Even though Bryce Wills is the youngest player in the Pac-12 and the seventh youngest in Division I basketball, he’s “physically as mature as anybody on our team,” Stanford head coach Jerod Haase said.

Wills was 17 when he arrived on the Farm and turned 18 on Oct. 13.

The Cardinal coaches fell in love with him when he was a sophomore at Iona Prep in New Rochelle, N.Y. He also was a teammate of another current Stanford guard, Cormac Ryan, on the New York Rens AAU team.

Wills originally planned to enter college in 2019, thinking he’d need a postgraduate year to get stronger physically. In November 2017, however, he told college coaches he was ready to switch to the 2018 incoming class.

“He was always a kid with a high upside,” said Cardinal associate head coach Adam Cohen, who developed relationships with Wills and Ryan. “We loved his versatility and length. Great family, great coaches, great student — so he was an easy one for us to recruit.”

Wills competed for the USA Select team in the Albert Schweitzer Tournament at the Under-18 FIBA World Cup in Mannheim, Germany, last spring.

Thursday’s game Who: Utah (9-8, 3-2 Pac-12) at Stanford (9-9, 2-4) Where: Maples Pavilion When: 6 p.m. TV: P12Net

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The 6-foot-6 guard can play the point, shooting guard, small forward, even power forward on occasion, according to Haase. As he has improved, he has steadily gotten more playing time.

On Saturday, with starters KZ Okpala (back spasms) and Ryan (ankle) out, Wills had a season-high 13 points, eight rebounds, three assists and no turnovers in 31 minutes as the Cardinal beat Washington State 78-66.

“Freshman year has been tough for me,” he said. “I think playing with confidence is what separates me. That started to show in the last game.”

He demonstrated why point guard Daejon Davis dubbed him “Beastie,” for his physical attributes, including his strength, leaping ability and extraordinary wing span.

Many freshmen have trouble adjusting to the speed of the college game. That hasn’t been a problem for Wills, he said.

“I’d say the biggest hurdle for me has been attention to detail, how every single possession matters, every single thing you do matters in the outcome of the game,” he said.

Another thing he’s learning, Haase said, is not to over-penetrate and commit turnovers. In high school and club ball, he didn’t have to confront 7-footers in the paint as he does in college. He’s still figuring it out, Haase said.

Another area of growth, Haase said, is “if it’s a good look from (3-point range) and the right time on the shot clock, to make sure he’s looking to shoot the basketball. His comfort level, I think, is going up and up and up.”

As a defender, Wills is, well, Beastie. That’s what will make him a valuable member of the rotation even when his shots aren’t falling.

“We really like what he’s going to become,” Cohen said.

Averaging 4.4 points a game, Wills has started 10 games and presumably will start again Thursday night if Ryan can’t go when the Cardinal (9-9, 2-4 Pac-12) host Utah (9-8, 3-2). Okpala is expected to return to action.

Utah head coach Larry Krystkowiak lost four starters from the 2017-18 team that tied for third place in the Pac-12 last season and reached the NIT championship game. Senior guard Sedrick Barefield, who started his college career at SMU, leads the Utes with a 15.8-point average.

“He’s as good a player as there is in the conference right now,” Haase said.

Utah finished among the conference’s top four each of the previous four seasons but has lost six straight at Maples Pavilion, five since joining the Pac-12. Its last win there was in 1971. The Utes lead the conference in field-goal shooting (46.7 percent) and three-point shooting (37.1).

Tom FitzGerald is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: tfitzgerald@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @tomgfitzgerald