I am getting feedback that I should not be using the terms CPU usage and utilization when talking about load averages. I will update the post later.
My understanding from my Solaris days was that CPU load is the number of processes queued for CPU time over the given period. It doesn't related to usage directly at all. (Other than higher cpu speed and io through out leads to a reduction in load because tasks finish quicker)
Re:Htop explained
by _TylerDurden_ on Saturday December 03, 2016 @04:52AM
(#13095123)
That's correct.
If I recall correctly the CPU usage would still be 100% but could go up to 200% if both cores are fully used.