to an end at the #Sweet16 for @UTAHWBB. They’ll be back next year.#GoUtes #MarchMadness pic.twitter.com/q2uy1Qpkxw

— Michelle Bodkin (@BodkinKSLsports) March 24, 2023

“I’m incredibly proud of my team,” Roberts said. “The season that we had. I just told them there is no other locker room in the world I’d rather be in with the way they compete, the way they fight, but maybe most of all the way they conduct themselves. This is just an incredible group that represents the University of Utah so well and it’s an honor to be their coach.”

Lucky enough for all of us in Salt Lake is that this group should be back in its entirety in 2024 with a few new additions as well. Utah basketball is back, baby.

Michelle Bodkin is the Utah Utes Insider for KSLsports.com and host of both the Crimson Corner Podcast (SUBSCRIBE) and The Saturday Show (Saturday from 10 a.m.–12 p.m.) on The KSL Sports Zone. Follow her on Twitter and Instagram: @BodkinKSLsports

Follow @bodkinkslsports