SALT LAKE CITY—Alex Jensen and his Utah basketball program have secured the commitment from Elmeri Abbey, a point guard from Finland. He becomes the ninth addition to the new Runnin’ Utes roster.

This continues Utah’s roster overhaul, which has featured mostly transfer portal activity. Abbey is the first international player to commit to Jensen and the Utes.

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Elmeri Abbey commits to the Runnin’ Utes

This is a significant addition for Utah, as Abbey helps to solidify the depth in the backcourt, more specifically point guard.

Abbey has played for Jyvaskyla Basketball Academy in Finland’s top basketball league. There the 6-foot, 180-pound guard played in 27 games and averaged 19.5 points, 5.8 rebounds, and 5.1 assists in 26.8 minutes of action.

Regarding his efficiency, Abbey averaged 48.5% shooting from the field, including 27.1% from 3-point range and 56.9% inside the arc. Not the most explosive off the ground, Abbey is still a good athlete for the position. He can get into the paint consistently and finish around the rim creatively.

More importantly, Abbey will add to the defensive identity that Jensen hopes to build.  The Finnish product averaged 2.7 steals per game in league play, and just has the sort of foot speed and toughness to be a good defender.

Alex Jensen and staff continue to build out the 2025-26 roster

He joins Babacar Faye, Don McHenry, Seydou Traore, Jakhi Howard, Elijah Moore, James Okonkwo, Kendyl Sanders, and Terrence Brown as Utah’s offseason additions.

That brings Utah’s roster to a total of 12 players, leaving three open spots. The Runnin’ Utes have added some solid pieces and must continue to secure players who will help them compete in the Big 12 next season.

More importantly, though, Utah should focus on players that have room, in terms of potential and eligibility, to grow under Jensen and his staff.

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Setting the foundation: Utah’s culture starts with defense

Roster building is urgent—but culture is permanent. Jensen isn’t just recruiting players. He’s building a program, and that starts with identity. For Utah, that identity will start on the defensive end.

“I want to build something, I don’t want to build a new team every year, but build some continuity that way,” Alex Jensen said in an interview with NCAA reporter Andy Katz.

“Watching Houston make their run, Kelvin [Sampson] does such a good job, he gets his guys to play so hard,” Jensen shared.  “That’s something the assistants I’ve hired talk about. That’s who we measure ourselves to and we’ve got to get kids that are tough like that and compete like them.”

In Jensen’s vision, the Runnin’ Utes will be a disciplined, gritty, tough, defensive-minded program. Think closeouts with purpose. Rotations with urgency. Contests without fouling. Utah isn’t going to outgun everyone—they’ll out-tough them.

Steve Bartle is the Utah insider for KSL Sports. He hosts The Utah Blockcast (SUBSCRIBE) and appears on KSL Sports Zone to break down the Utes. You can follow him on X for the latest Utah updates and game analysis.

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